Ah, Contrarian. Tsk, tsk. You don't seem to understand the Project 2025 Government doesn't give a damn. It doesn't need Trump to be popular or any of this "programs" to work. It doesn't need Congress to be in session, or the "government" to be funded, or laws to be obeyed. They are sadistic sociopaths and don't need or want our approval. Or even our condemnation. "Our" military is committing murder in the Caribbean at their request and Noem and Homan's police force is kidnapping Americans off the streets and spending the $140 billion they've been given on super-smart tech and weapons of war. There is no "silver lining". There is no "circling the drain". There is no way out but through.
I have a different scenario to offer. More and more, Trump's delusions mirror Muammar Gaddafi's belief that "the people love me." We all know what happened in the end....don't we? He is, in fact, circling the drain; however, your astute assessment that The Contrarian doesn't "seem to understand the Project 2025 Government doesn't give a damn. It doesn't need Trump to be popular or any of this "programs" to work. It doesn't need Congress to be in session, or the "government" to be funded, or laws to be obeyed. They are sadistic sociopaths and don't need or want our approval" is essentially correct and kinetically gravitates him to circle the drain faster than he, his sociopaths, or any Project 2025 sycophant has any idea of how fast that gravitational pull really is. He is, in fact, falling down the drain as we speak. I may be wrong; however, I'm envisioning at some point, the people of this nation performing a Lech Walesa moment where folks will be at the White House gate.... and they won't be happy.
When it happens --- and it most assuredly WILL happen, as it always has in history -- it may not be a Lech Walesa moment, but a Nicolai Ceauşescu one. He and his lovely Missus were standing on the parapets of whatever that ghastly building in Bucharest was ordering the crowds to cheer in November 1989, when -- in a flash -- the dynamic suddenly shifted. The cheers metamorphosed to yells and screams and jeering whistles, even as Madame Macbeth tried to shame the crowds for their sudden honesty.
Within three days, Caligula and his Empress lay crumpled in a gutter somewhere, beaten, shot, their Palace Guard running away in fear, as a new National Salvation Front suddenly took control. While no one sane ever seeks violence and retribution like that, the loyalties of those terrified for their own lives can change on a dime. It's happened before. It will happen again.
So push back on your own absolute certainty that 'we are DOOMED,' like Winnifred Sanderson in "Hocus Pocus." We are not doomed. We are active, involved, getting stronger and winning small, but key battles every day. They are scared of us. They are terrified. They hold on by a thread. They are, indeed, circling the drain. Our job is to keep the water pressure up.
Yesss! We are NOT helpless here. History has many precedents for what we're suffering now, and how it has to end. But too many people have the approximate attention span of a gnat - i.e., what's "in" now will be defunct and forgotten five minutes later. They think that making an impressive spectacle on No Kings Day is enough, that all they have to do is think of new ways to mock the ridiculous clown in charge. They actually think they won something that day and can rest now. WRONG -- there's much to do, however small you think it is!!
This is negativity we do not need. "Too many people" correct or not- you nor I know- actually got out there and need to be encouraged. People have lives to lead. They run into what is happening in their daily lives. Those of us who have the time and the sense of urgency to keep up with the daily infusion of chaos/outrage and hate, poop from this failing presidency, must carry the ball and encourage. Organizers like Ezra Levin and so many orgs unsung, are not only about NO Kings Day. More people are getting psyched up for this resistance movement and realize that it's existential... and communal. They need direction, hope, and encouragement. No Kings gave this a big energy shot. Those of us that can, must keep the lamp lit.
I can get down on humanity too. Despair is a killer.
I disagree. I think the Dr.'s comment is offensive and not helpful. I am surprised that so many share this sentiment. People who took part, in however manner, DID win something that day.. and how they go forward or how they were possibly changed and encouraged by that experience is what we should be talking about, not this negativity based on not knowing either.
I don't agree. I have attended all three large protests, and each time I have come away wanting to do more, show up more, and find my place in the resistance to this corrupt and venal regime. There is power in community, solidarity, and the courage that is contagious. I was a bit scared to go on Saturday, but as soon as I connected with my friends, my fear dissolved. "It's the end of the world," said the caterpillar. "It's only the beginning," said the butterfly.
The nastier and more desperate the Trump regime becomes, I believe more folks are going to stand up. Trump worships money and most Americans don’t have enough to interest him. That’s going to open some more cracks in the populous facade.
I'm sure more than a few Repubs in Congress are planning their exit strategies now..."Oh no, I was only pretending to be MAGA so I could try to fix things from the inside which actually makes me a hero if you think about it...yeah, that's what I am, a hero! What's that? No...no wait...no I don't need to see the video of all the awful things I said, I told you, I was PRETENDING, Yes I know I sound racist and anarchical...what? I said that how many times? Look, I'm a hero I tell ya, a A HERO!"
Now would be a good time for them to defect. Those who do so early might salvage their careers, but the ones who are late to the party will be branded as cowards.
I think it is impossible for them to defect now. They have done everything Trump has wanted, and passed the BIG UGLY Bill that was signed into law on July 4, which will take years to undo. They have not only proven they feared Trump more than they cared about their constituents, but they are not to be trusted. And, they all are cowards and traitors.
I hope some of them will change their minds and vote for the ACA tax credits, but even if they do so soon, and the shutdown ends, things won't be fixed because there is so much else that they have destroyed. But, that's just my take on this.
Yep. We are going to wake up one morning to the headline on NYT that reads,
'Congressional republicans abandon trump en masse, tripping over themselves to head for maga off ramps.’
What we need to remember is that they are ALL complicit and should be ejected permanently from any power at any level, not to mention that many of them belong in jail.
George Kastanza in Seinfeld as he is as trying to exit the apartment during a fire. “I was leading the way at the risk of my own safety”. 😂😂😂🤣🤣😅 that’s essentially what you’re describing. 🤣🤣😂
They have committed so many crimes, he probably won’t get to them all in time. Tangentially, I have never been able to understand how he gets so many seemingly smart people to risk going to federal prison for him. The lawyers who will be disbarred — and the dumbest of all, why do women do whatever he wants? Abusive daddy issues?? All the people around him are deeply irretrievably damaged, just like him. But to give them power? We really are down the rabbit hole.
ITTC, you may well have a better example than the one I made. Personally, I would not want Trump et.al. to be made lying as worthless heaps dead in whatever gutters may be available. I am looking for all of them to be held for trial on charges of treason and jailed until they expire in their cells. No commutations, no pardons, and no forgiveness of any degree. Meanwhile, the sounds of “lock ‘em up….” forever resonating in what’s left of their gray matter, continue ever after.
Beautifully put. They have been so busy arming their base that they never considered that those folks might turn their guns on them once they learn they have been played. There is a line in one of Auden's poems about "the revolution eating its children." I'm beginning another Zoom course today on Engaging Nonviolence, led by Rivera Sun, author of the Dandelion Trilogy. The trilogy is a work of speculative fiction that rings true today. It is both hopeful and inspiring. Her courses are as well, and anyone interested can find them at PaceeBene.com, an organization located in Corvallis, Oregon, dedicated to nonviolence.
I believe that all three of you are correct. I agree with Steven Levin that the people employing Project 2025 are sadistic sociopaths on a spree of destruction. They don't care a twit that trump is engaged in bombastic narcissistic behavior ("the people love me" theory) as Riad Mahayni postulated that will bring him down. I also agree with you that a military coup plan is being mapped out. I guess we have to buckle up our seatbelts....
Yes, they are sadistic sociopaths, and three of the worst besides Russell Vought are: Kevin Roberts, CEO of The Heritage Foundation, mastermind of Project 2025, and member of Opus Dei, which Pope Leo is disbanding; JD Vance, who is good friends with Roberts, who hooked him up with an Opus Dei priest before he converted to Catholicism; and Leonard Leo, Chair of the Federalist Society, who stacked SCOTUS with six Catholic conservatives, spent 35 years trying to crush liberal federal judges and replace them with conservatives, and was given $1.6B in 2021 to spread his reach. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei Also...Stephen Miller, who has worked hard to implement Project 2025.
You might want to review Christopher Armitage’s thoughts on “soft secession” (also on Substack). He’s got a different, and somewhat more appealing, future in mind that could salvage at least those parts of the country that want to be saved.
I'm praying and working for that Lech Walesa moment as well. We are in this together. I've been to all three large protests. NO KINGS II was joyful, but it was also deeply determined. People are pissed off and you could feel that as well as the joy.
Of course we understand that Trump is Project 2025's useful idiot. In exchange for making him a dictator, they gain total control of every aspect of American life.
Absolutely what I was going to post, Steven. The idea that popular discontent--unless expressed as the French do, with mass general strikes, or demonstrates a willingness to invoke the dissidents in Tiananmen Square and put flowers in the muzzles of AK-47s and be mown down by Stepford Wife Noem's Black Shirts--will have any effect on this deranged, obese, orange toddler and his handlers and ass-licking minions is an exercise in fantasy. And yes: it is going to take a level of dissent that the vast majority of people in the USA are unwilling to do, because dying for democracy is lauded only when the enemy is a foreign country and not sitting in the White House.
The seeds of our “salvation” may rest with some of the actions blue state governors are already starting to take. The recently announced interstate compact on healthcare—to protect their residents from some of the outlandish stuff now flowing from HHS—is a first step. The more mutually-supporting, self-sustaining mechanisms like this that can be created, the better for our future. This might not end up being a “zero-sum” game after all.
As political analysis, the only actors who seem to matter in your view are those in the Project 2025 Government. While your description of them is accurate, what they perceive and want is not the beginning and end of the story. (I don’t read the NYTimes because they also center the universe on Trump and his power, as if it is all important—journalism fit for a king, not a democracy.) Jen Rubin is reporting on the realities we are living through as a result of Trump government policies and lawlessness. Citizens’ recognition and experience of these realities is hugely important. Even kings need public support (some have been beheaded because they don’t have it). This one doesn’t seem to understand that. I don’t think it’s off the mark for her to be saying, This king’s government is falling apart.
My thoughts exactly. I would not want to see a military "coup", but I WOULD like to see military leaders honor their oath to the Constitution and simply refuse to act on the unamerican orders issued by Trump and company on behalf of those using them to implement P2025.
I give you at best 50-50 odds on that. The idea of civilian control of the military goes back to the country's founding. I believe it will be a hard tradition to break. Frankly, the idea of a military coup to settle this disturbs me greatly. I hope it never comes to that.
Something to consider--a question used frequently by law enforcement and the courts to determine probable guilt: MOTIVATION. It would be very useful to offer some perspectives on the motivations of the Project 25 supporters--other than establishing a lucrative and flattering patriarchal theocracy, ala Gilead.
Might be, but I know that several of the tech bros who've helped enable Project 2025 have additional motives, which are even darker. For example, the gradual elimination of large numbers of Americans who, according to their lights, will no longer be needed in the future AI economy. And that includes many farmers, who they believe can be replaced with Big Ag means and mechanisms (plus newer forms of robotics). The land itself can be snapped up for pennies on the dollar and its produce prioritized for the tech bro billionaire class. Some at least of these folk are certifiably psychotic and even more of them lack empathy, meaning they are sociopaths. Guess this was what I was pointing at.
Assuming we HAVE four years... ack! The way through for me, personally, is to write letters and emails to Congresspeople, donate the little I can to good people running in different states, read and comment in The Contrarian and turn others onto it (do you know how many people don't know about it???), display signs on my property, write postcards to swing states, talk to people who are actually capable of listening. There's also putting stickers on high prices (etsy has bunches of them, cheap!), like the one with his picture pointing and saying, "Aren't these prices TARRIFF-ic?" Anything to creak a Maga mind open to say, "Duh: did I get snookered??"
The last thing we need to do is be stuck, wringing our hands.
The phrase "If you're going through hell, keep going" is a motivational quote attributed to Winston Churchill, encouraging perseverance during difficult times. It suggests that one should continue moving forward despite challenges. Which is what we must do. But Rubin and Eisen's attempts to put a rosy frame around what's going on irk me. We are not winning. Not yet and not by a long shot.
I think Jen and Norm are treading that wobbly line between reporting reality and providing encouragement. For example, I never come away from her columns feeling in the least bit "rosy," or thinking there's nothing more we can do.
I expect there will be continuous disagreement as to the right tone or words to keep us motivated. We anti-rumpers can be an unwieldy bunch.
The phrase "If you're going through hell, keep going" is a motivational quote attributed to Winston Churchill, encouraging perseverance during difficult times. It suggests that one should continue moving forward despite challenges. Which is what we must do. But Rubin and Eisen's attempts to put a rosy frame around what's going on irk me. We are not winning. Not yet and not by a long shot.
I'm wondering if some foreign leader that we have decent relationships but, are impacted by the tariffs could come in and claim that Trump is demented. And to do it to his face in the oval office with all the press sitting there. That's my fantasy.
I don’t know if they are “sadistic sociopaths”, that’s a pretty intense psychiatric diagnosis, but the Magaverse does appear to be largely composed of people with an inflated sense of entitlement and enormous resentment. Easily whipped into outrage, easily manipulated by cunning and greed. Sad…
Hi Bobbette ~ I'm specifically referring the people in the Project 2025 Government, not MAGA at large. Of course, it's up to you whether you believe them (Project 2025) to be psychopaths or sociopaths.
Trump's predilection for immigrant wives shows that immigrants do the jobs Americans don't want to do. -- Comment by a speaker at the DC No Kings protest.
Those of us with our wits about us tried to sound the warning. Why this career eff up,loser and grifter became president the first time was insane enough. But after he wrecked the country the first time around, tried to steal an election, sent a mob to attack the Capitol and stole troves of secret documents, who the hell could have possibly thought he deserved a second chance? He should be in jail, not in the White House.
Yes, it's evident that between 30-40% of the population lacks critical thinking. I am sick and tired of pundits criticizing democrats for not adopting a clear "message." It didn't take much when months ago I first heard of the rounding up of illegal immigrants to understand that this would affect our food supply. My husband and I bought $300 worth canned food. Now it's news? Look at what's happened in the last 10 months and here we have 3 years to go. Prepare folks....
Sophia, I agree with everything you said except the "3 years to go" part. In no way is this sputtering evil entity going to make it that long. I shudder to think what's next...
Well I sure hope your scenario manifests over the one I fear--that they impose their authoritarianism beyond the three years. This unbridled power is too much of a powerful drug to let go....
I agree with you about the pundits who think Dems lack a message. We're trying to help people live better lives. That takes in a lot of ground. Republicans couldn't care less. Perhaps we would be better narrowing our focus. But the fact is, and I never thought I would say this, the fix has been in since the Reagan years. The far right has slowly built a mechanism to destroy the goverment, and even democracy itself. Incredibly, they've done it with smoke and mirrors, distracting red state voters with shiny objects while they rob them blind. I hope and pray enough people like us are willing to fight this with all our might. And I also believe, judging by town halls in red states, that formerly loyal GOP voters have gotten through what I call "Fox Fog" and figured out they've been betrayed by The Grifter. There will be a great reckoning unless the GOP figures out how to rig all the House elections. And I think the Senate is back in play, too.
"There will be a great reckoning unless the GOP figures out how to rig all the House elections."
Frighteningly, it's already happening. Steve Bannon said in an interview that trump will serve a third term as president and that a plan that will be announced at the right time is already in place. Their brazen actions that ignore trump's increasing unpopularity attests to Bannon's claim. They are not planning to let go of their power as Congress becomes more and more powerless. I just don't get it and the only thing I can creatively conceive that is perpetrating this is astrology....
You left out misogynistic and racist people who wouldn't tolerate a Black woman in the White House. Her 'faults' were nowhere approaching what we've been enduring and will have to continue to do so.
There was significant impact on some folks' emotional response to 'illegals supplying all the drugs to their neighborhoods' and the bizarre fear of 'men in women's sports'. Throw in how both men and women are socialized to be suspicious of strong women and it was no surprise that they could accept a second trump. It was by an extremely narrow margin and I suspect today there are some regretting their choice. Now let's see how they like their insurance premiums come November....
I’m sorry; he’s beyond dementia and frankly, that he would be there would be insulting to those who have dementia. He belongs in a padded cell, well away from all others. As for his sycophants, they all need to face judgement for treason.
I have purchased five hazmat suits with respirators. Join me at the Asbestos Alert Protest.
We will be near (where there is a view of the demolition) the East Wing this Friday at NOON to help raise the alarm that no federally mandated asbestos containment procedures are taking place.
Carcinogens that cause mesothelioma are clouding the air and getting carted through the streets of DC. The entire building should have been encased in a massive tent to prevent the escape of asbestos particals.
Appreciate your resistance and the signs, but that asbestos is all over the place and is doing its dirty work. The only thing I can still cheer about is that it’s now all around/inside the rest of the WH and “they” can’t escape it!!! Good luck with your event; don’t let ICE get you!
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
Most of the people who would be affected are people who are not responsible for T&CO actions. They are simply people who live and work in WaDC. The "they" you think can't escape already have: Do you think Trump and his cronies are anywhere near that building? Nope. Your sense of compassion leaves me a feeling a little ill. It sounds like you are ok for innocent people to be harmed while you feel smug about what's happening. Welcome to Trumpland.
Sorry Annie; but I just don’t get the sense that Wendy meant what you think she meant. Her wish for blowback against this administration was, in my opinion, clearly meant for T&Co. At this point in time, whatever consequences come forward against this administration is well deserved.
I agree that Wendy probably didn't "mean" what she said in a literal sense. Nonetheless, her statement reveals a common perspective that other people will not get hurt and that only T&Co will be affected. We need to open our awareness of what our words imply, and we need to keep in mind how they might affect other people, and what those words might imply about what kind of people we are.
I just watched a pertinent discussion from The Constitution Center that touches deeply on this issue and others. I know "The Constitution Center" sounds like it would be awfully dry and abstract, but I've found them to be down to earth and aimed not at specialists, but people like us who are seeking to understand how things work. This one in particular.
It's called "Liberalism: Current Challenges and Modern Debates". The title is rather dry but the discussion was not. I don't have a link for the recording yet, as it finished just at the hour. But recommend The Constitution Center as an excellent resource. It also has some excellent materials for teachers.
Your assessment really is brilliant. I, for one, never even thought of that carcinogen escaping into the immediate area. Most of us (in which, obviously I include myself) most likely never thought of this possibility due to the bad craziness of this heinous act. Not since the War of 1812 has the WH suffered the damage it now exhibits.
Given your expertise, please describe the real danger of this demolition without any protections. I think it's probably a real danger, but it's not my field; so I can only speculate.
I did. At https://www.gsa.gov/directives-library/asbestos-management it describes pretty clearly the requirements for demolition 1) to check for asbestos and 2) to take measures to report and provide abatement. However, as you note in your next post, it's already done. People already exposed. I wonder if any of them are worried or even care. The Rs are out of town; DJT is out of town; that leaves staffers and Ds. Not sure that's even relevant. How about adjacent buildings. A dead issue? Maybe.....
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
I have the suit, but not the respirator, darn it (State owned it, not me, and it is hard to find masks for small people). I've been having similar thoughts about confronting the demolition. There appears to be no plan, no permits.
I can do one thing though: from now on I am wearing dark clothing and a funeral veil to demonstrations.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
And brings to mind Trump’s cartoon fantasy wherein he drops feces on the NoKings crowd. It’s exactly what he’s doing to the country. It won’t stop until he’s crowned “king” which means we’re in for a long haul.
This middle class American has to purchase a drug from Canada…..because availability here is spotty AND the US price is 500.00 while the Canadian price is 129.00. Both high prices, but the lower one has been immensely better for my inflation-ravaged pocketbook. I made q refill order yesterday..the cost is still 129.00 PLUS 22.00 to cover the tariff to be collected when the product hits our borders. This American is NOT HAPPY with Trump’s senseless attacks on our nation, but then, I despise him for many other reasons. It occurred to me that even a redhat would be unhappy at paying an additional chunk of money for a necessity simply because their president lacks negotiating skills and self-control. If Trumpism is hitting me..doubtless it is hitting them too. When he flies over America shooting shit, it splatters us all.
Remember, MAGA is a cult, and we all know what happens in the end (think Jim Jones). So MAGA-man will die from air pollution, disease, or Kool-Aid, does not matter, as long as they serve Dear Leader.
Because MAGAts believe the shit he is shoveling or dropping. Everything, EVERYTHING he and his handlers do is for money and power.
Now, my question is what leverage does the Evil Trio have on people in Congress and the Supremes so the ‘protect and defend’ part of their oaths of office means nothing?
Propublica, the Guardian, the Contrarian, numerous others. If you read only one thing, that's all you're going to know. "Hope" isn't a verb. There are journalists out there, but not only do you have to find and read them, you have to do the work of understanding what they are trying to tell you.
If you don’t like the probable bottom line, you pretend it doesn’t exist. Also, many people don’t have access and/or time to keep up with news. Again, they ignore it.
Trump's support is weakening as his followers see the consequences that affect them or their neighbors. We can't see it much yet, and part of the reason is that we aren't listening to them.
Thank you for your summary. It’s fitting that Trump himself gave us a defining symbol of his presidency: the destruction of the White House. If that doesn’t break the hearts of the Americans who support him, there’s nothing that can save them.
It isn’t happening fast enough for me. I just hope that there are more fractures of the country because it will get worse with Vance, Miller and Vought in charge after tRump is gone. They will fracture MAGA and could destroy America because of it.
I'm not that worried about Miller and Vontz (Yiddish, look it up) after Don the Con is gone. While their policies and approaches are as bad as or even worse than Don the Con, they just don't have the ability to terrorize GQP politicians into doing their bidding.
I sure hope you are correct! But it does seem that Vance is all in. Vance is as weak willed as they come but Vance has Peter Thiel at his back shoving him forward. I dont think Vance can terrorize the GQP as well as tRump can, i do think Thiel can because he has no soul or conscience and is fearless.
I looked that word up the last time you said to--neat! However they are ever so hard to defeat, alas. M and V may not have the same terror factor, but they will be pests doing their harm for quite a while!
I've never liked making fun of people for their names, how they look, etc. It's playground taunting, at the same level as Trump. We are, I hope, grown-ups. There are plenty of ways to address people with whom one disagrees (even with humor) without making it demeaning, especially when the demeaning slops over onto other people who aren't the direct target. (reposted because substack stuck it in the wrong place.)
As always, Jen is on point, but she needs to add to this one: "and Argentina’s strongman Javier Milei (who gets a $40M taxpayer bailout, a transparent effort to interfere with that country’s election)." First of all, it is 20 BILLION. As Judd has pointed out in his Substack "Popular Information," and Paul Krugman has noted in his Substack, the Argentinian bailout benefits a junk bond friend of Secretary of the Treasury Bessant, who invested heavily in the Argentinian economy (betting that it would improve, so he is out of reality) and needs Argentina to have dollars so that he can get his money out without facing financial ruin. After the initial 20 billion, Bessent is putting together a group of banks to "invest" another 20 billion. The problem is that the banks want the U.S. taxpayer to be on the hook for that money when Argentina defaults, which it will. Of course, Bessent and the Trump administration are fine with the U.S. taxpayers footing the bill.
In a cruel irony, DOGE cut 22 billion from USAID in the name of government efficiency.
Except the drain is clogged. Clogged with Republicans that won’t hold him accountable for all the chaos he’s caused. So now we are stuck with him until we can unclog the drain. 2026 election to do the job I hope.
Nice allegory. Sadly accurate. However, it is possible to create a big flush by pouring in a large bucketful of disinfectant. Do everything we can to GET OUT THE VOTE. Block their escape routes with the truth and our presence
Yes, we are giving them $40 billion, while Trump is proposing to buy Argentinian beef to lower beef prices in the US. US cattle ranchers would like a word.
Ah, Contrarian. Tsk, tsk. You don't seem to understand the Project 2025 Government doesn't give a damn. It doesn't need Trump to be popular or any of this "programs" to work. It doesn't need Congress to be in session, or the "government" to be funded, or laws to be obeyed. They are sadistic sociopaths and don't need or want our approval. Or even our condemnation. "Our" military is committing murder in the Caribbean at their request and Noem and Homan's police force is kidnapping Americans off the streets and spending the $140 billion they've been given on super-smart tech and weapons of war. There is no "silver lining". There is no "circling the drain". There is no way out but through.
I have a different scenario to offer. More and more, Trump's delusions mirror Muammar Gaddafi's belief that "the people love me." We all know what happened in the end....don't we? He is, in fact, circling the drain; however, your astute assessment that The Contrarian doesn't "seem to understand the Project 2025 Government doesn't give a damn. It doesn't need Trump to be popular or any of this "programs" to work. It doesn't need Congress to be in session, or the "government" to be funded, or laws to be obeyed. They are sadistic sociopaths and don't need or want our approval" is essentially correct and kinetically gravitates him to circle the drain faster than he, his sociopaths, or any Project 2025 sycophant has any idea of how fast that gravitational pull really is. He is, in fact, falling down the drain as we speak. I may be wrong; however, I'm envisioning at some point, the people of this nation performing a Lech Walesa moment where folks will be at the White House gate.... and they won't be happy.
When it happens --- and it most assuredly WILL happen, as it always has in history -- it may not be a Lech Walesa moment, but a Nicolai Ceauşescu one. He and his lovely Missus were standing on the parapets of whatever that ghastly building in Bucharest was ordering the crowds to cheer in November 1989, when -- in a flash -- the dynamic suddenly shifted. The cheers metamorphosed to yells and screams and jeering whistles, even as Madame Macbeth tried to shame the crowds for their sudden honesty.
Within three days, Caligula and his Empress lay crumpled in a gutter somewhere, beaten, shot, their Palace Guard running away in fear, as a new National Salvation Front suddenly took control. While no one sane ever seeks violence and retribution like that, the loyalties of those terrified for their own lives can change on a dime. It's happened before. It will happen again.
So push back on your own absolute certainty that 'we are DOOMED,' like Winnifred Sanderson in "Hocus Pocus." We are not doomed. We are active, involved, getting stronger and winning small, but key battles every day. They are scared of us. They are terrified. They hold on by a thread. They are, indeed, circling the drain. Our job is to keep the water pressure up.
Yesss! We are NOT helpless here. History has many precedents for what we're suffering now, and how it has to end. But too many people have the approximate attention span of a gnat - i.e., what's "in" now will be defunct and forgotten five minutes later. They think that making an impressive spectacle on No Kings Day is enough, that all they have to do is think of new ways to mock the ridiculous clown in charge. They actually think they won something that day and can rest now. WRONG -- there's much to do, however small you think it is!!
This is negativity we do not need. "Too many people" correct or not- you nor I know- actually got out there and need to be encouraged. People have lives to lead. They run into what is happening in their daily lives. Those of us who have the time and the sense of urgency to keep up with the daily infusion of chaos/outrage and hate, poop from this failing presidency, must carry the ball and encourage. Organizers like Ezra Levin and so many orgs unsung, are not only about NO Kings Day. More people are getting psyched up for this resistance movement and realize that it's existential... and communal. They need direction, hope, and encouragement. No Kings gave this a big energy shot. Those of us that can, must keep the lamp lit.
I can get down on humanity too. Despair is a killer.
I think you and Dr. Judith are both correct.
I disagree. I think the Dr.'s comment is offensive and not helpful. I am surprised that so many share this sentiment. People who took part, in however manner, DID win something that day.. and how they go forward or how they were possibly changed and encouraged by that experience is what we should be talking about, not this negativity based on not knowing either.
I don't agree. I have attended all three large protests, and each time I have come away wanting to do more, show up more, and find my place in the resistance to this corrupt and venal regime. There is power in community, solidarity, and the courage that is contagious. I was a bit scared to go on Saturday, but as soon as I connected with my friends, my fear dissolved. "It's the end of the world," said the caterpillar. "It's only the beginning," said the butterfly.
I wish more people felt the same.
The nastier and more desperate the Trump regime becomes, I believe more folks are going to stand up. Trump worships money and most Americans don’t have enough to interest him. That’s going to open some more cracks in the populous facade.
I'm sure more than a few Repubs in Congress are planning their exit strategies now..."Oh no, I was only pretending to be MAGA so I could try to fix things from the inside which actually makes me a hero if you think about it...yeah, that's what I am, a hero! What's that? No...no wait...no I don't need to see the video of all the awful things I said, I told you, I was PRETENDING, Yes I know I sound racist and anarchical...what? I said that how many times? Look, I'm a hero I tell ya, a A HERO!"
Now would be a good time for them to defect. Those who do so early might salvage their careers, but the ones who are late to the party will be branded as cowards.
I think it is impossible for them to defect now. They have done everything Trump has wanted, and passed the BIG UGLY Bill that was signed into law on July 4, which will take years to undo. They have not only proven they feared Trump more than they cared about their constituents, but they are not to be trusted. And, they all are cowards and traitors.
I hope some of them will change their minds and vote for the ACA tax credits, but even if they do so soon, and the shutdown ends, things won't be fixed because there is so much else that they have destroyed. But, that's just my take on this.
But who even cares? Don't they already get generous pensions and health insurance for life? Correct me if I'm wrong.
Great comment! It's so easy to imagine a bunch of them saying something like that!
Yep. We are going to wake up one morning to the headline on NYT that reads,
'Congressional republicans abandon trump en masse, tripping over themselves to head for maga off ramps.’
What we need to remember is that they are ALL complicit and should be ejected permanently from any power at any level, not to mention that many of them belong in jail.
“…tripping over themselves to head for maga off ramps.’
…only to discover that the ramps, like their bridges, had been burned long ago.
Nicely said! My vision of them is lemmings jumping off a cliff!
George Kastanza in Seinfeld as he is as trying to exit the apartment during a fire. “I was leading the way at the risk of my own safety”. 😂😂😂🤣🤣😅 that’s essentially what you’re describing. 🤣🤣😂
Well said. The felon's depravity is his undoing. His incompetent cabinet has no immunity.
well, they kinda do as the felon can pardon them.
They have committed so many crimes, he probably won’t get to them all in time. Tangentially, I have never been able to understand how he gets so many seemingly smart people to risk going to federal prison for him. The lawyers who will be disbarred — and the dumbest of all, why do women do whatever he wants? Abusive daddy issues?? All the people around him are deeply irretrievably damaged, just like him. But to give them power? We really are down the rabbit hole.
ITTC, you may well have a better example than the one I made. Personally, I would not want Trump et.al. to be made lying as worthless heaps dead in whatever gutters may be available. I am looking for all of them to be held for trial on charges of treason and jailed until they expire in their cells. No commutations, no pardons, and no forgiveness of any degree. Meanwhile, the sounds of “lock ‘em up….” forever resonating in what’s left of their gray matter, continue ever after.
Beautifully put. They have been so busy arming their base that they never considered that those folks might turn their guns on them once they learn they have been played. There is a line in one of Auden's poems about "the revolution eating its children." I'm beginning another Zoom course today on Engaging Nonviolence, led by Rivera Sun, author of the Dandelion Trilogy. The trilogy is a work of speculative fiction that rings true today. It is both hopeful and inspiring. Her courses are as well, and anyone interested can find them at PaceeBene.com, an organization located in Corvallis, Oregon, dedicated to nonviolence.
This is definitely on the horizon. One could even imagine a military coup.
I believe that all three of you are correct. I agree with Steven Levin that the people employing Project 2025 are sadistic sociopaths on a spree of destruction. They don't care a twit that trump is engaged in bombastic narcissistic behavior ("the people love me" theory) as Riad Mahayni postulated that will bring him down. I also agree with you that a military coup plan is being mapped out. I guess we have to buckle up our seatbelts....
I hope a military coup is being mapped out, because it's the only one I will support.
Yes, they are sadistic sociopaths, and three of the worst besides Russell Vought are: Kevin Roberts, CEO of The Heritage Foundation, mastermind of Project 2025, and member of Opus Dei, which Pope Leo is disbanding; JD Vance, who is good friends with Roberts, who hooked him up with an Opus Dei priest before he converted to Catholicism; and Leonard Leo, Chair of the Federalist Society, who stacked SCOTUS with six Catholic conservatives, spent 35 years trying to crush liberal federal judges and replace them with conservatives, and was given $1.6B in 2021 to spread his reach. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei Also...Stephen Miller, who has worked hard to implement Project 2025.
You might want to review Christopher Armitage’s thoughts on “soft secession” (also on Substack). He’s got a different, and somewhat more appealing, future in mind that could salvage at least those parts of the country that want to be saved.
Project 2025 is beginning its pivot to JD Vance. He was in an AI meme with Trump-both wearing crowns.
The Nationalistic Radical Republicans and Supreme Court have been setting the stage for Vance since last year. He is their Emperor/President.
As Trump said last year, "You'll never have to vote again"
I'm praying and working for that Lech Walesa moment as well. We are in this together. I've been to all three large protests. NO KINGS II was joyful, but it was also deeply determined. People are pissed off and you could feel that as well as the joy.
Of course we understand that Trump is Project 2025's useful idiot. In exchange for making him a dictator, they gain total control of every aspect of American life.
What WH gate? The one Trump will be tearing out with the rest of the WH?
Nice comeback kid move.
Absolutely what I was going to post, Steven. The idea that popular discontent--unless expressed as the French do, with mass general strikes, or demonstrates a willingness to invoke the dissidents in Tiananmen Square and put flowers in the muzzles of AK-47s and be mown down by Stepford Wife Noem's Black Shirts--will have any effect on this deranged, obese, orange toddler and his handlers and ass-licking minions is an exercise in fantasy. And yes: it is going to take a level of dissent that the vast majority of people in the USA are unwilling to do, because dying for democracy is lauded only when the enemy is a foreign country and not sitting in the White House.
The seeds of our “salvation” may rest with some of the actions blue state governors are already starting to take. The recently announced interstate compact on healthcare—to protect their residents from some of the outlandish stuff now flowing from HHS—is a first step. The more mutually-supporting, self-sustaining mechanisms like this that can be created, the better for our future. This might not end up being a “zero-sum” game after all.
As political analysis, the only actors who seem to matter in your view are those in the Project 2025 Government. While your description of them is accurate, what they perceive and want is not the beginning and end of the story. (I don’t read the NYTimes because they also center the universe on Trump and his power, as if it is all important—journalism fit for a king, not a democracy.) Jen Rubin is reporting on the realities we are living through as a result of Trump government policies and lawlessness. Citizens’ recognition and experience of these realities is hugely important. Even kings need public support (some have been beheaded because they don’t have it). This one doesn’t seem to understand that. I don’t think it’s off the mark for her to be saying, This king’s government is falling apart.
My thoughts exactly. I would not want to see a military "coup", but I WOULD like to see military leaders honor their oath to the Constitution and simply refuse to act on the unamerican orders issued by Trump and company on behalf of those using them to implement P2025.
Well done, Lisa.
I agree completely. But what, pray tell, is "through"? More than passively enduring?
Civil War, as in physical removal, which would require military standing up for their oaths against the tyrant.
I give you at best 50-50 odds on that. The idea of civilian control of the military goes back to the country's founding. I believe it will be a hard tradition to break. Frankly, the idea of a military coup to settle this disturbs me greatly. I hope it never comes to that.
Something to consider--a question used frequently by law enforcement and the courts to determine probable guilt: MOTIVATION. It would be very useful to offer some perspectives on the motivations of the Project 25 supporters--other than establishing a lucrative and flattering patriarchal theocracy, ala Gilead.
“ other than establishing a lucrative and flattering patriarchal theocracy, ala Gilead”
That certainly does seem to be sufficient though, doesn’t it? That and a hatred of all people who are not white Anglo-Saxon protestants.
Might be, but I know that several of the tech bros who've helped enable Project 2025 have additional motives, which are even darker. For example, the gradual elimination of large numbers of Americans who, according to their lights, will no longer be needed in the future AI economy. And that includes many farmers, who they believe can be replaced with Big Ag means and mechanisms (plus newer forms of robotics). The land itself can be snapped up for pennies on the dollar and its produce prioritized for the tech bro billionaire class. Some at least of these folk are certifiably psychotic and even more of them lack empathy, meaning they are sociopaths. Guess this was what I was pointing at.
I agree. Giving up is unforgivable, as Joyce Vance so aptly put it.
I’m definitely getting her book next week . It has a plan for action. I need that now 😊
What is the way through? We can’t wait it out for four years.
Assuming we HAVE four years... ack! The way through for me, personally, is to write letters and emails to Congresspeople, donate the little I can to good people running in different states, read and comment in The Contrarian and turn others onto it (do you know how many people don't know about it???), display signs on my property, write postcards to swing states, talk to people who are actually capable of listening. There's also putting stickers on high prices (etsy has bunches of them, cheap!), like the one with his picture pointing and saying, "Aren't these prices TARRIFF-ic?" Anything to creak a Maga mind open to say, "Duh: did I get snookered??"
The last thing we need to do is be stuck, wringing our hands.
The phrase "If you're going through hell, keep going" is a motivational quote attributed to Winston Churchill, encouraging perseverance during difficult times. It suggests that one should continue moving forward despite challenges. Which is what we must do. But Rubin and Eisen's attempts to put a rosy frame around what's going on irk me. We are not winning. Not yet and not by a long shot.
I think Jen and Norm are treading that wobbly line between reporting reality and providing encouragement. For example, I never come away from her columns feeling in the least bit "rosy," or thinking there's nothing more we can do.
I expect there will be continuous disagreement as to the right tone or words to keep us motivated. We anti-rumpers can be an unwieldy bunch.
Nevertheless, we’re all very much on the same page.
The phrase "If you're going through hell, keep going" is a motivational quote attributed to Winston Churchill, encouraging perseverance during difficult times. It suggests that one should continue moving forward despite challenges. Which is what we must do. But Rubin and Eisen's attempts to put a rosy frame around what's going on irk me. We are not winning. Not yet and not by a long shot.
I'm wondering if some foreign leader that we have decent relationships but, are impacted by the tariffs could come in and claim that Trump is demented. And to do it to his face in the oval office with all the press sitting there. That's my fantasy.
I don’t know if they are “sadistic sociopaths”, that’s a pretty intense psychiatric diagnosis, but the Magaverse does appear to be largely composed of people with an inflated sense of entitlement and enormous resentment. Easily whipped into outrage, easily manipulated by cunning and greed. Sad…
Hi Bobbette ~ I'm specifically referring the people in the Project 2025 Government, not MAGA at large. Of course, it's up to you whether you believe them (Project 2025) to be psychopaths or sociopaths.
Trump's predilection for immigrant wives shows that immigrants do the jobs Americans don't want to do. -- Comment by a speaker at the DC No Kings protest.
First big belly laugh of the day.
Brilliant! And true.
The speaker was Zorhan Mamdani, current candidate for NYC mayor, who is currently way ahead in the polls.
It was actually Mehdi Hasan but a great line no matter who says it.
Thanks for the correction. It is a great line & so true
Excellent!
Those of us with our wits about us tried to sound the warning. Why this career eff up,loser and grifter became president the first time was insane enough. But after he wrecked the country the first time around, tried to steal an election, sent a mob to attack the Capitol and stole troves of secret documents, who the hell could have possibly thought he deserved a second chance? He should be in jail, not in the White House.
Apparently there are more dumb and venal, greedy, amoral people in this country than we ever dreamed of...
Yes, it's evident that between 30-40% of the population lacks critical thinking. I am sick and tired of pundits criticizing democrats for not adopting a clear "message." It didn't take much when months ago I first heard of the rounding up of illegal immigrants to understand that this would affect our food supply. My husband and I bought $300 worth canned food. Now it's news? Look at what's happened in the last 10 months and here we have 3 years to go. Prepare folks....
Sophia, I agree with everything you said except the "3 years to go" part. In no way is this sputtering evil entity going to make it that long. I shudder to think what's next...
Well I sure hope your scenario manifests over the one I fear--that they impose their authoritarianism beyond the three years. This unbridled power is too much of a powerful drug to let go....
I'm counting on their general incompetence to win out over the unbridled power.
I agree with you about the pundits who think Dems lack a message. We're trying to help people live better lives. That takes in a lot of ground. Republicans couldn't care less. Perhaps we would be better narrowing our focus. But the fact is, and I never thought I would say this, the fix has been in since the Reagan years. The far right has slowly built a mechanism to destroy the goverment, and even democracy itself. Incredibly, they've done it with smoke and mirrors, distracting red state voters with shiny objects while they rob them blind. I hope and pray enough people like us are willing to fight this with all our might. And I also believe, judging by town halls in red states, that formerly loyal GOP voters have gotten through what I call "Fox Fog" and figured out they've been betrayed by The Grifter. There will be a great reckoning unless the GOP figures out how to rig all the House elections. And I think the Senate is back in play, too.
"There will be a great reckoning unless the GOP figures out how to rig all the House elections."
Frighteningly, it's already happening. Steve Bannon said in an interview that trump will serve a third term as president and that a plan that will be announced at the right time is already in place. Their brazen actions that ignore trump's increasing unpopularity attests to Bannon's claim. They are not planning to let go of their power as Congress becomes more and more powerless. I just don't get it and the only thing I can creatively conceive that is perpetrating this is astrology....
You left out misogynistic and racist people who wouldn't tolerate a Black woman in the White House. Her 'faults' were nowhere approaching what we've been enduring and will have to continue to do so.
There was significant impact on some folks' emotional response to 'illegals supplying all the drugs to their neighborhoods' and the bizarre fear of 'men in women's sports'. Throw in how both men and women are socialized to be suspicious of strong women and it was no surprise that they could accept a second trump. It was by an extremely narrow margin and I suspect today there are some regretting their choice. Now let's see how they like their insurance premiums come November....
Donny Trump wannabes.
He should be in a dementia ward.
I’m sorry; he’s beyond dementia and frankly, that he would be there would be insulting to those who have dementia. He belongs in a padded cell, well away from all others. As for his sycophants, they all need to face judgement for treason.
I have purchased five hazmat suits with respirators. Join me at the Asbestos Alert Protest.
We will be near (where there is a view of the demolition) the East Wing this Friday at NOON to help raise the alarm that no federally mandated asbestos containment procedures are taking place.
Carcinogens that cause mesothelioma are clouding the air and getting carted through the streets of DC. The entire building should have been encased in a massive tent to prevent the escape of asbestos particals.
Bring a respirator and a sign..
Asbestos Alert
Protect Your Families
Asbestos Hazard
Stop the East Wing Demolition
You get the point. Join us!
Appreciate your resistance and the signs, but that asbestos is all over the place and is doing its dirty work. The only thing I can still cheer about is that it’s now all around/inside the rest of the WH and “they” can’t escape it!!! Good luck with your event; don’t let ICE get you!
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Thank you for the resistance you wanted to offer. I’m sure there will be other times and hope we can stay awake fully for what the Regime plans.
Most of the people who would be affected are people who are not responsible for T&CO actions. They are simply people who live and work in WaDC. The "they" you think can't escape already have: Do you think Trump and his cronies are anywhere near that building? Nope. Your sense of compassion leaves me a feeling a little ill. It sounds like you are ok for innocent people to be harmed while you feel smug about what's happening. Welcome to Trumpland.
Sorry Annie; but I just don’t get the sense that Wendy meant what you think she meant. Her wish for blowback against this administration was, in my opinion, clearly meant for T&Co. At this point in time, whatever consequences come forward against this administration is well deserved.
I agree that Wendy probably didn't "mean" what she said in a literal sense. Nonetheless, her statement reveals a common perspective that other people will not get hurt and that only T&Co will be affected. We need to open our awareness of what our words imply, and we need to keep in mind how they might affect other people, and what those words might imply about what kind of people we are.
I just watched a pertinent discussion from The Constitution Center that touches deeply on this issue and others. I know "The Constitution Center" sounds like it would be awfully dry and abstract, but I've found them to be down to earth and aimed not at specialists, but people like us who are seeking to understand how things work. This one in particular.
It's called "Liberalism: Current Challenges and Modern Debates". The title is rather dry but the discussion was not. I don't have a link for the recording yet, as it finished just at the hour. But recommend The Constitution Center as an excellent resource. It also has some excellent materials for teachers.
The link to the Center is https://constitutioncenter.org/
Many thanks for your insights, Annie.
Your assessment really is brilliant. I, for one, never even thought of that carcinogen escaping into the immediate area. Most of us (in which, obviously I include myself) most likely never thought of this possibility due to the bad craziness of this heinous act. Not since the War of 1812 has the WH suffered the damage it now exhibits.
I am a designer/builder. For forty years I have dealt with asbestos.
Given your expertise, please describe the real danger of this demolition without any protections. I think it's probably a real danger, but it's not my field; so I can only speculate.
Hi, look up asbestos, mesothelioma and Federal asbestos removal guidelines. That will educate you!
I did. At https://www.gsa.gov/directives-library/asbestos-management it describes pretty clearly the requirements for demolition 1) to check for asbestos and 2) to take measures to report and provide abatement. However, as you note in your next post, it's already done. People already exposed. I wonder if any of them are worried or even care. The Rs are out of town; DJT is out of town; that leaves staffers and Ds. Not sure that's even relevant. How about adjacent buildings. A dead issue? Maybe.....
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
I have the suit, but not the respirator, darn it (State owned it, not me, and it is hard to find masks for small people). I've been having similar thoughts about confronting the demolition. There appears to be no plan, no permits.
I can do one thing though: from now on I am wearing dark clothing and a funeral veil to demonstrations.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Maybe the dirty air will find its way into the WH and all the little minions will take it in all the days long. Better them than us.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Hearing that the entire East Wing building is gone, we are canceling the Asbestos Alert Protest. There being no there there, it would be an empty exercise. As a friend observed, the hostage is dead.
tRump's lie that the building wouldn't be touched in order to make room for the mega ballroom, that he loved the East Wing building, lulled us to sleep when it should have made us suspicious. What should have taken months to properly, safely dismantle, took one week.
The rapid, illegal and hazard filled demolition of a historic federal building illustrates exactly why regulations are critical. They, like most laws, aim to protect us from over-reaching, greedy, power hungry creeps.
We cannot not be lulled to sleep again.
Argentina will be getting $40B, not $40M.
Argentina today. Rocking ‘n’ Rolling: As Elections Approach, Argentina’s President Is Looking For a Miracle. Global post.https://globalpost.com/stories/rocking-n-rolling-as-elections-approach-argentinas-president-is-looking-for-a-miracle/?lh_aid=35942&lh_cid=t15zmcq867&lh_em=apaalj%40gmail.com&di=e6f0f9a546f600cdc359d39f01588df4
The title of your piece had me imagining Trump as the Tidy Bowl Man, circling around the drain. His final opus.
More like diarrhea circling the drain.
And brings to mind Trump’s cartoon fantasy wherein he drops feces on the NoKings crowd. It’s exactly what he’s doing to the country. It won’t stop until he’s crowned “king” which means we’re in for a long haul.
This middle class American has to purchase a drug from Canada…..because availability here is spotty AND the US price is 500.00 while the Canadian price is 129.00. Both high prices, but the lower one has been immensely better for my inflation-ravaged pocketbook. I made q refill order yesterday..the cost is still 129.00 PLUS 22.00 to cover the tariff to be collected when the product hits our borders. This American is NOT HAPPY with Trump’s senseless attacks on our nation, but then, I despise him for many other reasons. It occurred to me that even a redhat would be unhappy at paying an additional chunk of money for a necessity simply because their president lacks negotiating skills and self-control. If Trumpism is hitting me..doubtless it is hitting them too. When he flies over America shooting shit, it splatters us all.
That s 40 BILLION not million bailout to Argentina. Please make the correction.
Yes, I saw that error as will. And see my comment below for additional information on how the bailout benefits the extremely rich Republicans.
Doctor Evil stands corrected.
Why can't people (MAGA) see that the bottom line outcome of his 'policies' are poverty and death?
Remember, MAGA is a cult, and we all know what happens in the end (think Jim Jones). So MAGA-man will die from air pollution, disease, or Kool-Aid, does not matter, as long as they serve Dear Leader.
Ask Mike Pence
Sadly, you made me laugh. Not funny, but funny.
Because MAGAts believe the shit he is shoveling or dropping. Everything, EVERYTHING he and his handlers do is for money and power.
Now, my question is what leverage does the Evil Trio have on people in Congress and the Supremes so the ‘protect and defend’ part of their oaths of office means nothing?
I hope that some reliable journalists are researching this.
Propublica, the Guardian, the Contrarian, numerous others. If you read only one thing, that's all you're going to know. "Hope" isn't a verb. There are journalists out there, but not only do you have to find and read them, you have to do the work of understanding what they are trying to tell you.
If you don’t like the probable bottom line, you pretend it doesn’t exist. Also, many people don’t have access and/or time to keep up with news. Again, they ignore it.
If we're lucky, these policies will become too expensive to "own the libs" any more and we'll have some conversions.
At least in this town, at the last No Kings rally, I spotted some folks who previously had Trump signs in their yards. It may be an indicator.
Trump's support is weakening as his followers see the consequences that affect them or their neighbors. We can't see it much yet, and part of the reason is that we aren't listening to them.
Thank you for your summary. It’s fitting that Trump himself gave us a defining symbol of his presidency: the destruction of the White House. If that doesn’t break the hearts of the Americans who support him, there’s nothing that can save them.
Flush ALL Republicans down the drain by voting them out of office!
Give money to and vote for these Democrats on Nov. 4, 2025:
Spanberger for Governor, PO Box 3121, Glen Allen, VA 23058 and
Mikie Sherrill for Governor, PO Box 43032, Montclair, NJ 07043
It isn’t happening fast enough for me. I just hope that there are more fractures of the country because it will get worse with Vance, Miller and Vought in charge after tRump is gone. They will fracture MAGA and could destroy America because of it.
I'm not that worried about Miller and Vontz (Yiddish, look it up) after Don the Con is gone. While their policies and approaches are as bad as or even worse than Don the Con, they just don't have the ability to terrorize GQP politicians into doing their bidding.
I sure hope you are correct! But it does seem that Vance is all in. Vance is as weak willed as they come but Vance has Peter Thiel at his back shoving him forward. I dont think Vance can terrorize the GQP as well as tRump can, i do think Thiel can because he has no soul or conscience and is fearless.
I looked that word up the last time you said to--neat! However they are ever so hard to defeat, alas. M and V may not have the same terror factor, but they will be pests doing their harm for quite a while!
What point were you trying to make with the Yiddish reference?
Vontz sounds a lot like "Vance" and in Yiddish it means a bedbug. Seems a fitting name, I suppose
I've never liked making fun of people for their names, how they look, etc. It's playground taunting, at the same level as Trump. We are, I hope, grown-ups. There are plenty of ways to address people with whom one disagrees (even with humor) without making it demeaning, especially when the demeaning slops over onto other people who aren't the direct target. (reposted because substack stuck it in the wrong place.)
As always, Jen is on point, but she needs to add to this one: "and Argentina’s strongman Javier Milei (who gets a $40M taxpayer bailout, a transparent effort to interfere with that country’s election)." First of all, it is 20 BILLION. As Judd has pointed out in his Substack "Popular Information," and Paul Krugman has noted in his Substack, the Argentinian bailout benefits a junk bond friend of Secretary of the Treasury Bessant, who invested heavily in the Argentinian economy (betting that it would improve, so he is out of reality) and needs Argentina to have dollars so that he can get his money out without facing financial ruin. After the initial 20 billion, Bessent is putting together a group of banks to "invest" another 20 billion. The problem is that the banks want the U.S. taxpayer to be on the hook for that money when Argentina defaults, which it will. Of course, Bessent and the Trump administration are fine with the U.S. taxpayers footing the bill.
In a cruel irony, DOGE cut 22 billion from USAID in the name of government efficiency.
Except the drain is clogged. Clogged with Republicans that won’t hold him accountable for all the chaos he’s caused. So now we are stuck with him until we can unclog the drain. 2026 election to do the job I hope.
Nice allegory. Sadly accurate. However, it is possible to create a big flush by pouring in a large bucketful of disinfectant. Do everything we can to GET OUT THE VOTE. Block their escape routes with the truth and our presence
Every word is true! Not to mention the damned ballroom!
First thing let's do is tear down that ballroom!
Isn’t the Argentine “bailout” $40B (billion) not $20M (million)?
Yes, we are giving them $40 billion, while Trump is proposing to buy Argentinian beef to lower beef prices in the US. US cattle ranchers would like a word.
US cattle ranchers are experiencing FAFO…With emphasis on the
“Find out” part. My eyes are definitely not welling up.
And aren’t they also saying there’s ’hoof and mouth’ disease in those cattle? If so, we shouldn’t be importing ….. duh!
Wipe that foam from around your mouth.
Carne assada