A Republican ready to take a stand on behalf of democracy and law is no longer a Republican. Liz Cheney is the poster child for this.
The GOP has been opposed to democracy for at least half a century. And starting with Nixon, has been opposed to the rule of law as well. The only endgame I can see is a mass public revolt against Republicans, turning the Party into a tiny rump cast out into the political wilderness.
Sadly, I know that's not how things work in America today, where politics has been reduced to the level of rooting for your favorite sports team and the reasons for liking team R or D are about as well reasoned as liking the Yankees or Mets.
Please don’t overlook McConnell’s impact and influence on Republican Core Values- Win at all costs. His focus began with SCOTUS Justices and spread like ripple rings in a still ponds. It became Win at All Things the Senate decides - policy, budget and appointments. Yes, money was part of his hegemony but raw political power was the Silver Chalet.
Not even really Win at All Costs…they’ve been doing Prevent Dem Wins at All Costs. Their only strategy since Nixon is to oppose anything Dems want. They have never had any plans of their own for constructive governing. Now here we are, they’re in power and they’re tearing down and wrecking everything that is in the public good. It’s all they know how to do.
That's because their goal is to "shrink the government until it's small enough to drown in the bathtub". That one phrase alone, courtesy of one Grover Norquist, is the essence of GOP mentality.
Adriana Smith, a brain dead Georgia woman currently kept on life support against her family’s wishes because she was pregnant when she suffered a medical emergency. Women in West Virginia, who have now been told they must report their miscarriages to police if they want to reduce their chances of being investigated for murder. Brittany Watts of Ohio who was arrested after she was sent home while miscarrying and didn’t contact a mortuary to clean up when she miscarried at home. The list goes on and on. If you’re a woman if child bearing age, Republicans control your body.
Did he really say that? It wouldn't surprise me all that much if he did. His father was a VP at Polaroid, so naturally, he was a spoiled rich kid - and obviously stayed that way:
McConnell was behind the challenge to Citizens United to destroy the bipartisan law to get big money out of politics. Now corporations are "persons" who can donate as much as they wish to the candidate of their choice.
Yes. When the Citizens United decision was handed down, McConnell said it was "the happiest day of his life." That's what gave us $$$$ totally dominating politics in our country. It was bad before, but efforts were being made to improve the situation, but CU ended those efforts.
There's more method to this madness than you imply. The basic thread through everything they do is to enrich the wealthy by reducing taxes and depriving the bulk of the population of social benefits. These are unpopular policies in all their guises so they need authoritarian and crooked strategies to pull it off and get away with it.
Indeed. But, from the very beginning, half of this country has worshipped elite white men, Christian Nationalism, held slaves, then started a Civil War as they left the Union. They lost the war for all the reasons the Republicans are corrupt now. Now and then they have worshipped a few elite white men, the money that goes with that, and hated and rejected science, infrastructure, healthcare, and education for anyone but well off whites. In the antebellum days they were Democrats. After their war, they lynched, and killed, created and still use the Ku Klux Klan, and worked to harm anyone not white and male. They hated Civil Rights and voting for anyone but a few white men. They still do. They plan to get rid of women voting and doing anything but bearing children, serving men, and keeping their mouths shut. Yes, the birthed need to be white. They have arranged for all other women in their territories to suffer and hopefully die. Oh, yeah, somewhere along the line they started calling themselves Republicans instead of Democrats. Same people, different name. They have always been insanely corrupt. From the very beginning. The other half of us dream of Union, and this is what we have to work with to create that Union. Talk about Sartre and the bowels of hell. And we keep ending up there. Isn't it time to learn?
the southern dems became republican when lyndon johnson signed the civil rights act. he was reputed to have said something like "there goes the southern vote". Everything you mentioned is correct, and one more thing - they wanted to use the 5th amendment to get recompense for their "stolen" slaves, their property.
That's the point of a person becoming 'property of the state' when incarcerated. There are many US companies who using inmates for $2.00 or such a day. When the wild fires were raging, inmates were taught to be firefighters, these inmates volunteered to do this, they were taught as well as the free firefighters, yet upon release, they were unable to become a firefighter because that had prision records.
I acknowledge this and I do not like it a bit. Query google AI: 'life of former inmates after release' This is what is known and shared by AI at this time.
And Nixon's Southern Strategy, designed by Harry Dent and Lee Atwater around 1968-1969 and refined in the early '70s, completed the Republican capture of the South.
I can't speak to other states, but in SC, that "capture of the South" is not as complete some think. We vote about 44-45% Democrat, but we have little power due to gerrymandering.
Well said. In _Democracy in Chains_, author Nancy MacLean traces the history of the anti-democratic, white supremacist world view back to 1830s-1840s South Carolina. John C. Calhoun, a rich slave owner who held high government office several times, saw that white oligarchy and the institution of slavery would not survive in a truly democratic society, thus democracy had to be opposed and subverted at every turn. We don't even have to squint to see the philosophical through-line, with only minimal updating and terminology changes, from then to today.
MacLean goes on to explicate other parts of the ultra-conservative or libertarian history, including an analysis of James M. Buchanan's development of the so-called "public choice" theory of economics in the mid 1980s, which became the intellectual cornerstone for extreme right-wing ideology and the drive to erode and dismantle democracy.
_Democracy in Chains_, along with Jane Mayer's _Dark Money_, are must-reads, if you haven't already taken them in.
Well past time for an organized revolution Teresa, the great replacement theory has always existed, as has the rule of we the serfs, by the billionaire class. A class we shall never belong!!
I don't like this, but the reality of it grows closer as time passes in these unUnited States. The state I live in has state laws that supersede federal laws, and vice versa.
McConnell knew the 2016 election was rigged for Trump. 8 months before the election, McConnell knocked down Obama's pick for the Supreme Court claiming the next President should choose.
Fellow Senator Jeff Sessions was one of the first to aid the Trump campaign in 2015/2016.
He couldn't. The Constitution says "with the consent and advice of the Senate." Nobody could force the majority leader to bring Obama's nomination up for a vote.
Among white voters, public opinion was on McConnell’s side, so Obama could not change McConnell’s behavior by that route. He tried. It did not work. McConnell knew who buttered his bread: a winning majority of white Americans.
And McConnell paid NO political price for preventing Obama's supreme court nominee from getting a vote, then pushed Amy Coney Bryant through with lightning speed. Kentucky voters accepted his bullish*t actions. I'm not sure what he does for his constituents that earns him that allegiance.
From Watergate to Iran Contra, from stealing a presidency in 2000, to stealing a Supreme Court seat, from the oligarchs who wanted to overthrow FDR to January 6th, the republicans have been trying to destroy democracy for decades.
"The only endgame I can see is a mass public revolt against Republicans, turning the Party into a tiny rump cast out into the political wilderness."
Which is why the single biggest guilty party here is the so-called center.
Historically, the response to a party going as far off the rails as the Republican Party has or anywhere close, is pretty straightforward - vote for the other party, and keep doing it for a good long while, even if you don't like everything about them. It's why Democrats were in the doghouse for decades after the Civil War, as Republicans were after the Great Depression.
After 2008 (at the latest), Republicans should've spent at *least* a decade in the wilderness before anyone let them near anything important again. The unwillingness of the so-called non-partisan voters who control electoral outcomes to do this is exactly why we've ended up here. Republicans have learned that no matter how badly they fuck up, nothing will prevent voters from returning them to power within a few election cycles, so they should keep fucking up as badly as possible so long as it gives them what they want. And that's what's gotten us here.
What’s got us here is Citizen’s United decision in which SCOTUS said money is free speech and cannot be restrained in elections. Elon Musk gave $300 million to Trump, the oil barons gave
$1 billion to Trump, etc., etc. etc. The problem is money in politics these days along with a “win at all costs” mentality. It’s tearing us apart. We need a parliamentary system (which is not without its flaws), but which has compromise rather than competition as it’s main focus.
Actually, the oil companies passed on the "Come Fund Me" proposal by Trump, aka solicitation of bribery, because they are already pumping more oil than we can use. Alaska Wilderness Preserve, North Slope or whatever the Hell it's called got ZERO bids. They don't need to waste a billion on his worthless fat stupid old ass.
Well Truthout.org says Big Oil spent $445M to influence elections most of which went to Repub candidates. So I stand corrected on the $1B figure but it's still a heck of a lot of money to give to elections and not expect the "elected" to be influenced by it.
It's okay, those were 2 different things. One was going to happen anyway; the other was just a straight-up shakedown, meant for his pockets and not the campaign. So asking for another Billion with nothing more than his word? Excessive
After 2008, yes, but look at Watergate. I was certain it would be a generation before we saw another Republican president. But then came Reagan a short 6 years after Nixon. I realized then that the American people have very short memories and really don’t care all that much about corruption/lawlessness. There have been many big lies: Nixon negotiating with North Vietnamese before the 1968 election; Watergate; Iran-Contra; “Weapons of Mass Destruction”; the “Biden Rule”/Garland; Jan 6; etc., etc. The only conclusion: a majority of eligible voters don’t give a damn and/or have made themselves the fool to Murdoch and co. propaganda. It is truly depressing to ponder.
The reason it won't work is because the right-wing mediasphere won't even report on half this stuff. The "base" will barely even know about it & they will be told what to think about it. We lost our democracy when we allowed this media world to buy the ears & thoughts of at least a third of the nation, if not half, and to lie unchallenged, most of the time. This has always been the real problem.
You may want to mention the continuing disaster of money in politics. Politicians of both parties are routinely bought and paid for by special interests, and there’s no (zero) money trail. Our country has many problems, but dark money of this sort is one of the very worst.
That's mostly true, but I think a bit of a false equivalence where the Dems are concerned. The Dems, maybe to our detriment, aren't as blindly loyal to "the team" as the GOP is.
The Democrats have a defeatist & submissive nature to the right wing. Reagan's team stole election from Carter by making deal with Iran, W Bush's brother's Florida Supreme Court stopped vote count allowing a W win, & Trump had Putin help defeat HRC in 2016. Elon helped rig election in '24. And how do Dems respond? By doing nothing. Hell, the '73 Nixon dirty trickster Roger Stone is STILL screwing the Dems to this day & has yet to be neutralized. So it's now the tipping point where Dems may never win another election again due to the thorough repression/stealing of Dem votes. And the Dems have no counter response....other than 'vote harder'!!, which is impossibility as right wing has disenfranchised tens of millions (in a vast right wing conspiracy). HRC WAS right.
I was talking with a MAGA stranger at the local Recycle Center (which we have in the Deep South, they just don't tend to be used for recycling.)
He made an interesting statement: "Democrats sure do stick together." But that's not really true, is it? More like, we have two shared commitments: equality and justice. And I would go so far as to say that IS our uniting factor, though we (obviously) don't "all stick together".
Obviously whatever we believe or what Dems have accomplished, the party that has done virtually nothing for working-class Americans is winning.
I've frequently asked, of conservatives as well, of any legislation anyone can think of that was...
1) Proposed or supported by the GOP,
2) Specifically to assist working-class, middle-Americans,
3) At any time in the past 75 years.
I've yet to receive a correct response, and I only know of one. (The GOP supported the ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act), through you'd never know that they once courted the approval of disabled Americans needing healthcare.)
As a disabled person, IMO here's why Bush signed the ADA: It's one of the worst written pieces of civil rights legislation Congress has ever passed.
To get through Congress and gain Bush's signature, the language had to be *severely* watered down. One of the worst things Congress did is refusing to define the otherwise ambiguous term "reasonable accomidation." That ambiguity immediately allowed conservative judges and SCOTUS to severely chip away at the law. In 2008, Obama tried to fix the problems by signing the ADA Amendments Act. Even so, much of the enforcement burden of the ADA is still dependent on a disabled individual filing a lawsuit.
As another disabled American, I thank you for this info.
Obviously, the GOP will never do anything for the appropriate reasons. While I would never present the ADA as a SHINING example of an answer to my original question, it still indicates that the GOP once-upon-a-time at least pretended to care for their constituents (if only on rare occasions.)
We don't know how to be ugly or duplicitous or how to lie with impunity. The whole system needs to change to a parliamentary system. Problem is - it's too late. The only thing standing between us and tyranny are the federal courts, and they are slowly losing their authority. I fear it will come to a civil war after which the winner will write the new rules.
In 1996 Democrats votes for an "anti-poor people" law as well as an "anti-immigrant" law. Prez Clinton, then-Senator Biden and other Dems, declared to be content with those pieces of legislation. Both laws caused destruction among the groups involved, even causing people to perish. But these were either poor or foreigners. "I don't care, do you?"
Former Rep. Joe Walsh just became a Democrat. He has a Substack that is a good read. He freely admits he acted like an asshole during the Tea Party and early MAGA days. But he had an aha! that the Republican party had become the Party of Trump and nothing else. He's been working to elect Democrats and finally became a Democrat. He tends to tell it like it is. https://socialcontractwithjoewalsh.substack.com/
Agreed and sentiments I share but, one bit of the puzzle is bipartisan recklessness which is impossible to correct save veto proof majorities. Congress, largely since Nixon, has enacted over 100 pieces of legislation ceding Congressional power to the Executive the power to declare poorly defined emergencies and without meaningful check and balances in Congress or the Judiciary.
Collectively the legislation in question can be summarized as Executive Declared Emergency Powers. In the last 50 years, Congress granted President's the power to declare an emergency, to take action during the emergency and retain this power until such time the President declares the termination of the emergency. Why Congress was so foolish is left to others who study history. But the disaster after electing DJT would almost surely not have occurred without DJT as President having almost unfettered ability to nullify Congress and the Courts thru emergency declarations.
Finally, the civil service is not without some notice. Anyone would assume the civil service would have a Russell Vought or a Jeffery Clark. But they are joined by a remarkably large like minded group who are clearly enthusiastic about filing briefs, representing the DJT administration in court and willingly carrying out DJT et al message of revenge and vengeance on the streets and in the hallways of academia.
Very good post. History tells us that even in the Great Depression, FDR's win over Hoover was "On election day Roosevelt received nearly 23 million popular votes (57.3 percent) to Hoover's nearly 16 million (39.6 percent); the electoral vote was 472 to 59. In a repudiation not just of Hoover but also of the Republican Party, Americans also elected substantial Democratic majorities to both houses".
No matter what, there will always be 40% of the Republican Party that will go full fascist. History does not lie.
I was thinking the same thing. And let's be clear. We shouldn't lump the D in with the R. People who consistently and reliably vote R have been thoroughly brainwashed. And it didn't start with Fox News. It started probably before they could utter a word. It was inculcated in them that critical thinking should be suppressed and biases - no matter how far fetched -should be confirmed. And this at any cognitive cost or loss of dignity and integrity. Because this is how religion, specifically fundamentalist religion, works.
Some corrupt bills receive bipartisan support, such as the GENIUS Act concerning cryptocurrency. The GENIUS Act effectively amounts to significant deregulation, allowing a wide variety of entities to substantially engage in banking. Given the recent decline in the Democratic Party's approval ratings, perhaps the United States needs a third political party to act as a check and balance.
Third party would have a hard time under the Constitutional mandate of an electoral college. If all of Jill Stein (Green party) voters had voted for Hillary, we might not be in this mess.
A third party would have to confine itself to running for Congress for quite a while to build up the political capital to try a presidential run. Even if a very charismatic 3rd party candidate came along and actually won some states, the tiebreak goes to the House. Ultimately, I think that scenario is the only way we actually get we the people on board to ditch the electoral college. 1 instance of the House literally throwing everyone's votes away would be pretty in your face as to why the system sucks.
I'm afraid we don't have "quite a while". Tyranny is knocking on the door. Read some of the comments by conservative religious evangelicals. They are prepared to fight God's war against the sinners and to hell with the country.
While I agree, the quite a while only relates to a 3rd party presidential run. In our current system, it's a fools errand and will only siphon away votes from the non-maga candidate. However, Congress is doable in the short term. Given the types of margins in the House and Senate from the last few years, all you need is a handful of seats in the hands of a 3rd party to effectively leverage action. A lot of this tyranny would be curtailed if there was a)oversight and b)corresponding legislation to address abuses in real time, c)legitimate threat of impeachment. Plus, there's nothing saying that incumbent legislators couldn't defect to a new 3rd party that had some momentum. While c) is probably realistically out of reach, we should want our legislature to operate on a coalition basis. It's the only way to incentivize actual action there as the 60 vote threshold in the Senate is impossible unless that many Senators are willing to compromise. The only way that will happen is to effectively eliminate the chance of a simple majority from 1 party so reconciliation moves are off the table.
Anyone who has a Democratic senator who supported the Genius Act needs to communicate displeasure. I, alas, have a hard MAGA senator and an opportunistic MAGA senator, so no hope there.
You’re right. This is the fruit of decades of religious entrenchment in right wing politics, attacks on public education, and above all the trend towards wealth inequality.
The GOP hasn’t just drifted from democracy—it’s been actively undermining it for over fifty years. Nixon made contempt for the rule of law a political strategy. Reagan polished it. Bush normalized it. And trump turned it into an ethos.
Liz Cheney didn’t change. Her party did. When loyalty to a twice-impeached autocrat outweighs loyalty to the Constitution, you’re no longer dealing with a party committed to democratic norms. You're dealing with a cult.
The ideal endgame would be a public awakening—a mass revolt that pushes this hollowed-out husk of a party into the political wilderness where it belongs. But we don’t live in a civics textbook. We live in a country where politics is tribal, where Team Red or Team Blue matters more than facts or future. People choose their side like they pick a baseball team—out of habit, nostalgia, or inherited bias. Not principle.
Until that changes, the GOP won’t need to win arguments. It just needs to keep its fans angry.
Trump does have the power to destroy Musk. He can simply let Chinese EVs in without the 100% tariffs Biden put in place and many other actions -- e.g. letting the SEC enforce rules Musk has felt emboldened to break since Trumps election.
Trump lives to dominate people. He may decide to do this.
Once he realizes he can dominate the richest man in the world he may get the confidence to dominate Putin.
Trump lives to grift and dominate out of some strange resentment and persecution complex.
Musk doesn't need to accumulate more money. He's like a bored child who needs new toys. What his real motivations are is a mystery. I do think though that he's not as concerned with money as Trump and would go for broke before being a loser to Trump.
He's got plenty of "cards" and is self-destructive and crazy enough to play them if need be. The world's security and future are in the hand's of two megalomaniacs and very unbalanced men/children. It's a symptom, disease and perhaps fatal flaw of a dying culture and political implosion.
MuskRat's motivation is the dopamine hit he gets every time he rakes in more wealth. It's not that he needs the money, he just needs that dopamine hit. It's a drug.
What goods? If a pee tape, that's so long speculated, without effect on Trump, that it doesn't matter. Trump was right about him murdering someone on Fifth Avenue and not losing support.
Of course Putin has what he thinks is "Kompromat" about Trump. And it'd be as effective as Kompromat which proves that Anderson Cooper is a homosexual.
Seriously: there are no goods, if "goods" means information that would lead to the impeachment and removal of Trump, because these goods would then need to prove aspects of Trump that are worse than what Americans already know about him.
Worse than auctioning off private audiences for millions of dollars.
Worse than accepting billions of dollars in bribes from foreign powers.
Worse than deporting legal residents to third-world concentration camps without any semblance of due process.
Worse than a treasonous attempt to overthrow the government after a lost election.
Pray tell, what do you think Putin can possibly have on Trump that would endanger his presidency, when none of the aforementioned facts can?
As I said, I have no idea what Papa Putin could have on him worse than all the disasters we already know about. Maybe massive indebtedness to the Russian mob? But I think Putin has something and, whatever it is, it scares the crap out of trump.
Like many people, I would prefer they personally commit Mutually Assured Destruction. Unfortunately in doing so there would be a third victim, the US government, and that I care about.
Musk somewhat walked back the threat to immediately begin decommisisoning the DragonX spacecraft, but there's absoutely nothing preventing him from doing that at any time. If he decommssions DragonX, the manned US space program is completely grounded, and there aren't any good alternatives. The Boeing Starliner is such a mess of a program its failures left two American astronauts "stranded" on the ISS for nine months. The mission was only supposed to last a week. They finally returned via SpaceX in March. Jeff Bezos company Blue Origin doesn't have the capability to ferry astronauts to and from the ISS. The only (potentially) viable alternative? Russia.
Don't get me wrong, I dearly want Musk (and Bezos) out of the US space program. Unfortunately, we're so far down the "privitization road" NASA doesn't have the capability to conduct manned space flight itself. Even if NASA wanted to revive the space shuttle program, it would take months, if not years, and millions of dollars that Congress is extremely unlikely to approve.
Secondly, the Dept. of Defense has a contract with Musk where we pay for Ukraine's use of Starlink. Unfortunately, potential competitor Eutelsat has openly stated they're "not ready" to fully replace Starlink in Ukraine. Another potential replacement, IRIS2 has had so many problems it won't be ready until sometime in the 2030s.
There's also Musk's Starlink spinoff, Starshield, which provides crucial data to the Space Force, National Reconnaissance Office and other intelligence and defense agencies.
Lastly, as DOGE learned, there are costs associated with unilaterally ending a contract. The federal government would essentially have to pay Musk "to go away." Depending on the specific contract language, that could be a large chunk of $,
We used to have a booster rocket called the "Saturn V." It was basically developed as an ICBM but went on to carry the moon missions. It's long gone now. I recall reading many years ago that it would take the US ten years to re-create it. At that time, there was a common theme of "if we can put someone on the moon, why can't we .......". The article I read pointed out that the US no longer CAN put someone on the moon.
The Saturn V was specifically designed and build for the moon missions. It could have been adapted, but it took weeks to get it ready. No surprising an enemy or using it suddenly.
Months to revive the Shuttle program? Try a decade or more. New ones would need to be designed or built. The production line is shut down. I don't think they even have the jigs anymore. The simple way for Trump to checkmate Musk on SpaceX is for him to nationalize it under one of his "national emergency" E.O.s.
Why do you think Trump gives a crap about the DragonX and NASA? It’s kinda “sciencey!” He’ll just put it in neutral for 4 years and gut funding for his BBB.
I never wrote Trump cares about DragonX and NASA. I seriously doubt Trump knows what DragonX is actually.
The issue is if Musk decommssions DragonX, NASA and the US government have a problem. The most immediate problem being we've got three Americans currently on the ISS. For whatever reason, Putin apparently hasn't yet chosen to use the ISS and access to Soyuz as a bargaining chip to get further reductions in aid to the Ukrainians. Perhaps that's because he knows we've got DragonX. Without it, the only alternative is to expand our dependance on Soyuz, and that's not a good position for the US to be in.
Beyond the immediate problem, if we essentially "cancel" the entire manned spaceflight program until Trump's gone, that gives the Russians and Chinese an advantage.
Because it doesn't impact him directly, I'm sure Trump doesn't care about any of this, but I do. My original reply was in response to the contention that Trump could "destroy" Musk. That would be fine with me, except for the fact the innocent victim would be the US government.
There is an idea for Trump. Allow in Chinese EVs, but with a dealership network owned by the Trump crime family. It enriches the orange criminal and destroys the tech-bro Nazi. A perfect orange Putin scheme.
Unfortunately this is wishful thinking. Trump does not have the intellectual bandwidth to even think of this. He has had the power to do so many things to save his bacon but he is a narcissistic vengeful fool. He thinks only if himself. He is also compromised with respect to Russia.
Still, you have to assume our president lies. His words count for nothing (and garner him too much attention). What are his actions? Unfortunately, these aren’t consistent either.
Notice how fast D had a conversation with Putin....consoling him?? It would be a shame if Putin 'found out' that D helped Ukraine with Operation Spiderweb. 😊
US as a reference point and more or less ‘golden boy’ - until now. That party is well and truly over, but the anti corruption cause will have a major problem in finding a new and credible reference point. Thus is a huge setback to any idea of a the emergence of a global ethic.
I just hope that their ridiculous and childish spat is a wake up call to anyone still on the fence about the lunatics in charge. This, unseriously, is government?
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
― Edmund Burke
So, where are the good men? I don't mean just the Republicans in office. I mean the people with economic power.
Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Michael Bloomberg. Where do you stand? Speak up. Use your influence (and perhaps your money) to tell the cowards in office that you will support their opponents.
If people in office won't do what is right because it is right, they need to be convinced that it will be in their best interest.
I have been using this verified quote for some time. Einstein: "The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything".
I'm not offended, but puzzled, like I said. I find it puzzling to use quotations that way because I myself would want to avoid the impression that I believe in truth derived from authority, cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_fallacy
Attributing quotations is of course required in scientific papers and, I assume, legal briefs, but omitting everything about the source except the author renders the attribution pretty much useless for further inquiry. So it seems that the only purpose of naming the author is to add credibility, which fails because of the genetic fallacy.
Moreover, in this particular case I find it puzzling that you would trade a misattributed but unassailable quote for one that is correctly attributed but unconvincing:
The Einstein version seems unconvincing because it is not primarily concerned with avoiding evil as a goal in its own right, but with avoiding the destruction of the world. However, the world will most likely be destroyed by decent, hard-working first-world citizens whose lifestyle just so happens to make the planet uninhabitable.
I don't see how this lifestyle has anything to do with "watching those who do evil without doing anything" because I see no evil involved. Unless you dilute the concept of "evil" to an extent that robs it of any useful meaning.
Finally, I'm totally disoriented that you all of a sudden confess to "a character flaw" and assume you offended someone. Is that a joke that I don't understand, or where in the world does that come from?
The meaning is clear, regardless of who first penned the words. Of course, in Burke's time the wording would have been phrased differently, and would sound quaintly old-fashioned to modern ears. I'd say, give credit for the idea to Burke et al., and be thankful to "Anonymous" for the succinct paraphrase.
It's remarkable how a psychotic president can make the rest of us feel as if we're having some kind of psychotic hallucination. For better or worse, we're not. This is real. This idiotic, evil, psychopathic jackass really is the POTUS, and we're stuck with it until at least 2026.
It's a great reminder of the imperative that we continue to Rise! Resist! ✊✊✊
The next nationwide rally is June 14, yes >that< June 14, be there or be square!
Let's ruin Chump's B'day. We need 3.5% or the population, or around 12,000,000 people to be present. So bring all your friends and families. Spread the word as far and wide as possible. Let's all get out there with a Howard Beale spirit and yell "We're as mad as hell, and we're not gonna take it anymore!".
There's so much money to be made hitching your wagon to this corrupt regime. For example, we have someone that was invited to the White House press pool who was paid $100k per episode to spread Russian propaganda on his podcast. He said Ukraine was our enemy. I can't imagine how this is allowed in the country I knew 30 years ago. If, 30 years ago, you told half the old people in this country that trump would be their god-like idol and president, I'm sure they would have thought you were nuts.
"I can't imagine how this is allowed in the country I knew 30 years ago."
I may be wrong, but was it not circa 30 years and four score days ago when the most despicable subhuman ever to disgrace Congress (in the 20th century) was elected Speaker of the House, whose reign of libel and harrassment ended politics as it was known until then?
“If, 30 years ago, you told half the old people in this country that trump would be their god-like idol and president, I'm sure they would have thought you were nuts.”
Also true in 1980. My parents were aghast at Bedtime for Bonzo actor Reagan succeeding, and they were Republicans. Apparently they were also horrified when he became the governor of California.
“Oh, and anyone suggesting that Democrats should reach out to Musk is a fool. Yes, he’s currently Trump’s enemy, but he’s evil, and his brand is toxic. Better to see if there is anyone left in the G.O.P. who is finally ready to take a stand on behalf of democracy and law. But don’t get your hopes up.”
Spot on Professor, however, there is a larger point. Although, Musk is evil, if Trump prevails then he has effectively taken complete control of all the levers of government. And thus, we are already a fascist authoritarian state.
Not unlike Khodorkovsky of Russia, who helped propel Putin to power, and retain it. He was also Russia ‘s wealthiest oligarch; he owned Yukos Oil, a media empire and served as the Minister of Energy. Sound familiar? He was arrested for tax evasion, sentenced to 10 years in a gulag, and eventually exiled to Great Britain.
Bottom line, every other oligarch fell inline. Or more importantly, the message it would send to every major CEO and billionaire in this nation; no one is safe, especially civil servants and the average citizen! IMHO…:)
I love your plain-speak here, because if ever there was a time for plain speech, this is it. We are either going to continue to tolerate the hollowing out of our politics, our government, our laws and our rights, or we aren't. The time before last (three weeks ago) I ended my weekly letter to my (spineless) Senators with this: DO YOUR JOB! No idea if they have a box to check when they tally letters, but I hope so. Because I don't want to get arrested for throwing poo on the Senate Office Building sidewalk.
I was about to say the same thing. Swamp thing (especially during the Alan Moore run) is not only a good guy, but pretty explicitly anti right wing. He’s frequently involved in protecting nature, and if I recall correctly there are two specific issues where he deals with the literal ghosts of slavery and gun manufacturers, respectively.
I can see why you picked swamp thing (DC swamp haha), but I think Cthulhu would fit the bill better. Still green and scary looking, and even created by a pretty racist author.
I'm a HUGE Moore Swamp Thing fan, and I have most of the original comics. Modern comics owes Alan Moore a huge debt specifically for the Swamp Thing character, and the revival of interest in comics it helped spur.
I agree about Cthulhu, and that the reference to a "swamp" was too good to pass up. But while I was a solid DC kid 60 years ago, either of these guys is far more like Thanos.
Okay, don’t tell anyone but, I really want Musk to be Darth Vader and come back to the light. “There’s good in you yet….”, Luke. “You don’t know the power of the dark side!”, Vader/Musk.
Thanks for the laugh, when there is so much to feel bad about. Also specialist knowledge (swamp creatures not my area) so little on display these days is comforting.
A bit off-topic, but perhaps we all need some distraction.
The publishing company, Fantagraphics, has many books featuring specific artist retrospectives. (Largely, but not entirely based on artists of the EC era. This also includes artists/writers such as Daniel Clowes, Alex Toth and many others.)
Out of a desperate need to be entertained amidst the recent madness of the past decade I've spent thousand$, and have only very rarely been disappointed. (They even publish Dr. Reich's wonderful book, though for obvious reasons it's currently out of print):
Currently, they're having trouble keeping it in stock, but it if you were an abused child as I was (or just love great story-telling in comic form), it's entirely worth waiting for.
My day job is investigating financial crime and the abject corruption is one of the things that makes me the most angry, not because it's the most directly harmful (that would be turning ICE loose as secret police or propping up war mongers like Putin and Netanhayu), but because it's so pernicious. Just ask Mexico or Nigeria: once government corruption sets in, it will be there for decades, and the contemptible U.S. v. Trump decision means we'll likely never be able to take Trump to task for it the way Bob Menendez was.
As a lifetime Democratic voter (starting in '76), I'm so confused about the definition of corruption.
For example, we're thought of by MAGAts as being the ultimate in sleaze, yet ZERO Dems have gone public about any details concerning the "stollen(sic) 2020 election", even when offered $5,000.000 by Musk.
So, we're too corrupt to participate in an election w/o cheating, but nobel enough for EVERY Dem involved to remain silent 5 years later, even when offered such a large sum:
Of course, setting up most supporters almost from Day One as being too "uneducated" for normal comprehension was a genius move by any (immoral) standard.
There is a reason environmentalists tread very carefully and quietly in this country. It because the consequences are so dire if you get caught advocating for nature and talking about changing the fossil fuel paradigm. just like environmentalists, Democrats have to be very brave to stand up to the powers in force now. They are(Booker, Bernie,AOC,Hogg,Crocket) you just can’t hear them over the noise.
Recall Trump’s inadvertently prophetic remark about letting two kids fight a while longer. They will stop when their arms get tired and their noses are bloody. Meanwhile, pass the popcorn, please.
Trump has proven time and time again that he is a transactional pervert. He just recently took a one million dollar bribe from a contributor to pardon her son who essentially paid him with the money he stole from his employees. Musk was causing destruction, devastation and despair while the Republican legislators were cheering him on.
Trump perceived that Musk outlived his usefulness so he jettisoned him like yesterday’s trash. But, one thing that I learned is to never engage with a junkie like Musk. The drugs destroys their prefrontal cortex and they lose their impulse control. Musk is now all id. There is no moderating ego or superego.
This administration is full of people who have destroyed their prefrontal cortex. It seems as though it is a prerequisite for a position. There’s RFKJR and his 14 years of shooting heroin. Public drunkards imported from Fauxnooz. Reports of adderal use by 47, and Dr. feel-good Jackson are almost forgotten in all the brouhaha. Religious fanaticism is also as much of a drug as any of these substances.
“Trump derangement syndrome” accusations are really admissions. It should be viewed for what it really is- a cluster of certain psychiatric disorders: megalomania, narcissism, addiction, and an urge to psychopathic violence directed at large populations instead of individuals. Trump is the prime example of TDS as much as de Sade is of sadism.
"[Trump] took a one million dollar bribe from a contributor to pardon her son"
In reality the affair was even more sordid. That mother asked for a pardon arguing that she HAD ALREADY contributed millions of dollars and a smear campaign. Trump decided these contributions weren't enough, and asked for yet another million dollars. Only after she paid THAT bribe, the pardon came finally through.
"I blame their enablers, who have refused, again and again, to enforce the Constitution or place any restraints on Trump’s abuses. And yes, this means Republicans." YES! FINALLY ! The myriad of citizens upset (not to say semi-crazy) by what's happening focus on specific issues, honor, and policy. But our corruption has solidified; it all of one piece: "It's the Republicans, stupid!" This could not happen without a rogue political party. Vote them OUT!
I suspect this is like professional wrestling: it's a dust-up staged to enthrall the plebs, possibly to distract from the real action of weaseling his awful budget through reconciliation.
A Republican ready to take a stand on behalf of democracy and law is no longer a Republican. Liz Cheney is the poster child for this.
The GOP has been opposed to democracy for at least half a century. And starting with Nixon, has been opposed to the rule of law as well. The only endgame I can see is a mass public revolt against Republicans, turning the Party into a tiny rump cast out into the political wilderness.
Sadly, I know that's not how things work in America today, where politics has been reduced to the level of rooting for your favorite sports team and the reasons for liking team R or D are about as well reasoned as liking the Yankees or Mets.
Please don’t overlook McConnell’s impact and influence on Republican Core Values- Win at all costs. His focus began with SCOTUS Justices and spread like ripple rings in a still ponds. It became Win at All Things the Senate decides - policy, budget and appointments. Yes, money was part of his hegemony but raw political power was the Silver Chalet.
Not even really Win at All Costs…they’ve been doing Prevent Dem Wins at All Costs. Their only strategy since Nixon is to oppose anything Dems want. They have never had any plans of their own for constructive governing. Now here we are, they’re in power and they’re tearing down and wrecking everything that is in the public good. It’s all they know how to do.
That's because their goal is to "shrink the government until it's small enough to drown in the bathtub". That one phrase alone, courtesy of one Grover Norquist, is the essence of GOP mentality.
But in fact, their strategy is to expand the power of government to meddle with and control every aspect of our lives.
Yeah, it's pretty ironic, isn't it? Then again, everything they do seems to involve one hypocrisy or another.
Yes, what Republican conservatives fear most of all is freedom of thought and freedom of choice, because both those rivers flow against them.
Give examples, please.
Adriana Smith, a brain dead Georgia woman currently kept on life support against her family’s wishes because she was pregnant when she suffered a medical emergency. Women in West Virginia, who have now been told they must report their miscarriages to police if they want to reduce their chances of being investigated for murder. Brittany Watts of Ohio who was arrested after she was sent home while miscarrying and didn’t contact a mortuary to clean up when she miscarried at home. The list goes on and on. If you’re a woman if child bearing age, Republicans control your body.
No abortion even to save the mother’s life, even if fetus cannot live. Banning books. Just two. Symptomatic.
Gerrymandering the vote till it bears no resemblance to democracy.
Sarcasm alert! But but the “new right” is out to destroy the managerial elite which is broadly independent of both parties and……
That’s the funny part, nothing follows the and part xcept oligachs
grover once said he'd formed his ideas at age 12 and never changed them-what a shame
Did he really say that? It wouldn't surprise me all that much if he did. His father was a VP at Polaroid, so naturally, he was a spoiled rich kid - and obviously stayed that way:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Norquist
I think I read or heard him say that,maybe more than once
McConnell was behind the challenge to Citizens United to destroy the bipartisan law to get big money out of politics. Now corporations are "persons" who can donate as much as they wish to the candidate of their choice.
Yes. When the Citizens United decision was handed down, McConnell said it was "the happiest day of his life." That's what gave us $$$$ totally dominating politics in our country. It was bad before, but efforts were being made to improve the situation, but CU ended those efforts.
Which makes about as much sense as calling a raccoon a person. (I was going to say dog but many treat their dogs like family members.)
There's more method to this madness than you imply. The basic thread through everything they do is to enrich the wealthy by reducing taxes and depriving the bulk of the population of social benefits. These are unpopular policies in all their guises so they need authoritarian and crooked strategies to pull it off and get away with it.
The GOP has a plan for constructive government, if by constructive you mean reversing all the damage done by Lincoln and FDR.
Certainly all they’re capable of doing Anne!!
Indeed. But, from the very beginning, half of this country has worshipped elite white men, Christian Nationalism, held slaves, then started a Civil War as they left the Union. They lost the war for all the reasons the Republicans are corrupt now. Now and then they have worshipped a few elite white men, the money that goes with that, and hated and rejected science, infrastructure, healthcare, and education for anyone but well off whites. In the antebellum days they were Democrats. After their war, they lynched, and killed, created and still use the Ku Klux Klan, and worked to harm anyone not white and male. They hated Civil Rights and voting for anyone but a few white men. They still do. They plan to get rid of women voting and doing anything but bearing children, serving men, and keeping their mouths shut. Yes, the birthed need to be white. They have arranged for all other women in their territories to suffer and hopefully die. Oh, yeah, somewhere along the line they started calling themselves Republicans instead of Democrats. Same people, different name. They have always been insanely corrupt. From the very beginning. The other half of us dream of Union, and this is what we have to work with to create that Union. Talk about Sartre and the bowels of hell. And we keep ending up there. Isn't it time to learn?
the southern dems became republican when lyndon johnson signed the civil rights act. he was reputed to have said something like "there goes the southern vote". Everything you mentioned is correct, and one more thing - they wanted to use the 5th amendment to get recompense for their "stolen" slaves, their property.
That's the point of a person becoming 'property of the state' when incarcerated. There are many US companies who using inmates for $2.00 or such a day. When the wild fires were raging, inmates were taught to be firefighters, these inmates volunteered to do this, they were taught as well as the free firefighters, yet upon release, they were unable to become a firefighter because that had prision records.
I acknowledge this and I do not like it a bit. Query google AI: 'life of former inmates after release' This is what is known and shared by AI at this time.
And Nixon's Southern Strategy, designed by Harry Dent and Lee Atwater around 1968-1969 and refined in the early '70s, completed the Republican capture of the South.
I can't speak to other states, but in SC, that "capture of the South" is not as complete some think. We vote about 44-45% Democrat, but we have little power due to gerrymandering.
Well said. In _Democracy in Chains_, author Nancy MacLean traces the history of the anti-democratic, white supremacist world view back to 1830s-1840s South Carolina. John C. Calhoun, a rich slave owner who held high government office several times, saw that white oligarchy and the institution of slavery would not survive in a truly democratic society, thus democracy had to be opposed and subverted at every turn. We don't even have to squint to see the philosophical through-line, with only minimal updating and terminology changes, from then to today.
MacLean goes on to explicate other parts of the ultra-conservative or libertarian history, including an analysis of James M. Buchanan's development of the so-called "public choice" theory of economics in the mid 1980s, which became the intellectual cornerstone for extreme right-wing ideology and the drive to erode and dismantle democracy.
_Democracy in Chains_, along with Jane Mayer's _Dark Money_, are must-reads, if you haven't already taken them in.
Well past time for an organized revolution Teresa, the great replacement theory has always existed, as has the rule of we the serfs, by the billionaire class. A class we shall never belong!!
I don't like this, but the reality of it grows closer as time passes in these unUnited States. The state I live in has state laws that supersede federal laws, and vice versa.
And just like everyone in the TrumPox misadministration, McConnell has the dead eyes of a shark.
McConnell knew the 2016 election was rigged for Trump. 8 months before the election, McConnell knocked down Obama's pick for the Supreme Court claiming the next President should choose.
Fellow Senator Jeff Sessions was one of the first to aid the Trump campaign in 2015/2016.
Absolutely he wouldn’t allow Obama to nominate Merrick Garlamd to the bench
Obama did, in fact, nominate Garland for the job. McConnell refused to allow the Senate to vote on the nomination.
And most Republican senators refused to meet with Garland, so McConnell had many willing Republicans to do his bidding.
I never understood why Obama lamely went along. Why didn't he fight?
He couldn't. The Constitution says "with the consent and advice of the Senate." Nobody could force the majority leader to bring Obama's nomination up for a vote.
There was nothing he could lawfully do.
Obama didn’t try at all to use public opinion against McConnell. And he didn’t help Harris either. I’m seriously disappointed in him.
Among white voters, public opinion was on McConnell’s side, so Obama could not change McConnell’s behavior by that route. He tried. It did not work. McConnell knew who buttered his bread: a winning majority of white Americans.
Just look at Garland's tenure at DOJ. Why would Obama fight tooth-and-nail to confirm someone like that? Better off taking your chances in November.
I think the very qualities that made Garland such a feeble AG would have made him an excellent Supreme Court justice..
And his vow practically on Day One to make Obama a one-term president, what it took.
I presume you mean’chalice’, but there’s a lot of silver stored in Switzerland.
And McConnell paid NO political price for preventing Obama's supreme court nominee from getting a vote, then pushed Amy Coney Bryant through with lightning speed. Kentucky voters accepted his bullish*t actions. I'm not sure what he does for his constituents that earns him that allegiance.
From Watergate to Iran Contra, from stealing a presidency in 2000, to stealing a Supreme Court seat, from the oligarchs who wanted to overthrow FDR to January 6th, the republicans have been trying to destroy democracy for decades.
Exactly! Prez Trump is the pinnacle of a development that has been going on for some decennia already.
"The only endgame I can see is a mass public revolt against Republicans, turning the Party into a tiny rump cast out into the political wilderness."
Which is why the single biggest guilty party here is the so-called center.
Historically, the response to a party going as far off the rails as the Republican Party has or anywhere close, is pretty straightforward - vote for the other party, and keep doing it for a good long while, even if you don't like everything about them. It's why Democrats were in the doghouse for decades after the Civil War, as Republicans were after the Great Depression.
After 2008 (at the latest), Republicans should've spent at *least* a decade in the wilderness before anyone let them near anything important again. The unwillingness of the so-called non-partisan voters who control electoral outcomes to do this is exactly why we've ended up here. Republicans have learned that no matter how badly they fuck up, nothing will prevent voters from returning them to power within a few election cycles, so they should keep fucking up as badly as possible so long as it gives them what they want. And that's what's gotten us here.
What’s got us here is Citizen’s United decision in which SCOTUS said money is free speech and cannot be restrained in elections. Elon Musk gave $300 million to Trump, the oil barons gave
$1 billion to Trump, etc., etc. etc. The problem is money in politics these days along with a “win at all costs” mentality. It’s tearing us apart. We need a parliamentary system (which is not without its flaws), but which has compromise rather than competition as it’s main focus.
Exactly, Citizens United ruling by a corrupt SCOTUS spelled doom, disaster and the end of our republic C!!
Absolutely on point!
Actually, the oil companies passed on the "Come Fund Me" proposal by Trump, aka solicitation of bribery, because they are already pumping more oil than we can use. Alaska Wilderness Preserve, North Slope or whatever the Hell it's called got ZERO bids. They don't need to waste a billion on his worthless fat stupid old ass.
Well Truthout.org says Big Oil spent $445M to influence elections most of which went to Repub candidates. So I stand corrected on the $1B figure but it's still a heck of a lot of money to give to elections and not expect the "elected" to be influenced by it.
It's okay, those were 2 different things. One was going to happen anyway; the other was just a straight-up shakedown, meant for his pockets and not the campaign. So asking for another Billion with nothing more than his word? Excessive
After 2008, yes, but look at Watergate. I was certain it would be a generation before we saw another Republican president. But then came Reagan a short 6 years after Nixon. I realized then that the American people have very short memories and really don’t care all that much about corruption/lawlessness. There have been many big lies: Nixon negotiating with North Vietnamese before the 1968 election; Watergate; Iran-Contra; “Weapons of Mass Destruction”; the “Biden Rule”/Garland; Jan 6; etc., etc. The only conclusion: a majority of eligible voters don’t give a damn and/or have made themselves the fool to Murdoch and co. propaganda. It is truly depressing to ponder.
Way too many Americans view America as a reality TV show. Going back at least to Reagan.
Never underestimate the stupidity of the average American voter.
I wish I could fit this comment on a bumper sticker!
“Stupid people vote Republican.”
In ur opinion, why do people keep supporting and returning Republicans to power? ( Not tryingtoput u on the spot, just looking for answers)
They watch republican media
The reason it won't work is because the right-wing mediasphere won't even report on half this stuff. The "base" will barely even know about it & they will be told what to think about it. We lost our democracy when we allowed this media world to buy the ears & thoughts of at least a third of the nation, if not half, and to lie unchallenged, most of the time. This has always been the real problem.
You may want to mention the continuing disaster of money in politics. Politicians of both parties are routinely bought and paid for by special interests, and there’s no (zero) money trail. Our country has many problems, but dark money of this sort is one of the very worst.
I’ve actually had this conversation with life long Republicans who used this very same sports team analogy.
And my brother in law agreed that Taco is and had been an a-hole his entire life. And then pulled this out of his posterior.
There are some parallels. Cheering for team X when in fact you have zero personal involvement.
Excellent analogy with sports teams! Americans have lost touch with reality. American life is rapidly degrading to reality TV.
Rapidly degrading? This has been going on for some decennia already, but now the signs have come to the surface for all to see.
Don’t forget it was Liz Cheney’s dad who pushed the idea of a “Unitary Executive” with autocratic powers.
That's mostly true, but I think a bit of a false equivalence where the Dems are concerned. The Dems, maybe to our detriment, aren't as blindly loyal to "the team" as the GOP is.
The Democrats have a defeatist & submissive nature to the right wing. Reagan's team stole election from Carter by making deal with Iran, W Bush's brother's Florida Supreme Court stopped vote count allowing a W win, & Trump had Putin help defeat HRC in 2016. Elon helped rig election in '24. And how do Dems respond? By doing nothing. Hell, the '73 Nixon dirty trickster Roger Stone is STILL screwing the Dems to this day & has yet to be neutralized. So it's now the tipping point where Dems may never win another election again due to the thorough repression/stealing of Dem votes. And the Dems have no counter response....other than 'vote harder'!!, which is impossibility as right wing has disenfranchised tens of millions (in a vast right wing conspiracy). HRC WAS right.
That sadly seems to be all too true.
I was talking with a MAGA stranger at the local Recycle Center (which we have in the Deep South, they just don't tend to be used for recycling.)
He made an interesting statement: "Democrats sure do stick together." But that's not really true, is it? More like, we have two shared commitments: equality and justice. And I would go so far as to say that IS our uniting factor, though we (obviously) don't "all stick together".
Obviously whatever we believe or what Dems have accomplished, the party that has done virtually nothing for working-class Americans is winning.
I've frequently asked, of conservatives as well, of any legislation anyone can think of that was...
1) Proposed or supported by the GOP,
2) Specifically to assist working-class, middle-Americans,
3) At any time in the past 75 years.
I've yet to receive a correct response, and I only know of one. (The GOP supported the ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act), through you'd never know that they once courted the approval of disabled Americans needing healthcare.)
As a disabled person, IMO here's why Bush signed the ADA: It's one of the worst written pieces of civil rights legislation Congress has ever passed.
To get through Congress and gain Bush's signature, the language had to be *severely* watered down. One of the worst things Congress did is refusing to define the otherwise ambiguous term "reasonable accomidation." That ambiguity immediately allowed conservative judges and SCOTUS to severely chip away at the law. In 2008, Obama tried to fix the problems by signing the ADA Amendments Act. Even so, much of the enforcement burden of the ADA is still dependent on a disabled individual filing a lawsuit.
As another disabled American, I thank you for this info.
Obviously, the GOP will never do anything for the appropriate reasons. While I would never present the ADA as a SHINING example of an answer to my original question, it still indicates that the GOP once-upon-a-time at least pretended to care for their constituents (if only on rare occasions.)
Chris,
FYI: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-kennedy-republicans-disability-rights.html
Fun exercise to try with your conservatives friends:
Question: Who was the last president to impose wage and price controls on the American economy?
Question: Name the president who signed the law creating the largest regulatory agency in American history?
Notorious communist Richard Nixon is the answer to both those questions. Makes conservatives' heads spin.
True.
Though not as legislation, but by signature (if I'm not mistaken.).
Nixon is becoming more saintly by the minute...
We don't know how to be ugly or duplicitous or how to lie with impunity. The whole system needs to change to a parliamentary system. Problem is - it's too late. The only thing standing between us and tyranny are the federal courts, and they are slowly losing their authority. I fear it will come to a civil war after which the winner will write the new rules.
In 1996 Democrats votes for an "anti-poor people" law as well as an "anti-immigrant" law. Prez Clinton, then-Senator Biden and other Dems, declared to be content with those pieces of legislation. Both laws caused destruction among the groups involved, even causing people to perish. But these were either poor or foreigners. "I don't care, do you?"
Former Rep. Joe Walsh just became a Democrat. He has a Substack that is a good read. He freely admits he acted like an asshole during the Tea Party and early MAGA days. But he had an aha! that the Republican party had become the Party of Trump and nothing else. He's been working to elect Democrats and finally became a Democrat. He tends to tell it like it is. https://socialcontractwithjoewalsh.substack.com/
Wasn't Walsh like the devil incarnate?
Agreed and sentiments I share but, one bit of the puzzle is bipartisan recklessness which is impossible to correct save veto proof majorities. Congress, largely since Nixon, has enacted over 100 pieces of legislation ceding Congressional power to the Executive the power to declare poorly defined emergencies and without meaningful check and balances in Congress or the Judiciary.
Collectively the legislation in question can be summarized as Executive Declared Emergency Powers. In the last 50 years, Congress granted President's the power to declare an emergency, to take action during the emergency and retain this power until such time the President declares the termination of the emergency. Why Congress was so foolish is left to others who study history. But the disaster after electing DJT would almost surely not have occurred without DJT as President having almost unfettered ability to nullify Congress and the Courts thru emergency declarations.
Finally, the civil service is not without some notice. Anyone would assume the civil service would have a Russell Vought or a Jeffery Clark. But they are joined by a remarkably large like minded group who are clearly enthusiastic about filing briefs, representing the DJT administration in court and willingly carrying out DJT et al message of revenge and vengeance on the streets and in the hallways of academia.
Very good post. History tells us that even in the Great Depression, FDR's win over Hoover was "On election day Roosevelt received nearly 23 million popular votes (57.3 percent) to Hoover's nearly 16 million (39.6 percent); the electoral vote was 472 to 59. In a repudiation not just of Hoover but also of the Republican Party, Americans also elected substantial Democratic majorities to both houses".
No matter what, there will always be 40% of the Republican Party that will go full fascist. History does not lie.
I was thinking the same thing. And let's be clear. We shouldn't lump the D in with the R. People who consistently and reliably vote R have been thoroughly brainwashed. And it didn't start with Fox News. It started probably before they could utter a word. It was inculcated in them that critical thinking should be suppressed and biases - no matter how far fetched -should be confirmed. And this at any cognitive cost or loss of dignity and integrity. Because this is how religion, specifically fundamentalist religion, works.
Some corrupt bills receive bipartisan support, such as the GENIUS Act concerning cryptocurrency. The GENIUS Act effectively amounts to significant deregulation, allowing a wide variety of entities to substantially engage in banking. Given the recent decline in the Democratic Party's approval ratings, perhaps the United States needs a third political party to act as a check and balance.
https://www.noahpinion.blog/p/andrew-yangs-ideas-are-better-than
Of course this is difficult under Duverger's Law, but I think it is worth a try.
Third party would have a hard time under the Constitutional mandate of an electoral college. If all of Jill Stein (Green party) voters had voted for Hillary, we might not be in this mess.
A third party would have to confine itself to running for Congress for quite a while to build up the political capital to try a presidential run. Even if a very charismatic 3rd party candidate came along and actually won some states, the tiebreak goes to the House. Ultimately, I think that scenario is the only way we actually get we the people on board to ditch the electoral college. 1 instance of the House literally throwing everyone's votes away would be pretty in your face as to why the system sucks.
I'm afraid we don't have "quite a while". Tyranny is knocking on the door. Read some of the comments by conservative religious evangelicals. They are prepared to fight God's war against the sinners and to hell with the country.
While I agree, the quite a while only relates to a 3rd party presidential run. In our current system, it's a fools errand and will only siphon away votes from the non-maga candidate. However, Congress is doable in the short term. Given the types of margins in the House and Senate from the last few years, all you need is a handful of seats in the hands of a 3rd party to effectively leverage action. A lot of this tyranny would be curtailed if there was a)oversight and b)corresponding legislation to address abuses in real time, c)legitimate threat of impeachment. Plus, there's nothing saying that incumbent legislators couldn't defect to a new 3rd party that had some momentum. While c) is probably realistically out of reach, we should want our legislature to operate on a coalition basis. It's the only way to incentivize actual action there as the 60 vote threshold in the Senate is impossible unless that many Senators are willing to compromise. The only way that will happen is to effectively eliminate the chance of a simple majority from 1 party so reconciliation moves are off the table.
Anyone who has a Democratic senator who supported the Genius Act needs to communicate displeasure. I, alas, have a hard MAGA senator and an opportunistic MAGA senator, so no hope there.
Stop donating to the DSCC as long as Gillibrand is still head. Cryptocrats like she and Ro Kanna only care about money anyway.
You’re right. This is the fruit of decades of religious entrenchment in right wing politics, attacks on public education, and above all the trend towards wealth inequality.
The GOP hasn’t just drifted from democracy—it’s been actively undermining it for over fifty years. Nixon made contempt for the rule of law a political strategy. Reagan polished it. Bush normalized it. And trump turned it into an ethos.
Liz Cheney didn’t change. Her party did. When loyalty to a twice-impeached autocrat outweighs loyalty to the Constitution, you’re no longer dealing with a party committed to democratic norms. You're dealing with a cult.
The ideal endgame would be a public awakening—a mass revolt that pushes this hollowed-out husk of a party into the political wilderness where it belongs. But we don’t live in a civics textbook. We live in a country where politics is tribal, where Team Red or Team Blue matters more than facts or future. People choose their side like they pick a baseball team—out of habit, nostalgia, or inherited bias. Not principle.
Until that changes, the GOP won’t need to win arguments. It just needs to keep its fans angry.
You may like my stack: JosephZeigler.substack.com
One new subscriber for you!
Dear Prof, I agree completely.
Let me say that it seems that the last “special buddy” remained to Trump is Mr Putin.
Hardly a reassuring situation.
Trump does have the power to destroy Musk. He can simply let Chinese EVs in without the 100% tariffs Biden put in place and many other actions -- e.g. letting the SEC enforce rules Musk has felt emboldened to break since Trumps election.
Trump lives to dominate people. He may decide to do this.
Once he realizes he can dominate the richest man in the world he may get the confidence to dominate Putin.
Trump lives to grift and dominate out of some strange resentment and persecution complex.
Musk doesn't need to accumulate more money. He's like a bored child who needs new toys. What his real motivations are is a mystery. I do think though that he's not as concerned with money as Trump and would go for broke before being a loser to Trump.
He's got plenty of "cards" and is self-destructive and crazy enough to play them if need be. The world's security and future are in the hand's of two megalomaniacs and very unbalanced men/children. It's a symptom, disease and perhaps fatal flaw of a dying culture and political implosion.
MuskRat's motivation is the dopamine hit he gets every time he rakes in more wealth. It's not that he needs the money, he just needs that dopamine hit. It's a drug.
Your two closing sentences are 💯% 🎯
I doubt he'll ever get the confidence to dominate Putin. He worships Putin. He's heavily compromised. King Krasnov.
Yes he has daddy issues, and a trained KGB agent like Putin can, and does play him like a balalaika.
Big time.
I think that DT wants Trump towers in Moscow & St Petersburg.
Otherwise he doesn't care the least what happens to Putin & company.
Ukraine isn't impressive enough for a Trump tower in Kyiv.
I think he cares more about a Trumpkopf tower in Dubai.
Dominate Putin? Putin's the boss. For whatever reason, Trump appears to be a Russian asset whose assignment is to weaken America and the West.
I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but....
No, I think Papa Putin has the real goods on him.
What goods? If a pee tape, that's so long speculated, without effect on Trump, that it doesn't matter. Trump was right about him murdering someone on Fifth Avenue and not losing support.
No idea what goods, but if anyone has them, it’s Putin.
Of course Putin has what he thinks is "Kompromat" about Trump. And it'd be as effective as Kompromat which proves that Anderson Cooper is a homosexual.
Seriously: there are no goods, if "goods" means information that would lead to the impeachment and removal of Trump, because these goods would then need to prove aspects of Trump that are worse than what Americans already know about him.
Worse than auctioning off private audiences for millions of dollars.
Worse than accepting billions of dollars in bribes from foreign powers.
Worse than deporting legal residents to third-world concentration camps without any semblance of due process.
Worse than a treasonous attempt to overthrow the government after a lost election.
Pray tell, what do you think Putin can possibly have on Trump that would endanger his presidency, when none of the aforementioned facts can?
As I said, I have no idea what Papa Putin could have on him worse than all the disasters we already know about. Maybe massive indebtedness to the Russian mob? But I think Putin has something and, whatever it is, it scares the crap out of trump.
Like many people, I would prefer they personally commit Mutually Assured Destruction. Unfortunately in doing so there would be a third victim, the US government, and that I care about.
Musk somewhat walked back the threat to immediately begin decommisisoning the DragonX spacecraft, but there's absoutely nothing preventing him from doing that at any time. If he decommssions DragonX, the manned US space program is completely grounded, and there aren't any good alternatives. The Boeing Starliner is such a mess of a program its failures left two American astronauts "stranded" on the ISS for nine months. The mission was only supposed to last a week. They finally returned via SpaceX in March. Jeff Bezos company Blue Origin doesn't have the capability to ferry astronauts to and from the ISS. The only (potentially) viable alternative? Russia.
https://apnews.com/article/musk-trump-spacex-dragon-capsule-e1fa0607a8e69bc2ad1677f5920b5f56
Don't get me wrong, I dearly want Musk (and Bezos) out of the US space program. Unfortunately, we're so far down the "privitization road" NASA doesn't have the capability to conduct manned space flight itself. Even if NASA wanted to revive the space shuttle program, it would take months, if not years, and millions of dollars that Congress is extremely unlikely to approve.
Secondly, the Dept. of Defense has a contract with Musk where we pay for Ukraine's use of Starlink. Unfortunately, potential competitor Eutelsat has openly stated they're "not ready" to fully replace Starlink in Ukraine. Another potential replacement, IRIS2 has had so many problems it won't be ready until sometime in the 2030s.
https://www.politico.eu/article/ukraine-stuck-with-elon-musk-starlink-satellite-internet/
There's also Musk's Starlink spinoff, Starshield, which provides crucial data to the Space Force, National Reconnaissance Office and other intelligence and defense agencies.
Lastly, as DOGE learned, there are costs associated with unilaterally ending a contract. The federal government would essentially have to pay Musk "to go away." Depending on the specific contract language, that could be a large chunk of $,
We used to have a booster rocket called the "Saturn V." It was basically developed as an ICBM but went on to carry the moon missions. It's long gone now. I recall reading many years ago that it would take the US ten years to re-create it. At that time, there was a common theme of "if we can put someone on the moon, why can't we .......". The article I read pointed out that the US no longer CAN put someone on the moon.
The Saturn V was specifically designed and build for the moon missions. It could have been adapted, but it took weeks to get it ready. No surprising an enemy or using it suddenly.
Months to revive the Shuttle program? Try a decade or more. New ones would need to be designed or built. The production line is shut down. I don't think they even have the jigs anymore. The simple way for Trump to checkmate Musk on SpaceX is for him to nationalize it under one of his "national emergency" E.O.s.
Why do you think Trump gives a crap about the DragonX and NASA? It’s kinda “sciencey!” He’ll just put it in neutral for 4 years and gut funding for his BBB.
I never wrote Trump cares about DragonX and NASA. I seriously doubt Trump knows what DragonX is actually.
The issue is if Musk decommssions DragonX, NASA and the US government have a problem. The most immediate problem being we've got three Americans currently on the ISS. For whatever reason, Putin apparently hasn't yet chosen to use the ISS and access to Soyuz as a bargaining chip to get further reductions in aid to the Ukrainians. Perhaps that's because he knows we've got DragonX. Without it, the only alternative is to expand our dependance on Soyuz, and that's not a good position for the US to be in.
Beyond the immediate problem, if we essentially "cancel" the entire manned spaceflight program until Trump's gone, that gives the Russians and Chinese an advantage.
Because it doesn't impact him directly, I'm sure Trump doesn't care about any of this, but I do. My original reply was in response to the contention that Trump could "destroy" Musk. That would be fine with me, except for the fact the innocent victim would be the US government.
Again, Trump really doesn’t give a damn! He will ONLY if it effects him in some way.
There is an idea for Trump. Allow in Chinese EVs, but with a dealership network owned by the Trump crime family. It enriches the orange criminal and destroys the tech-bro Nazi. A perfect orange Putin scheme.
Then comes the falling out of a window.
Unfortunately this is wishful thinking. Trump does not have the intellectual bandwidth to even think of this. He has had the power to do so many things to save his bacon but he is a narcissistic vengeful fool. He thinks only if himself. He is also compromised with respect to Russia.
That will never happen. Putin would have him defenestrated.
But can he...? 🤔 Lots of power in his hands, too.
That's right Luigi, and yesterday, Trump said maybe the war in Ukraine should continue, code for Putin.
Still, you have to assume our president lies. His words count for nothing (and garner him too much attention). What are his actions? Unfortunately, these aren’t consistent either.
No need to assume - it's a proven fact, repeatedly.
Notice how fast D had a conversation with Putin....consoling him?? It would be a shame if Putin 'found out' that D helped Ukraine with Operation Spiderweb. 😊
Don’t forget Kim Jong Un; his special pen pal….:)
Yes… and J6 “Patriots” too, unfortunately…
He just loves Kim. He wants to be like Kim. In return, Kim just laughs at him.
True, but in Trump’s defense, pretty much every foreign leader laughs at him, so there’s that!🤣
So true! 🤣
Yes, every discussion of global
corruption since the FCPA in 1977 has used the
US as a reference point and more or less ‘golden boy’ - until now. That party is well and truly over, but the anti corruption cause will have a major problem in finding a new and credible reference point. Thus is a huge setback to any idea of a the emergence of a global ethic.
He’s a little (a lot) upset with Putin right now.
I just hope that their ridiculous and childish spat is a wake up call to anyone still on the fence about the lunatics in charge. This, unseriously, is government?
It's distraction - keep the press focused on this shy object
It also fulfills MAGA voters need to be entertained, which is their primary reason for voting at all.
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
― Edmund Burke
So, where are the good men? I don't mean just the Republicans in office. I mean the people with economic power.
Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Michael Bloomberg. Where do you stand? Speak up. Use your influence (and perhaps your money) to tell the cowards in office that you will support their opponents.
If people in office won't do what is right because it is right, they need to be convinced that it will be in their best interest.
I have been using this verified quote for some time. Einstein: "The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything".
Why would you do that? I find it puzzling. Not the quote, the behavior.
It’s a character flaw. Probably because I’m a lawyer and an English major and people do it to me too! Sorry to offend.
I'm not offended, but puzzled, like I said. I find it puzzling to use quotations that way because I myself would want to avoid the impression that I believe in truth derived from authority, cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_fallacy
Attributing quotations is of course required in scientific papers and, I assume, legal briefs, but omitting everything about the source except the author renders the attribution pretty much useless for further inquiry. So it seems that the only purpose of naming the author is to add credibility, which fails because of the genetic fallacy.
Moreover, in this particular case I find it puzzling that you would trade a misattributed but unassailable quote for one that is correctly attributed but unconvincing:
The Einstein version seems unconvincing because it is not primarily concerned with avoiding evil as a goal in its own right, but with avoiding the destruction of the world. However, the world will most likely be destroyed by decent, hard-working first-world citizens whose lifestyle just so happens to make the planet uninhabitable.
I don't see how this lifestyle has anything to do with "watching those who do evil without doing anything" because I see no evil involved. Unless you dilute the concept of "evil" to an extent that robs it of any useful meaning.
Finally, I'm totally disoriented that you all of a sudden confess to "a character flaw" and assume you offended someone. Is that a joke that I don't understand, or where in the world does that come from?
It’s a deflection, trying to be funny. But being funny isn’t part of what we’re doing here I guess.
"Clever things found on the Internet are never misattributed"
― Aristotle
"The problem with quotes found on the Internet is that they are often not true." - Abraham Lincoln
“It is better to quote someone else on the internet than take the blame for sounding stupid.” Mark Twain
I hate it when people do what I’m about to do. Edmund Burke did not say that. Check this out. https://www.reuters.com/article/fact-check/edmund-burke-did-not-say-evil-triumphs-when-good-men-do-nothing-idUSL1N2PG1EY/
It doesn't really matter who said it though, it's still a great truism worth heeding.
Exactly right. And I admire Edmond Burke as an intellectual and a statesman. He just didn’t say it.
The meaning is clear, regardless of who first penned the words. Of course, in Burke's time the wording would have been phrased differently, and would sound quaintly old-fashioned to modern ears. I'd say, give credit for the idea to Burke et al., and be thankful to "Anonymous" for the succinct paraphrase.
Well said!!
Sometimes I pinch myself, wondering if this is all just a bad dream.
It's remarkable how a psychotic president can make the rest of us feel as if we're having some kind of psychotic hallucination. For better or worse, we're not. This is real. This idiotic, evil, psychopathic jackass really is the POTUS, and we're stuck with it until at least 2026.
It's a great reminder of the imperative that we continue to Rise! Resist! ✊✊✊
The next nationwide rally is June 14, yes >that< June 14, be there or be square!
Let's ruin Chump's B'day. We need 3.5% or the population, or around 12,000,000 people to be present. So bring all your friends and families. Spread the word as far and wide as possible. Let's all get out there with a Howard Beale spirit and yell "We're as mad as hell, and we're not gonna take it anymore!".
https://www.nokings.org/
P.S. Stay the hell away from D.C.! Don't give him an excuse to declare martial law!
You must be turning black & blue all over!
Today is the craziest day in history, until tomorrow.
How could any country negotiate a deal with the US?
The leader doesn't even stay bought.
There's so much money to be made hitching your wagon to this corrupt regime. For example, we have someone that was invited to the White House press pool who was paid $100k per episode to spread Russian propaganda on his podcast. He said Ukraine was our enemy. I can't imagine how this is allowed in the country I knew 30 years ago. If, 30 years ago, you told half the old people in this country that trump would be their god-like idol and president, I'm sure they would have thought you were nuts.
"I can't imagine how this is allowed in the country I knew 30 years ago."
I may be wrong, but was it not circa 30 years and four score days ago when the most despicable subhuman ever to disgrace Congress (in the 20th century) was elected Speaker of the House, whose reign of libel and harrassment ended politics as it was known until then?
“If, 30 years ago, you told half the old people in this country that trump would be their god-like idol and president, I'm sure they would have thought you were nuts.”
Also true in 1980. My parents were aghast at Bedtime for Bonzo actor Reagan succeeding, and they were Republicans. Apparently they were also horrified when he became the governor of California.
I can attest to that. I certainly wouldn't have believed it back then. I still can't believe it, but here we are.
Not if they bought The Apprentice as reality.
“Oh, and anyone suggesting that Democrats should reach out to Musk is a fool. Yes, he’s currently Trump’s enemy, but he’s evil, and his brand is toxic. Better to see if there is anyone left in the G.O.P. who is finally ready to take a stand on behalf of democracy and law. But don’t get your hopes up.”
Spot on Professor, however, there is a larger point. Although, Musk is evil, if Trump prevails then he has effectively taken complete control of all the levers of government. And thus, we are already a fascist authoritarian state.
Not unlike Khodorkovsky of Russia, who helped propel Putin to power, and retain it. He was also Russia ‘s wealthiest oligarch; he owned Yukos Oil, a media empire and served as the Minister of Energy. Sound familiar? He was arrested for tax evasion, sentenced to 10 years in a gulag, and eventually exiled to Great Britain.
Bottom line, every other oligarch fell inline. Or more importantly, the message it would send to every major CEO and billionaire in this nation; no one is safe, especially civil servants and the average citizen! IMHO…:)
Hence Zuckerberg obeying in advance.
Agreed and Bezos as well…:)
I love your plain-speak here, because if ever there was a time for plain speech, this is it. We are either going to continue to tolerate the hollowing out of our politics, our government, our laws and our rights, or we aren't. The time before last (three weeks ago) I ended my weekly letter to my (spineless) Senators with this: DO YOUR JOB! No idea if they have a box to check when they tally letters, but I hope so. Because I don't want to get arrested for throwing poo on the Senate Office Building sidewalk.
Actually Swamp Thing was a good guy, just hard to look at.
I like to think there are lots of us.
I was about to say the same thing. Swamp thing (especially during the Alan Moore run) is not only a good guy, but pretty explicitly anti right wing. He’s frequently involved in protecting nature, and if I recall correctly there are two specific issues where he deals with the literal ghosts of slavery and gun manufacturers, respectively.
I can see why you picked swamp thing (DC swamp haha), but I think Cthulhu would fit the bill better. Still green and scary looking, and even created by a pretty racist author.
Cthulhu for President! Why settle for the lesser evil?
I seem to remember a quote:
"The devil H.P. knows is better than the devil H.P. doesn't know."
Something like that.
I'm a HUGE Moore Swamp Thing fan, and I have most of the original comics. Modern comics owes Alan Moore a huge debt specifically for the Swamp Thing character, and the revival of interest in comics it helped spur.
I agree about Cthulhu, and that the reference to a "swamp" was too good to pass up. But while I was a solid DC kid 60 years ago, either of these guys is far more like Thanos.
Okay, don’t tell anyone but, I really want Musk to be Darth Vader and come back to the light. “There’s good in you yet….”, Luke. “You don’t know the power of the dark side!”, Vader/Musk.
Who knew that the Dark Side bought fewer electric cars and explosive trucks?
EVERYONE!
Thanks for the laugh, when there is so much to feel bad about. Also specialist knowledge (swamp creatures not my area) so little on display these days is comforting.
That reminds me, the image accompanying the post is some seriously awesome artwork.
Aboslutely! Who's the artist?
Apparently the artist is Mike Spicer. I just did a quick search and came up with this:
https://geekdad.com/2021/07/review-the-swamp-thing-5-old-haunts/
A bit off-topic, but perhaps we all need some distraction.
The publishing company, Fantagraphics, has many books featuring specific artist retrospectives. (Largely, but not entirely based on artists of the EC era. This also includes artists/writers such as Daniel Clowes, Alex Toth and many others.)
Out of a desperate need to be entertained amidst the recent madness of the past decade I've spent thousand$, and have only very rarely been disappointed. (They even publish Dr. Reich's wonderful book, though for obvious reasons it's currently out of print):
https://www.fantagraphics.com/
I truly hope this helps others as much as it has helped me.
PS,
Their brand-new "Precious Rubbish" by Kayla E is just about the hottest thing in comics currently, and it is STUPENDOUS!
https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/precious-rubbish
Currently, they're having trouble keeping it in stock, but it if you were an abused child as I was (or just love great story-telling in comic form), it's entirely worth waiting for.
My day job is investigating financial crime and the abject corruption is one of the things that makes me the most angry, not because it's the most directly harmful (that would be turning ICE loose as secret police or propping up war mongers like Putin and Netanhayu), but because it's so pernicious. Just ask Mexico or Nigeria: once government corruption sets in, it will be there for decades, and the contemptible U.S. v. Trump decision means we'll likely never be able to take Trump to task for it the way Bob Menendez was.
Ah, alas, the dear gone days when bought politicians stayed bought.
And kept their ill gotten gains in a shoe box in the closet. When crooks had class﹗
Indeed!
As a lifetime Democratic voter (starting in '76), I'm so confused about the definition of corruption.
For example, we're thought of by MAGAts as being the ultimate in sleaze, yet ZERO Dems have gone public about any details concerning the "stollen(sic) 2020 election", even when offered $5,000.000 by Musk.
So, we're too corrupt to participate in an election w/o cheating, but nobel enough for EVERY Dem involved to remain silent 5 years later, even when offered such a large sum:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/14/elon-musk-voter-fraud-group
Of course, setting up most supporters almost from Day One as being too "uneducated" for normal comprehension was a genius move by any (immoral) standard.
There is a reason environmentalists tread very carefully and quietly in this country. It because the consequences are so dire if you get caught advocating for nature and talking about changing the fossil fuel paradigm. just like environmentalists, Democrats have to be very brave to stand up to the powers in force now. They are(Booker, Bernie,AOC,Hogg,Crocket) you just can’t hear them over the noise.
Recall Trump’s inadvertently prophetic remark about letting two kids fight a while longer. They will stop when their arms get tired and their noses are bloody. Meanwhile, pass the popcorn, please.
The corruption IS the most important and onvious takeaway, sadly. Glad Krugman is calling this out.
Trump has proven time and time again that he is a transactional pervert. He just recently took a one million dollar bribe from a contributor to pardon her son who essentially paid him with the money he stole from his employees. Musk was causing destruction, devastation and despair while the Republican legislators were cheering him on.
Trump perceived that Musk outlived his usefulness so he jettisoned him like yesterday’s trash. But, one thing that I learned is to never engage with a junkie like Musk. The drugs destroys their prefrontal cortex and they lose their impulse control. Musk is now all id. There is no moderating ego or superego.
This administration is full of people who have destroyed their prefrontal cortex. It seems as though it is a prerequisite for a position. There’s RFKJR and his 14 years of shooting heroin. Public drunkards imported from Fauxnooz. Reports of adderal use by 47, and Dr. feel-good Jackson are almost forgotten in all the brouhaha. Religious fanaticism is also as much of a drug as any of these substances.
“Trump derangement syndrome” accusations are really admissions. It should be viewed for what it really is- a cluster of certain psychiatric disorders: megalomania, narcissism, addiction, and an urge to psychopathic violence directed at large populations instead of individuals. Trump is the prime example of TDS as much as de Sade is of sadism.
"[Trump] took a one million dollar bribe from a contributor to pardon her son"
In reality the affair was even more sordid. That mother asked for a pardon arguing that she HAD ALREADY contributed millions of dollars and a smear campaign. Trump decided these contributions weren't enough, and asked for yet another million dollars. Only after she paid THAT bribe, the pardon came finally through.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/27/us/politics/trump-pardon-paul-walczak-tax-crimes.html
"I blame their enablers, who have refused, again and again, to enforce the Constitution or place any restraints on Trump’s abuses. And yes, this means Republicans." YES! FINALLY ! The myriad of citizens upset (not to say semi-crazy) by what's happening focus on specific issues, honor, and policy. But our corruption has solidified; it all of one piece: "It's the Republicans, stupid!" This could not happen without a rogue political party. Vote them OUT!
I suspect this is like professional wrestling: it's a dust-up staged to enthrall the plebs, possibly to distract from the real action of weaseling his awful budget through reconciliation.