Absolutely. When will Congress take back what they ceded to the President? The why is easy... they didn't want to be on Trump's 'bad side' and risk being primaried. A more cowardly group of representatives cannot be imagined. But with them now coming back, nothing has really changed. Trump is still claiming powers he doesn't have and preparing more and more illegality. I know the track record of lawsuits that have gone forward is large and some are in appeals but is there any clue as to the percentage of lawsuits he's actually won? I know Norm is good at that but haven't seen an update lately.
"Absolutely. When will Congress take back what they ceded to the President? The why is easy... they didn't want to be on Trump's 'bad side' and risk being primaried."
The power to tariff was partially ceded to FDR, and it expanded later. Several Congresses under various Presidents have had the opportunity to repeal those powers but neither party ever wants to relinquish any power once it's given to them.
One quibble: I do not believe that the corporate media are "cowed." We wouldn't be here if their corporate and billionaire owners hadn't intentionally sold us out years ago. The media CREATED Trump as a viable candidate in the years leading up to 2016, and have kept him as a viable candidate and out of prison for short-term profit ever since. And not just by their false equivalence, but by intentionally NOT reporting his crimes as crimes.
They also attempted to destroy the Biden administration from day one. They were trying to will a recession into existence for the past four years, and now they're trying to pretend we're not already sliding into one, or that we haven't already lost the world.
Yes, but the corporate owners stifled expression to the extent that many reporters moved to Substack, and in that sense members of the corporate media, not their executives, were “cowed”. I expressed myself poorly, and I apologize.
"The spinelessness of the Press has been second only to the cowardice of many members of Congress over the past eight months."
The Press was equally spineless calling out Joe Biden's physical and mental decline. No, that's not right. They, along with the Democratic Party, were complicit in gaslighting the American public for years. Jen is part of the problem.
I would vote for Joe Biden again today, knowing all the allegations about his supposed mental incompetence he and his circle are now accused of. Biden is still way more cognitively together than Trump, and he had qualified people around him. He wasn't trying to wrest power from Congress and the judiciary. He wasn't gleefully and openly corrupt. Yup, I'd happily vote for Biden again.
I too would have voted for Joe then or now. There’s no comparison to what we’re currently stuck with. “Cognitive decline” was a narrative promoted by the right wing media that scared enough prominent Democrats into forcing Joe aside. From trump, it was more projection as evidenced by his own decline. I trusted Joe & those around him to do the right things, and they did. Can’t say the same for trump & his Traitors. Biden, on his worst day, was 1000% more Presidential than trump on his best.
Thank you for this. You speak for me & I suspect millions of us. And we are getting angrier & more determined by the hour… Just you wait & see, the worm is turning.
"There’s no comparison to what we’re currently stuck with. “Cognitive decline” was a narrative promoted by the right wing media that scared enough prominent Democrats into forcing Joe aside."
Sure...Pelosi, Schumer and Obama were scared so much by right-wing media they just had to force Biden out. And rain makes applesauce...
"I trusted Joe & those around him to do the right things, and they did."
It's not "President-By-Committee" where the inner circle actually makes the decisions because Joe Biden is too far gone mentally.
"Biden, on his worst day, was 1000% more Presidential than trump on his best."
There is a twelve-step program for people with your condition.
About 85%-90% of voters will cast their votes simply because there's a (D) or (R) after a name. No thinking involved.
"...knowing all the allegations about his supposed mental incompetence he and his circle are now accused of."
You didn't need to be a doctor or pretend to be one to notice Joe Biden wasn't all there mentally. He was showing signs of it in the 2020 campaign. All you needed were eyes to see, ears to hear and watch unedited clips on C-SPAN. It only got worse during his term. The "qualified people" around Biden deliberately hid this knowledge from the public, and one of them was Kamala Harris.
"He wasn't trying to wrest power from Congress and the judiciary."
Trump hasn't wrested anything from anyone. He's actually (and inadvertently) finding out for now and future Presidents just how far their powers go, and I say that's a good thing.
"He wasn't gleefully and openly corrupt."
Sure...it's just a coincidence that Hunter was on the board of a energy company in a country that his father was "responsible" for during the Obama administration. And the laptop was so innocent that fifty-one "experts" signed a document saying it was simply Russian disinformation without ever having seen it and most of the media suppressed.
Jen is not now part of the problem. She has evolved dramatically and is doing great work.
Many of us, looking at our options at the time, not knowing the present that we are in, were voting for Biden and then Harris over Trump. Biden was being protected... as Trump is now (not too successfully).
The press is not a monolith. The so called legacy have lost many to the alternatives that have sprung up, including this- so we can thankfully hear other voices including yours and mine, that are freed, not dependent on the will or prejudices/judgements of editors et al. The big sort continues as a result. "The Press" however is still useful and important- sometimes very. But it cannot or will not do the job entirely. That is why we are here.
I bagged the WAPO months ago (no refund so I've still got access through October) but I still subscribe to the NYT. Yesterday I realized that I haven't looked at the NYT for months except for the cooking section. I find their recipes to lack any political slant, plus they're not afraid to use the words "good" and "not good". Refreshing.
It's not the NYT that says good or not good in the recipe section either. It's the readers. But I do find that the editorial and opinion section say good and not good. Just not enough and too careful about it (voicing the opposite opinion). Some say they are better now that the situation is obviously bad. It's the front page selection of what is newsworthy that I find at fault.
We are still subscribing to the NYTimes for more than the quotidian though. The prevalence what is unworthy on the front page is very disappointing to a lifelong reader. But we don't have to depend on them or any one source and we should never have. So we are in better shape now to curate for ourselves where we get our news. We know where to get our daily dose of outrage.
Jen is simply a partisan hack with a Substack platform that pays her far better than her previous gig at WaPo. She says it's a "pro-democracy" platform when in reality it's simply anti-Trump, and there is a difference.
"The press is not a monolith."
No, but the vast majority are firmly aligned with the Democratic Party. They covered for Biden for almost his entire term until the June debate. For a brief time after they seemed to act like journalists, then relapsed as soon as Joe "stepped down" and Kamala became the new standard bearer. Along with the Democratic Party, there has been practically no "mea culpas", introspection or analysis as to why the Dems lost both the WH and the Senate in 2024 from the media. You certainly haven't heard anything from Jen or Norm. It's far easier to just be against whatever Trump says or does.
Guy who supports a convicted felon for president says what?
Anyone who argues that there needs to be a better reason to NOT support Trump than 34 felony convictions (no, the conviction was not overturned) and dozens of other felony charges that were corruptly blocked is not worth listening to.
Jennifer Rubin should not be pilloried for being one of the truth-tellers.
As a Democrat, I don't think that Biden should have run for a second term. He said that he would be a bridge president for one term. He broke his promise and in doing so, didn't allow for a Democratic primary for new candidates to present themselves.
So the media didn't report on Mr. Biden's deterioration. Here's a case of bothsideism at play -- it isn't highlighting reports on Trump's deterioration either.
"Jennifer Rubin should not be pilloried for being one of the truth-tellers."
Jen, like most of the media, is more interested in narrative. That means the "facts" will be those that fit said narrative.
"As a Democrat, I don't think that Biden should have run for a second term."
Biden shouldn't have run the first time as he was already showing signs of cognitive decline. Just as with the 2016 campaign, Dem leadership was afraid that Bernie might get the nomination. So Jim Clyburn did a "laying of hands" endorsement of Biden for the South Carolina primary. Mayor Pete and Senator Klobachar were convinced to drop out. The result was the rug pulled out from under Bernie (again). Biden was presented as the most "centrist" candidate of the bunch.
"So the media didn't report on Mr. Biden's deterioration. Here's a case of bothsideism at play -- it isn't highlighting reports on Trump's deterioration either."
We saw this play out in Trump's first term:
"Trump’s health condition highlights gaps in the 25th Amendment"
Joe Biden is not president anymore and not our problem. But you're still here attacking Biden while Trump disintegrates before our eyes from a far lower base of education, intelligence and knowledge than Joe Biden had even in 2024. Still trying to mansplain to others about bias while showing it in every comment.
Today we have another chance to ask Congressional Republicans to stop the insanity.
Fox: With Congress back in session this week, Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky are reigniting their push for the Justice Department to release files in the Jeffrey Epstein case.
Khanna says that "people are going to be outraged" after seeing a news conference he and Massie are holding on Wednesday with 10 victims of the late convicted sex offender.
The news conference is part of the effort by Khanna and Massie to pass through the House a bill requiring the Justice Department to release its files on the Epstein case.
___
We should hold Rep. Sen Cassidy responsible for the RFK Jr. insanity -- in essence he made the call for the Seante. Cassidy, a doctor, was the swing vote on the Senate Finance Committee.
Now he wants to do oversight. But the deck is stacked. RFK Jr has diplaced the agency with anti-vax ideolueges.
"Cassidy needs to do more than oversight said Dr. Thomas Farley, the former top public health official in New York City and Philadelphia. “Cassidy now, I think, does bear some responsibility to stop (Kennedy) from causing more damage,” Farley said, arguing Kennedy needs to be fired.
___
Trump needs Congress
Reuters: ARLINGTON, Virginia (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday expressed confidence that the Supreme Court will uphold President Donald Trump's use of a 1977 emergency powers law to impose sweeping tariffs on most trading partners, but said the administration has a backup plan if it does not.
Bessent told Reuters he was preparing a legal brief for the U.S. solicitor general, who will oversee the government's appeal to the Supreme Court, that will underscore the urgency of addressing decades of trade imbalances and stopping the flow of deadly fentanyl into the United States.
I wonder if Cassidy is as concerned as Susan Collins about the deliberate destruction of our health care system's framework? Maybe even "very concerned"?
Until we see some intestinal fortitude in the GOP leadership, we can presume it's all blather and that they are flag carriers for MAGA.
It certainly is not, nor is the intent to excuse his action, it is merely to provide a political explanation for his vote. As far as I'm concerned, there is neither excuse nor justification for most Republican behavior for the last 10 years at minimum. If there was a full set of reproductive apparatus in the entire caucus combined we'd be miles ahead of where we are now.
My congressional Republican (Nick Langworthy) will do nothing but regurgitate the talking points of his Dear Leader and those who own him. His responses to me (from whoever writes them for him) are more and more repetitious as time goes by. Doesn't stop me from contacting him, of course - but it is a bit like spitting in the wind.
I am not a psychic, but I still feel comfortable in predicting that he will never go off on King Short Fingers, unless the power behind the throne, changes that throne's occupant. He's stuck on the short-fingered vulgarian like a remora.
More irate Slavs per square inch as Putin's army is massed on the Polish border. His district is close enough to Canada that his business constiuency is probably irate. Plus he can be redistrcted.
He already has been redistricted - well, not him, it was a couple of reps. ago. It was done to expand a district for Republicans, and shrink the district for Democrats (now only the City of Buffalo and immediate suburbs). I'm quite sure that a change in that is not going to happen any time soon. It's a red district and it includes a lot of agricultural properties, many of which are owned by people who apparently like to shoot themselves in the foot.
The other WNY Republican district "represented" by congresscon Claudia Tenney, is much the same...only more so. In fact, I've often said that one of the few good things about Langworthy, is that he's not Tenney.
We have lost business, less because of the tariff idiocy, than the ICE goons. We've also lost in the area of tourism. But Republicans play the long game, and figure that Joe Doakes Republicans will get used to the situation, and anyway, it's Biden's fault...which is what Langworthy says, often. Except the one time he decided to blame Carter.
I have a file. It's labeled Washington BS. It includes letters from Chuck.
I have a recommendation for a word or phrase we could do without: "playbook," as in "This is right out of the fascist/totalitarian/autocratic playbook." Pundits make this pronouncement as though doing so will cause scales to fall from the eyes of Trump supporters and cause them finally to see clearly the evil they have been supporting. It does not, and it won't, no more than calling Trump a fascist will, however deservedly. We need to focus on the hateful, harmful and destructive actions he is taking and the consequences they are causing.
"Playbook" has been irritating me beyond endurance. And as the convoy headed for the golf course, it was sad to see the furled beach umbrellas at the little tables on the patio that used to be the Rose Garden.
Hear hear. That "patio" is an abomination. It looks like the outdoor eating area of a low-quality fast food restaurant. The removal of the Rose Garden was an attack on beauty, decency, and class. It's as classless as adorning the Oval Office with all of the golden tchotchkes and kitsch.
On July 4th, I mailed out 100 letters to every member of Congress, on both sides of the aisle. Three weeks later, almost all of them were returned to me, marked "undeliverable". Of course, that might be because I put all the letters going to any one particular office address into one large envelope, to be distributed by the mail room. That would have meant someone needed to actually open the envelope and then place each letter, clearly addressed to each individual, into their mail slots for the day's delivery of received mail. Maybe it was because they feared there might be something more than letters inside the envelope. Gee, don't they have a gadget to detect that kind of stuff yet?? I'm still wondering what happened to the envelope with 15 letters to 15 Republican senators that was never returned. They probably burned it. So, since they don't care to open envelopes, I'm ready to send out 10 postcards to dickhead, showing a cartoon character of him, ranting some of his rather profane utterances, behind wide black jail cell bars, with the comment "Wish You Were Here". And I will keep doing this until he IS behind bars!!
An Office worker for Schumer told us that mail is delayed weeks ........petitions aren't even looked at ..........the best way to contact your Congress people is to call them....put their individual phone numbers in your phone to call often and be ready to make your point....that's what is taken seriously in the Congressional Offices.
What a fantastic article, Jen. This should be a call to action. Action being challenging the MSM at every turn, cancelling subscriptions and telling them why, supporting media which calls a madman a madman.
All the strurm und drang emanating from the White House is hyperbolic and illogical but is also a very effective smoke screen to avoid the Epstein non-reveal enabled by our very own DOJ which has demonstrated over and over that Bondi and Blanche work for Trump, not us. For an excellent summary of the current state-of-play, here is Joyce Vance: https://open.substack.com/pub/joycevance/p/forgetting-the-survivors?r=f38fk&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Acosta is supposed to testify, in secret, on the 17th. Acosta’s “non-prosecution agreement” immunized several of his alleged co-conspirators from federal prosecution, and Maxwell alleges she is one of them in her SCOTUS appeal. Maxwell was named in at least eight civil lawsuits alleging sex trafficking and abuse, filed by victims such as Virginia Giuffre, Sarah Ransome, Jennifer Araoz, Annie Farmer, and Jane Doe, as well as others. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghislaine_Maxwell She also initiated one lawsuit, Maxwell v. Epstein's Estate, in 2020.
I don't think he will come clean unless closely cross examined. Years after the fact, DOJ performed an Office of Professional Responsibility investigation that was papered over, but he denied that he had a secret meeting with Epstein's lawyers. I get this from the Miami Herald, that tracked it. OPR concluded that “Acosta exercised poor judgment when he failed to make certain that the state intended to and would notify victims identified through the federal investigation about the state plea hearing. His decision left victims uninformed about an important proceeding that resolved the federal investigation, an investigation about which the [United States Attorney’s Office] had communicated with victims for months. It also ultimately created the misimpression that the [Justice] Department intentionally sought to silence the victims.”
The summary said the Office of Professional Responsibility had reviewed “hundreds of thousands of records,” including emails, letters, memos and investigative materials, and conducted “more than 60 interviews of witnesses,” from FBI case agents to a former deputy attorney general. In a statement, the Justice Department said it shared the executive summary of the report with victims on Thursday and the full report with a congressional committee. “
"Among the federal prosecutors who avoided being targeted for criticism in the executive summary were Acosta’s former top assistant, Jeffrey Sloman; ex-criminal chief Matthew Menchel; former case prosecutor Marie Villafaña, who had prepared a sex-trafficking indictment against Epstein that was not filed; and her boss, Andrew Lourie. They and their actions, however, are detailed in the full, unreleased report."
Hopefully the Dems will interview Villafana and the others before they question Acosta.
Every person who used the spa at Mar a Lago during the time that Virginia Giuffre worked there is a potential witness. Same for her co-workers. What do the states' attorneys and AUSAs know about that?
Several Epstein lawyers have passed away. Did they have files? Dershowitz is still around. Was he privy to the secret meeting?
Were Maxwell and/or Trump lawyered up at the time?
I do believe using the right language to characterize the right outrage is critical now. But I don’t think we look like the Weimar Republic, contrary to Ziblatt’s argument, which actually makes our moment in time even scarier.
Weimar was widely considered not to have been a strong republic. The Reichstag was captured by as many as 11 different political parties that were frequently too preoccupied with fighting each other, rather than a single fascist threat, to do anything.
Maybe more importantly, one-third the country became unemployed after the 1932 Great Depression. The fear of destitution was real. Fear and subsequent scapegoating were everywhere — that much certainly you can see in today’s fright-wing media reports of ‘Haitians eating cats and dogs.’ But it’s a complete mirage. In January, America had the strongest economy on earth — the ‘envy of the world’ as Joe Biden used to say. Inflation had hit us far less than it did Europe, employment was at near record levels, investment sky-high. Other countries would have given their eye teeth to have ‘our’ problems.
Calling this “Weimar” does a great disservice to the real history of Germany and mischaracterizes almost everything about our economy and society now.
As to why Fox News and other propaganda outlets have managed to get one-third the country to believe all the invasion, economic collapse, catastrophe nonsense, that’s another story.
Thanks, Jenn. I've always told people that this isn't a Moriarty we are dealing with. More of a bull in a China shop. The brains lurk behind. Trump is tanking physically. They will wring every ounce of useful frontman juice that they can from 🍊. It's going to be Weekend at Donnie's.
Trump’s mental capability is tanking faster than the 2025 architects anticipated.
Further, Trump is disintegrating faster than anticipated. Vance, the chosen successor is not quite ready to complete the transition. I speculate that his several recent absences and family vacations are cover for the prep and buffing up of his image and capability to complete the take over.
How can we take advantage of this unanticipated weakness of the 2025 transition plan?
Exactly! Just last week a New York TImes headline was "With little precedent..." referring to the firing of Lisa Cook. Not only was it some wishy-washy both sides rubbish, use of the term "little" implies that they have examples of similar actions from the past - which of course they did not.
SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER IS THE DUTY OF EVERY SENTIENT HUMAN BEING. I am so sick and tired of the weasle-wording of the MSM I could puke. It's gotten so bad I can barely keep from screaming out loud. I'm thinking of getting one of those electronic messaging boards and putting it under the eaves out front so I can immediately counter them for all to see. If only!
I could not agree more. The spinelessness of the Press has been second only to the cowardice of many members of Congress over the past eight months.
Jen, this is spot-on! I agree completely! Having grown up in the NYC area, I’ve been aware of trump’s depraved antics for over 5 decades.
It's a small point, but 'press' is hardly worth the capitalization. They are doing us a disservice.
Capitalization is not a mark of respect, it’s conventional grammatical usage for the “mainstream” (AP, i.e., professional) press.
Convention, at this point might be worthy of suspension, was what I was getting at, and I'll admit to being snide.
I understand completely. Snide between compatriots is camaraderie.
Absolutely. When will Congress take back what they ceded to the President? The why is easy... they didn't want to be on Trump's 'bad side' and risk being primaried. A more cowardly group of representatives cannot be imagined. But with them now coming back, nothing has really changed. Trump is still claiming powers he doesn't have and preparing more and more illegality. I know the track record of lawsuits that have gone forward is large and some are in appeals but is there any clue as to the percentage of lawsuits he's actually won? I know Norm is good at that but haven't seen an update lately.
"Absolutely. When will Congress take back what they ceded to the President? The why is easy... they didn't want to be on Trump's 'bad side' and risk being primaried."
The power to tariff was partially ceded to FDR, and it expanded later. Several Congresses under various Presidents have had the opportunity to repeal those powers but neither party ever wants to relinquish any power once it's given to them.
One quibble: I do not believe that the corporate media are "cowed." We wouldn't be here if their corporate and billionaire owners hadn't intentionally sold us out years ago. The media CREATED Trump as a viable candidate in the years leading up to 2016, and have kept him as a viable candidate and out of prison for short-term profit ever since. And not just by their false equivalence, but by intentionally NOT reporting his crimes as crimes.
They also attempted to destroy the Biden administration from day one. They were trying to will a recession into existence for the past four years, and now they're trying to pretend we're not already sliding into one, or that we haven't already lost the world.
Yes, but the corporate owners stifled expression to the extent that many reporters moved to Substack, and in that sense members of the corporate media, not their executives, were “cowed”. I expressed myself poorly, and I apologize.
No apology needed, Jen used the word 'cowed' as well, and I agree with your clarification.
"The spinelessness of the Press has been second only to the cowardice of many members of Congress over the past eight months."
The Press was equally spineless calling out Joe Biden's physical and mental decline. No, that's not right. They, along with the Democratic Party, were complicit in gaslighting the American public for years. Jen is part of the problem.
I would vote for Joe Biden again today, knowing all the allegations about his supposed mental incompetence he and his circle are now accused of. Biden is still way more cognitively together than Trump, and he had qualified people around him. He wasn't trying to wrest power from Congress and the judiciary. He wasn't gleefully and openly corrupt. Yup, I'd happily vote for Biden again.
I miss having a president who was a decent human being!
I agree, and for all of the shortcomings of the Dems, they adhered to the law most of the time.
I too would have voted for Joe then or now. There’s no comparison to what we’re currently stuck with. “Cognitive decline” was a narrative promoted by the right wing media that scared enough prominent Democrats into forcing Joe aside. From trump, it was more projection as evidenced by his own decline. I trusted Joe & those around him to do the right things, and they did. Can’t say the same for trump & his Traitors. Biden, on his worst day, was 1000% more Presidential than trump on his best.
Thank you for this. You speak for me & I suspect millions of us. And we are getting angrier & more determined by the hour… Just you wait & see, the worm is turning.
"There’s no comparison to what we’re currently stuck with. “Cognitive decline” was a narrative promoted by the right wing media that scared enough prominent Democrats into forcing Joe aside."
Sure...Pelosi, Schumer and Obama were scared so much by right-wing media they just had to force Biden out. And rain makes applesauce...
"I trusted Joe & those around him to do the right things, and they did."
It's not "President-By-Committee" where the inner circle actually makes the decisions because Joe Biden is too far gone mentally.
"Biden, on his worst day, was 1000% more Presidential than trump on his best."
There is a twelve-step program for people with your condition.
"I would vote for Joe Biden again today..."
About 85%-90% of voters will cast their votes simply because there's a (D) or (R) after a name. No thinking involved.
"...knowing all the allegations about his supposed mental incompetence he and his circle are now accused of."
You didn't need to be a doctor or pretend to be one to notice Joe Biden wasn't all there mentally. He was showing signs of it in the 2020 campaign. All you needed were eyes to see, ears to hear and watch unedited clips on C-SPAN. It only got worse during his term. The "qualified people" around Biden deliberately hid this knowledge from the public, and one of them was Kamala Harris.
"He wasn't trying to wrest power from Congress and the judiciary."
Trump hasn't wrested anything from anyone. He's actually (and inadvertently) finding out for now and future Presidents just how far their powers go, and I say that's a good thing.
"He wasn't gleefully and openly corrupt."
Sure...it's just a coincidence that Hunter was on the board of a energy company in a country that his father was "responsible" for during the Obama administration. And the laptop was so innocent that fifty-one "experts" signed a document saying it was simply Russian disinformation without ever having seen it and most of the media suppressed.
"Yup, I'd happily vote for Biden again."
Of that I have no doubts.
You’re going to be late for your QAnon meeting.
Spot on! 😂
"You’re going to be late for your QAnon meeting."
Try something more original next time.
Jen is not now part of the problem. She has evolved dramatically and is doing great work.
Many of us, looking at our options at the time, not knowing the present that we are in, were voting for Biden and then Harris over Trump. Biden was being protected... as Trump is now (not too successfully).
The press is not a monolith. The so called legacy have lost many to the alternatives that have sprung up, including this- so we can thankfully hear other voices including yours and mine, that are freed, not dependent on the will or prejudices/judgements of editors et al. The big sort continues as a result. "The Press" however is still useful and important- sometimes very. But it cannot or will not do the job entirely. That is why we are here.
I bagged the WAPO months ago (no refund so I've still got access through October) but I still subscribe to the NYT. Yesterday I realized that I haven't looked at the NYT for months except for the cooking section. I find their recipes to lack any political slant, plus they're not afraid to use the words "good" and "not good". Refreshing.
I read Ezra Klein in the NYT... He's often good - today:
The Supreme Court Is Backing Trump’s Power Grab
(gift link)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/02/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-kate-shaw.html?unlocked_article_code=1.i08.gqt7.FZ-NnKkS3Jxj&smid=url-share
Thank you. I'm somewhat familiar with Ezra Klein, having seen him on the news. I will take your recommendation and read this.
It's long and don't rush through it.... Klein asks good questions. ( I am reading the transcript)
It's not the NYT that says good or not good in the recipe section either. It's the readers. But I do find that the editorial and opinion section say good and not good. Just not enough and too careful about it (voicing the opposite opinion). Some say they are better now that the situation is obviously bad. It's the front page selection of what is newsworthy that I find at fault.
We are still subscribing to the NYTimes for more than the quotidian though. The prevalence what is unworthy on the front page is very disappointing to a lifelong reader. But we don't have to depend on them or any one source and we should never have. So we are in better shape now to curate for ourselves where we get our news. We know where to get our daily dose of outrage.
It's hard work.
"Jen is not now part of the problem."
Jen is simply a partisan hack with a Substack platform that pays her far better than her previous gig at WaPo. She says it's a "pro-democracy" platform when in reality it's simply anti-Trump, and there is a difference.
"The press is not a monolith."
No, but the vast majority are firmly aligned with the Democratic Party. They covered for Biden for almost his entire term until the June debate. For a brief time after they seemed to act like journalists, then relapsed as soon as Joe "stepped down" and Kamala became the new standard bearer. Along with the Democratic Party, there has been practically no "mea culpas", introspection or analysis as to why the Dems lost both the WH and the Senate in 2024 from the media. You certainly haven't heard anything from Jen or Norm. It's far easier to just be against whatever Trump says or does.
Yes it's very easy to be against Trump because everything he says or does is a lie or destructive.
PS. Jen Rubin has a law degree. The Republican party she was a part of is gone and she's evolved (something many don't do).I will not respond to you.
"Yes it's very easy to be against Trump because everything he says or does is a lie or destructive."
Translation: blind partisanship is really difficult for you to overcome.
PS. Jen Rubin has a law degree. The Republican party she was a part of is gone and she's evolved (something many don't do).I will not respond to you.
Guy who supports a convicted felon for president says what?
Anyone who argues that there needs to be a better reason to NOT support Trump than 34 felony convictions (no, the conviction was not overturned) and dozens of other felony charges that were corruptly blocked is not worth listening to.
"Guy who supports a convicted felon for president says what?"
You might as well ask that of all those who saw Trump as the better choice, more than voted for the Walking Word Salad.
Jen? Show me something she wrote during her tenure at WaPo that was spineless or skirted the truth.
She was one of the many I admired there.
They are nearly all gone.
Jen's opinion of the June 2024 Presidential debate:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/06/28/debate-newletter-reaction/
Jennifer Rubin should not be pilloried for being one of the truth-tellers.
As a Democrat, I don't think that Biden should have run for a second term. He said that he would be a bridge president for one term. He broke his promise and in doing so, didn't allow for a Democratic primary for new candidates to present themselves.
So the media didn't report on Mr. Biden's deterioration. Here's a case of bothsideism at play -- it isn't highlighting reports on Trump's deterioration either.
"Jennifer Rubin should not be pilloried for being one of the truth-tellers."
Jen, like most of the media, is more interested in narrative. That means the "facts" will be those that fit said narrative.
"As a Democrat, I don't think that Biden should have run for a second term."
Biden shouldn't have run the first time as he was already showing signs of cognitive decline. Just as with the 2016 campaign, Dem leadership was afraid that Bernie might get the nomination. So Jim Clyburn did a "laying of hands" endorsement of Biden for the South Carolina primary. Mayor Pete and Senator Klobachar were convinced to drop out. The result was the rug pulled out from under Bernie (again). Biden was presented as the most "centrist" candidate of the bunch.
"So the media didn't report on Mr. Biden's deterioration. Here's a case of bothsideism at play -- it isn't highlighting reports on Trump's deterioration either."
We saw this play out in Trump's first term:
"Trump’s health condition highlights gaps in the 25th Amendment"
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/03/trump-coronavirus-25-425871
"What The 25th Amendment Says About Removing A Sitting President"
https://www.npr.org/sections/insurrection-at-the-capitol/2021/01/07/919400859/what-happens-if-the-president-is-incapacitated-the-25th-amendment-charts-a-cours
And for Biden:
"What is the 25th Amendment? A simplified explanation of what it does, who can invoke it"
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2024/02/09/what-is-the-25th-amendment-simplified/72536345007/
And this was the Dems' response after the Hur report was released:
"Democrats blast special counsel Robert Hur's Biden report as 'inappropriate' and 'politically motivated'"
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/democrats-blast-special-counsel-robert-hurs-report-smear-cheap-shots-rcna138117
Joe Biden is not president anymore and not our problem. But you're still here attacking Biden while Trump disintegrates before our eyes from a far lower base of education, intelligence and knowledge than Joe Biden had even in 2024. Still trying to mansplain to others about bias while showing it in every comment.
"Joe Biden is not president anymore and not our problem."
Translation: We don't want to acknowledge our mistakes, learn from them, and chart a better path forward.
Hal, did you mean "spineless" rather than "spinless". Big difference. Perhaps your digit slipped?
Thank you for noticing that - I will correct it!
Today we have another chance to ask Congressional Republicans to stop the insanity.
Fox: With Congress back in session this week, Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky are reigniting their push for the Justice Department to release files in the Jeffrey Epstein case.
Khanna says that "people are going to be outraged" after seeing a news conference he and Massie are holding on Wednesday with 10 victims of the late convicted sex offender.
The news conference is part of the effort by Khanna and Massie to pass through the House a bill requiring the Justice Department to release its files on the Epstein case.
___
We should hold Rep. Sen Cassidy responsible for the RFK Jr. insanity -- in essence he made the call for the Seante. Cassidy, a doctor, was the swing vote on the Senate Finance Committee.
Now he wants to do oversight. But the deck is stacked. RFK Jr has diplaced the agency with anti-vax ideolueges.
"Cassidy needs to do more than oversight said Dr. Thomas Farley, the former top public health official in New York City and Philadelphia. “Cassidy now, I think, does bear some responsibility to stop (Kennedy) from causing more damage,” Farley said, arguing Kennedy needs to be fired.
___
Trump needs Congress
Reuters: ARLINGTON, Virginia (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday expressed confidence that the Supreme Court will uphold President Donald Trump's use of a 1977 emergency powers law to impose sweeping tariffs on most trading partners, but said the administration has a backup plan if it does not.
Bessent told Reuters he was preparing a legal brief for the U.S. solicitor general, who will oversee the government's appeal to the Supreme Court, that will underscore the urgency of addressing decades of trade imbalances and stopping the flow of deadly fentanyl into the United States.
Put Congressional Republicans on the hot seat.
I wonder if Cassidy is as concerned as Susan Collins about the deliberate destruction of our health care system's framework? Maybe even "very concerned"?
Until we see some intestinal fortitude in the GOP leadership, we can presume it's all blather and that they are flag carriers for MAGA.
Possibly he's considering a Strongly Worded Letter.
He voted to impeach Trump as #45.
Good. And yet, he put RFK over the top.
Cassidy is from Louisiana and so is Mike Johnson. Follow the money!
He likely did so knowing that his vote was meaningless since McConnell had declined to push the rest of the Republican caucus in the same direction.
That is not a good excuse for total betrayal of his commitment to his constituents and the country.
It certainly is not, nor is the intent to excuse his action, it is merely to provide a political explanation for his vote. As far as I'm concerned, there is neither excuse nor justification for most Republican behavior for the last 10 years at minimum. If there was a full set of reproductive apparatus in the entire caucus combined we'd be miles ahead of where we are now.
and voted for RFK as a "doctor" he is no one to hold up as a possible helper
My congressional Republican (Nick Langworthy) will do nothing but regurgitate the talking points of his Dear Leader and those who own him. His responses to me (from whoever writes them for him) are more and more repetitious as time goes by. Doesn't stop me from contacting him, of course - but it is a bit like spitting in the wind.
To break the ice, ask him whether Putin started the Ukranian War and whether he'll fight Putin. He'll probably go off -- on Trump.
I am not a psychic, but I still feel comfortable in predicting that he will never go off on King Short Fingers, unless the power behind the throne, changes that throne's occupant. He's stuck on the short-fingered vulgarian like a remora.
More irate Slavs per square inch as Putin's army is massed on the Polish border. His district is close enough to Canada that his business constiuency is probably irate. Plus he can be redistrcted.
I'm aware of where the district is; I live in it.
He already has been redistricted - well, not him, it was a couple of reps. ago. It was done to expand a district for Republicans, and shrink the district for Democrats (now only the City of Buffalo and immediate suburbs). I'm quite sure that a change in that is not going to happen any time soon. It's a red district and it includes a lot of agricultural properties, many of which are owned by people who apparently like to shoot themselves in the foot.
The other WNY Republican district "represented" by congresscon Claudia Tenney, is much the same...only more so. In fact, I've often said that one of the few good things about Langworthy, is that he's not Tenney.
We have lost business, less because of the tariff idiocy, than the ICE goons. We've also lost in the area of tourism. But Republicans play the long game, and figure that Joe Doakes Republicans will get used to the situation, and anyway, it's Biden's fault...which is what Langworthy says, often. Except the one time he decided to blame Carter.
I have a file. It's labeled Washington BS. It includes letters from Chuck.
Some erstwhile "safe" Republican districts have flipped 40%.
What is the Slavic make-up? Ans. Huge!
Trump-Picked Advisor Defends Israeli Official in Las Vegas Child Sex Sting
https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/trump-picked-advisor-defends-israeli
Meanwhile, Trump is glued to news from the courts in Brazil.
Are there any real photos of trump doing anything movement wise, lately?
Jen Rubin is a marvelous writer, lwise, and blessing. thank you.
I have a recommendation for a word or phrase we could do without: "playbook," as in "This is right out of the fascist/totalitarian/autocratic playbook." Pundits make this pronouncement as though doing so will cause scales to fall from the eyes of Trump supporters and cause them finally to see clearly the evil they have been supporting. It does not, and it won't, no more than calling Trump a fascist will, however deservedly. We need to focus on the hateful, harmful and destructive actions he is taking and the consequences they are causing.
"Playbook" has been irritating me beyond endurance. And as the convoy headed for the golf course, it was sad to see the furled beach umbrellas at the little tables on the patio that used to be the Rose Garden.
Hear hear. That "patio" is an abomination. It looks like the outdoor eating area of a low-quality fast food restaurant. The removal of the Rose Garden was an attack on beauty, decency, and class. It's as classless as adorning the Oval Office with all of the golden tchotchkes and kitsch.
This makes so much sense!!
Jennifer-Your comment hit the nail directly on the head. Now it's up to the American people to do the same.
On July 4th, I mailed out 100 letters to every member of Congress, on both sides of the aisle. Three weeks later, almost all of them were returned to me, marked "undeliverable". Of course, that might be because I put all the letters going to any one particular office address into one large envelope, to be distributed by the mail room. That would have meant someone needed to actually open the envelope and then place each letter, clearly addressed to each individual, into their mail slots for the day's delivery of received mail. Maybe it was because they feared there might be something more than letters inside the envelope. Gee, don't they have a gadget to detect that kind of stuff yet?? I'm still wondering what happened to the envelope with 15 letters to 15 Republican senators that was never returned. They probably burned it. So, since they don't care to open envelopes, I'm ready to send out 10 postcards to dickhead, showing a cartoon character of him, ranting some of his rather profane utterances, behind wide black jail cell bars, with the comment "Wish You Were Here". And I will keep doing this until he IS behind bars!!
An Office worker for Schumer told us that mail is delayed weeks ........petitions aren't even looked at ..........the best way to contact your Congress people is to call them....put their individual phone numbers in your phone to call often and be ready to make your point....that's what is taken seriously in the Congressional Offices.
Right on !!
Once again, Bravo Jennifer Rubin!
Sadly, you have highlighted the current role of our gutless legacy press.
What a fantastic article, Jen. This should be a call to action. Action being challenging the MSM at every turn, cancelling subscriptions and telling them why, supporting media which calls a madman a madman.
All the strurm und drang emanating from the White House is hyperbolic and illogical but is also a very effective smoke screen to avoid the Epstein non-reveal enabled by our very own DOJ which has demonstrated over and over that Bondi and Blanche work for Trump, not us. For an excellent summary of the current state-of-play, here is Joyce Vance: https://open.substack.com/pub/joycevance/p/forgetting-the-survivors?r=f38fk&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Acosta is supposed to testify, in secret, on the 17th. Acosta’s “non-prosecution agreement” immunized several of his alleged co-conspirators from federal prosecution, and Maxwell alleges she is one of them in her SCOTUS appeal. Maxwell was named in at least eight civil lawsuits alleging sex trafficking and abuse, filed by victims such as Virginia Giuffre, Sarah Ransome, Jennifer Araoz, Annie Farmer, and Jane Doe, as well as others. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghislaine_Maxwell She also initiated one lawsuit, Maxwell v. Epstein's Estate, in 2020.
Thanks for following this closely.
I don't think he will come clean unless closely cross examined. Years after the fact, DOJ performed an Office of Professional Responsibility investigation that was papered over, but he denied that he had a secret meeting with Epstein's lawyers. I get this from the Miami Herald, that tracked it. OPR concluded that “Acosta exercised poor judgment when he failed to make certain that the state intended to and would notify victims identified through the federal investigation about the state plea hearing. His decision left victims uninformed about an important proceeding that resolved the federal investigation, an investigation about which the [United States Attorney’s Office] had communicated with victims for months. It also ultimately created the misimpression that the [Justice] Department intentionally sought to silence the victims.”
The summary said the Office of Professional Responsibility had reviewed “hundreds of thousands of records,” including emails, letters, memos and investigative materials, and conducted “more than 60 interviews of witnesses,” from FBI case agents to a former deputy attorney general. In a statement, the Justice Department said it shared the executive summary of the report with victims on Thursday and the full report with a congressional committee. “
"Among the federal prosecutors who avoided being targeted for criticism in the executive summary were Acosta’s former top assistant, Jeffrey Sloman; ex-criminal chief Matthew Menchel; former case prosecutor Marie Villafaña, who had prepared a sex-trafficking indictment against Epstein that was not filed; and her boss, Andrew Lourie. They and their actions, however, are detailed in the full, unreleased report."
Hopefully the Dems will interview Villafana and the others before they question Acosta.
Every person who used the spa at Mar a Lago during the time that Virginia Giuffre worked there is a potential witness. Same for her co-workers. What do the states' attorneys and AUSAs know about that?
Several Epstein lawyers have passed away. Did they have files? Dershowitz is still around. Was he privy to the secret meeting?
Were Maxwell and/or Trump lawyered up at the time?
I can go on for a month.
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This analysis is spot on. Thank you.
Love the term "linguistic sloth." What a great summary. Right on!
I do believe using the right language to characterize the right outrage is critical now. But I don’t think we look like the Weimar Republic, contrary to Ziblatt’s argument, which actually makes our moment in time even scarier.
Weimar was widely considered not to have been a strong republic. The Reichstag was captured by as many as 11 different political parties that were frequently too preoccupied with fighting each other, rather than a single fascist threat, to do anything.
Maybe more importantly, one-third the country became unemployed after the 1932 Great Depression. The fear of destitution was real. Fear and subsequent scapegoating were everywhere — that much certainly you can see in today’s fright-wing media reports of ‘Haitians eating cats and dogs.’ But it’s a complete mirage. In January, America had the strongest economy on earth — the ‘envy of the world’ as Joe Biden used to say. Inflation had hit us far less than it did Europe, employment was at near record levels, investment sky-high. Other countries would have given their eye teeth to have ‘our’ problems.
Calling this “Weimar” does a great disservice to the real history of Germany and mischaracterizes almost everything about our economy and society now.
As to why Fox News and other propaganda outlets have managed to get one-third the country to believe all the invasion, economic collapse, catastrophe nonsense, that’s another story.
Loved the excellent writing!
Thanks, Jenn. I've always told people that this isn't a Moriarty we are dealing with. More of a bull in a China shop. The brains lurk behind. Trump is tanking physically. They will wring every ounce of useful frontman juice that they can from 🍊. It's going to be Weekend at Donnie's.
Carole, precisely said.
Trump’s mental capability is tanking faster than the 2025 architects anticipated.
Further, Trump is disintegrating faster than anticipated. Vance, the chosen successor is not quite ready to complete the transition. I speculate that his several recent absences and family vacations are cover for the prep and buffing up of his image and capability to complete the take over.
How can we take advantage of this unanticipated weakness of the 2025 transition plan?
Exactly! Just last week a New York TImes headline was "With little precedent..." referring to the firing of Lisa Cook. Not only was it some wishy-washy both sides rubbish, use of the term "little" implies that they have examples of similar actions from the past - which of course they did not.
You pull no punches — again! Thank you for that.
SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER IS THE DUTY OF EVERY SENTIENT HUMAN BEING. I am so sick and tired of the weasle-wording of the MSM I could puke. It's gotten so bad I can barely keep from screaming out loud. I'm thinking of getting one of those electronic messaging boards and putting it under the eaves out front so I can immediately counter them for all to see. If only!