I will spend the rest of my days wondering first how people thought a phony TV carnival-barker with nothing but a long history of shady real estate deals was the perfect follow-up to the first two-term African-American president in history, then re-elect a demented freak screaming about Haitians eating cats and dogs in Springfield (as though he ever had a pet in his life) sure this would bring down the price of eggs or something....
Another great essay and absolutely precise. I just hope enough Americans are cognitively capable enough to understand and vote accordingly. It appears that we Democrats must be truly authentic, hammer on the economic woes of average citizens, and emphasize the control exercised by billionaires, especially on their pushing AI to take over our lives. Protecting democracy, Trump's corruption and destruction are incredibly important but drag discussions off track and fail to motivate some of the needed voters.
After the 2024 election, a friend of mine who is a good but sometimes pessimistic Democrat (he didn’t think Biden could beat Trump and I told him Biden would win) finally told ME something positive when I was the one shattered by Trump’s return. “Well dude,” he said, “Now the Republicans are in total control. And now they’re going to have to own this shit.” Jen’s column beautifully outlines what my friend meant. The utter incompetence, ignorance, arrogance, lack of empathy and a million other misguided disasters can be hung around Trump and the gutless GOP enablers in Congress like a dog collar. And like future President Jon Ossoff keeps repeating, they all need to be held accountable for their actions. I’m telling my good but pessimistic friend that I’m now seeing a 50-year sea change, where Democrats, having finally solved their messaging problem, take control and lead us to that more perfect union the Founders foresaw and that a majority of Americans not only want, but desperately need. VOTE BLUE IN NOVEMBER up and down the ballot!
I hope Democrats repeatedly communicate about this as well as all of the other issues readily available to them. When Trump torpedoed the bipartisan immigration reform bill because he wanted to use it as a campaign issue, I recall President Biden stating that he would remind the voters every day of what Trump and Republicans in Congress had done. I don’t recall President Biden or anyone else reminding the voters and using it as a campaign issue. I hope Democrats are getting better at campaigning. Senator Ossoff gets it.
I agree 100%! The fastest, easiest way to shut down my Republican friends about "the border" is to remind them that the Lankford bill had every single thing they claim to want for border control and immigration. Biden promised to sign that bill. But no, their guy Trump shut it down. Why this circumstantial case isn't being pounded harder mystifies me.
Trump did not present and sign a new immigration bill to resolve the chaos. Instead, he ignored the legislative solution and went straight to authoritarian beat-downs and straight up political assassinations in the street, ie Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Americans are not on board with that at all. Democrats should be connecting the dots like I just did.
This issue is just one of hundreds that can be hammered. As with any mess, it usually is overwhelming and there are far too many places to start. The simplest solution is to just point out the total mess he and his maga enablers have created and pick a few examples to illustrate. When they flood the zone with so much bullshit it is easy for anything to get lost. The Epstein files are one of the few things that haven't faded away along with the Iran war and continually increasing costs. Democrats just need to grab onto the things that are sticking and hammer away through November and the blue tsunami.
The Ds have all then need in terms of talking points and issues to persuade the public. All they have to do is read Jen, HCR, Joyce Vance, Miles Taylor, and a few others. It's not hard. All the issues are there, clear and laid out!!
As usual, Jen, you hit the nail on the head. Your articles are always so concise and timely. I do miss you on coffee with contrarians. It’s not the same without you.
Thank you…. Written with every ounce of your experience, intelligence, knowledge, command of both facts and history and, of course talent . These are dreadful truths. I am 90 years old and remember times of hope and generosity. My grandchildren cannot even remember a less misbegotten Government.
Thank you Jen. After the Iran disaster, we need a thorough review of our military and what we need to do to better prepare for the future. Let’s put the military leaders Trump got rid of back to work.
Yeah, he fits right in to the administration of Don the Con. At least during Term1 there were people like Tillerson, Mattis, Kelly, McMaster, etc to keep him from going completely off the rails, at least in foreigh policy
I am so fed up with Republicans and their so-called leader, I could spit. They have proved their incompetence over and over again and WeThePeople are expected to foot the bill for fools. I’m not buying it.
Everything Trump touches turns to garbage. The previous stalemate with Iran, in which it was not attacking its neighbors nor interfering with traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, looks pretty good now. We will be years rebuilding alliances and showing our friends in Asia and Europe that we are reliable.
I think restoring credibility with U.S.'s ex-allies will take generations rather than years. Who knows whether after four or eight years of a democrat presidency the children of today's MAGA will not elect another republican nutcase?
Yep! I remember when Biden had his first meeting with our European allies. He said "America is back". One European president/prime minister responded with perhaps the most accurate and pointed quote I've ever heard:
"Yes, but for how long?"
You're right that it will take a generation, maybe more, to restore our credibility on the world stage. And the chances of having sane adults continuously running the government, regardless of their party affiliation, are about the same as the chances that the sun will rise in the west tomorrow morning!
Remember it takes only one administration populated by idiots and nutcases to wreck decades worth of good, smart actions.
Nancy, that makes it all the more worrisome, doesn't it. It may take a couple of decades of good behavior to rehgain the esteem and trust we once deserved
The Democrats must investigate and expose all the enablers from the spineless cowards in the GOP too the various media outlets and journalist who dutifully report every damn lie as if it was handed down by God on a stone tablet. There has to be a truth and reconciliation commission to uncover all the lies and force those living in the GOP delusion to confront the truth and their role in owning this disaster. There also needs to be legislation similar to what Germany enacted regarding the Nazis to prevent a return to this kind of bullshit. We can only move forward once we confront the hard truths of how we allowed this to happen. Jen Rubin has done a masterful job of laying out a road map, now those that are in power need to flesh out the map with the details and execute it. I want the America that my father fought for in 1945 when he was an 18-year-old shipped off to Germany to ensure that we wouldn't have a return to Hitler and Nazis.
And might the War to distract from the disastrous war on Iran be in the making. A Texas oil company has offloaded drilling materials into NE Greenland without their permission and to the great consternation of the Populace. We cannot survive 2 1/2 more years of this chaos, corruption, cruelty and incompetence. The Orange Odium needs to be removed from office.
In holding Republicans responsible for the Iran war, it's helpful to translate the cost of Trump's war into things such as the price of gas, cuts in healthcare, higher food prices. Maps are ideal for this because they let the reader see the impact locally in their county and the Republican rep for that district to hold accountable. Check out these maps/infographics which can be freely shared.
Follow Trump’s war with this 3D map and the cost of his senseless war with Iran, price of gas and more with these real-time dashboards.
This app honors those who had died in Trump's war with Iran. Search by name, age, state where they're from and follow a link to details on their death.
What does Trump's love of inflation mean for you? Remember what happened to gas prices the last price America went to war in the Middle East for Israel?
The war is, as always in the Middle East, about oil. Take away renewables and the dependence on oil increases and the effort to preserve and protect supply only increases. We should see both of these—the war for oil and the war against renewables as two sides of the coin. And Trump’s actions as one long and large shill for the oil industry.
Trump admin's corruption & incompetence is beyond shocking. Having started a catastrophic war of choice, Trump & Co are desperate to escape the escalation trap with no viable options.
Trump & Co money laundering, extortion, fraud, weaponization of government against critics…? The Trump brand.
GOP normalizes sociopathy & serial criminality elevating some of the most corrupt to positions of power. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYUEw-EMPpk Resist depraved, demented, gangster grifter authoritarianism! #VoteBlue!
Escalation of commitment: It seems rather obvious, but science from the 70s shows that people really do double down more often when they’ve scored an own-goal. Specifically, they throw more resources at a failing project when they've initiated it themselves and they're to blame for the failure.
Start a war you haven't remotely prepared for > ramp up attacks when people call your bullshit (a coward's attempt at evading criticism) > make situation worse > come crawling back to table, let new criticism sink in > ramp up attacks when people call your bullshit > repeat.
I completely agree, stop funding for this clusterfuck before more people get killed.
See Staw, B.M. (1976), "Knee-Deep in the Big Muddy: A Study of Escalating Commitment to a Chosen Course of Action," Organizational Behavior and Human Performance (Pdf of paper: https://sl1nk.com/aazobca)
Your suggested responses make sense, but I think more thought need be given to the President's ability to initiate any military response. This Iran conflict is a perfect example of how an Executive action, in such a short period of time, can cause lasting damage to our national security. At the very least, the president should have the concurrence of the top Congressional Leadership (even if in secret) prior to any action. True, it's always easier to ask forgiveness than ask for permission, but not in cases like this. And it needs to be enforceable. We're not putting this genie back in the bottle - not for a long time.
“Trump’s utter stupidity, rotten judgment, and incompetence…”
Yep—-that’s our boy! Which Americans….with their faulty electoral college system CHOSE to inflict upon themselves——TWICE!
What a sad, sad state of affairs!
I will spend the rest of my days wondering first how people thought a phony TV carnival-barker with nothing but a long history of shady real estate deals was the perfect follow-up to the first two-term African-American president in history, then re-elect a demented freak screaming about Haitians eating cats and dogs in Springfield (as though he ever had a pet in his life) sure this would bring down the price of eggs or something....
Jung -- collective racial subconscious. Antihero with a thousand fecies.
Another great essay and absolutely precise. I just hope enough Americans are cognitively capable enough to understand and vote accordingly. It appears that we Democrats must be truly authentic, hammer on the economic woes of average citizens, and emphasize the control exercised by billionaires, especially on their pushing AI to take over our lives. Protecting democracy, Trump's corruption and destruction are incredibly important but drag discussions off track and fail to motivate some of the needed voters.
After the 2024 election, a friend of mine who is a good but sometimes pessimistic Democrat (he didn’t think Biden could beat Trump and I told him Biden would win) finally told ME something positive when I was the one shattered by Trump’s return. “Well dude,” he said, “Now the Republicans are in total control. And now they’re going to have to own this shit.” Jen’s column beautifully outlines what my friend meant. The utter incompetence, ignorance, arrogance, lack of empathy and a million other misguided disasters can be hung around Trump and the gutless GOP enablers in Congress like a dog collar. And like future President Jon Ossoff keeps repeating, they all need to be held accountable for their actions. I’m telling my good but pessimistic friend that I’m now seeing a 50-year sea change, where Democrats, having finally solved their messaging problem, take control and lead us to that more perfect union the Founders foresaw and that a majority of Americans not only want, but desperately need. VOTE BLUE IN NOVEMBER up and down the ballot!
Hope you're right!!
I hope Democrats repeatedly communicate about this as well as all of the other issues readily available to them. When Trump torpedoed the bipartisan immigration reform bill because he wanted to use it as a campaign issue, I recall President Biden stating that he would remind the voters every day of what Trump and Republicans in Congress had done. I don’t recall President Biden or anyone else reminding the voters and using it as a campaign issue. I hope Democrats are getting better at campaigning. Senator Ossoff gets it.
I agree 100%! The fastest, easiest way to shut down my Republican friends about "the border" is to remind them that the Lankford bill had every single thing they claim to want for border control and immigration. Biden promised to sign that bill. But no, their guy Trump shut it down. Why this circumstantial case isn't being pounded harder mystifies me.
Trump did not present and sign a new immigration bill to resolve the chaos. Instead, he ignored the legislative solution and went straight to authoritarian beat-downs and straight up political assassinations in the street, ie Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Americans are not on board with that at all. Democrats should be connecting the dots like I just did.
This issue is just one of hundreds that can be hammered. As with any mess, it usually is overwhelming and there are far too many places to start. The simplest solution is to just point out the total mess he and his maga enablers have created and pick a few examples to illustrate. When they flood the zone with so much bullshit it is easy for anything to get lost. The Epstein files are one of the few things that haven't faded away along with the Iran war and continually increasing costs. Democrats just need to grab onto the things that are sticking and hammer away through November and the blue tsunami.
💯
And the issues that are sticking and standing out are obvious! I hope the Ds have the smarts to grab them and hammer them over and over again!
The Ds have all then need in terms of talking points and issues to persuade the public. All they have to do is read Jen, HCR, Joyce Vance, Miles Taylor, and a few others. It's not hard. All the issues are there, clear and laid out!!
As usual, Jen, you hit the nail on the head. Your articles are always so concise and timely. I do miss you on coffee with contrarians. It’s not the same without you.
Thank you…. Written with every ounce of your experience, intelligence, knowledge, command of both facts and history and, of course talent . These are dreadful truths. I am 90 years old and remember times of hope and generosity. My grandchildren cannot even remember a less misbegotten Government.
So… thank you.
Thank you Jen. After the Iran disaster, we need a thorough review of our military and what we need to do to better prepare for the future. Let’s put the military leaders Trump got rid of back to work.
Hegseth doesn't understand that in the modern world, you win conflicts with brains, not with testicles.
Agreed, not only does he not have any brains, but he is also nothing more than a spineless drunk.
Yeah, he fits right in to the administration of Don the Con. At least during Term1 there were people like Tillerson, Mattis, Kelly, McMaster, etc to keep him from going completely off the rails, at least in foreigh policy
Thanks
I am so fed up with Republicans and their so-called leader, I could spit. They have proved their incompetence over and over again and WeThePeople are expected to foot the bill for fools. I’m not buying it.
Everything Trump touches turns to garbage. The previous stalemate with Iran, in which it was not attacking its neighbors nor interfering with traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, looks pretty good now. We will be years rebuilding alliances and showing our friends in Asia and Europe that we are reliable.
I think restoring credibility with U.S.'s ex-allies will take generations rather than years. Who knows whether after four or eight years of a democrat presidency the children of today's MAGA will not elect another republican nutcase?
Yep! I remember when Biden had his first meeting with our European allies. He said "America is back". One European president/prime minister responded with perhaps the most accurate and pointed quote I've ever heard:
"Yes, but for how long?"
You're right that it will take a generation, maybe more, to restore our credibility on the world stage. And the chances of having sane adults continuously running the government, regardless of their party affiliation, are about the same as the chances that the sun will rise in the west tomorrow morning!
Remember it takes only one administration populated by idiots and nutcases to wreck decades worth of good, smart actions.
That really is the awful result of what we've done; proved to the world that we will elect a fascist idiot.
Twice....
Nancy, that makes it all the more worrisome, doesn't it. It may take a couple of decades of good behavior to rehgain the esteem and trust we once deserved
The Democrats must investigate and expose all the enablers from the spineless cowards in the GOP too the various media outlets and journalist who dutifully report every damn lie as if it was handed down by God on a stone tablet. There has to be a truth and reconciliation commission to uncover all the lies and force those living in the GOP delusion to confront the truth and their role in owning this disaster. There also needs to be legislation similar to what Germany enacted regarding the Nazis to prevent a return to this kind of bullshit. We can only move forward once we confront the hard truths of how we allowed this to happen. Jen Rubin has done a masterful job of laying out a road map, now those that are in power need to flesh out the map with the details and execute it. I want the America that my father fought for in 1945 when he was an 18-year-old shipped off to Germany to ensure that we wouldn't have a return to Hitler and Nazis.
And might the War to distract from the disastrous war on Iran be in the making. A Texas oil company has offloaded drilling materials into NE Greenland without their permission and to the great consternation of the Populace. We cannot survive 2 1/2 more years of this chaos, corruption, cruelty and incompetence. The Orange Odium needs to be removed from office.
In holding Republicans responsible for the Iran war, it's helpful to translate the cost of Trump's war into things such as the price of gas, cuts in healthcare, higher food prices. Maps are ideal for this because they let the reader see the impact locally in their county and the Republican rep for that district to hold accountable. Check out these maps/infographics which can be freely shared.
Follow Trump’s war with this 3D map and the cost of his senseless war with Iran, price of gas and more with these real-time dashboards.
https://arcg.is/1XfTiL4
Patriot Missiles vs. Medicare Coverage: We Did the Math
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/08/05/medicare-costs-vs-patriot-missile-math/
Mapping Iranian cyberattacks against U.S. water plants as Hegseth fires top security experts
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/08/04/iranian-water-hacks-hegseth-pentagon-chaos/
This app honors those who had died in Trump's war with Iran. Search by name, age, state where they're from and follow a link to details on their death.
https://makeitfast.org/AmericanDeathsInIranWar
Where are Americans going hungry to buy more bombs for Pete Hegseth? Check this map.
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/07/22/hegseth-over-budget-iran-war-food-benefits-cut/
Follow the hostilities inTrump's endless Iran war with this 3D Map
https://arcg.is/1O8X4C1
How much will Trump’s EPIC DEFEAT in Iran cost you? Check this infographic.
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/06/19/iran-war-household-financial-cost-infographic/
What does Trump's love of inflation mean for you? Remember what happened to gas prices the last price America went to war in the Middle East for Israel?
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/06/11/gas-prices-inflation-soar-trump-war/
Mapping the farmers ruined by Trump’s war with Iran and the MAGA reps to hold accountable.
https://thedemlabs.org/2026/06/08/fertilizer-diesel-prices-soar-iran-war/
The war is, as always in the Middle East, about oil. Take away renewables and the dependence on oil increases and the effort to preserve and protect supply only increases. We should see both of these—the war for oil and the war against renewables as two sides of the coin. And Trump’s actions as one long and large shill for the oil industry.
Voters to to hold GOP accountable...
Trump admin's corruption & incompetence is beyond shocking. Having started a catastrophic war of choice, Trump & Co are desperate to escape the escalation trap with no viable options.
As the economy sheds jobs, inflation rises, the deficit explodes, Trump transfers wealth to the wealthiest & proclaims a Golden Age. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/08/07/business/jobs-report-economy?smid=url-share
Trump & Co money laundering, extortion, fraud, weaponization of government against critics…? The Trump brand.
GOP normalizes sociopathy & serial criminality elevating some of the most corrupt to positions of power. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYUEw-EMPpk Resist depraved, demented, gangster grifter authoritarianism! #VoteBlue!
Escalation of commitment: It seems rather obvious, but science from the 70s shows that people really do double down more often when they’ve scored an own-goal. Specifically, they throw more resources at a failing project when they've initiated it themselves and they're to blame for the failure.
Start a war you haven't remotely prepared for > ramp up attacks when people call your bullshit (a coward's attempt at evading criticism) > make situation worse > come crawling back to table, let new criticism sink in > ramp up attacks when people call your bullshit > repeat.
I completely agree, stop funding for this clusterfuck before more people get killed.
See Staw, B.M. (1976), "Knee-Deep in the Big Muddy: A Study of Escalating Commitment to a Chosen Course of Action," Organizational Behavior and Human Performance (Pdf of paper: https://sl1nk.com/aazobca)
Your suggested responses make sense, but I think more thought need be given to the President's ability to initiate any military response. This Iran conflict is a perfect example of how an Executive action, in such a short period of time, can cause lasting damage to our national security. At the very least, the president should have the concurrence of the top Congressional Leadership (even if in secret) prior to any action. True, it's always easier to ask forgiveness than ask for permission, but not in cases like this. And it needs to be enforceable. We're not putting this genie back in the bottle - not for a long time.