September 30, 2025

Dan Lamothe, et al., of the Washington Post: “Hundreds of the U.S. military’s top leaders absorbed highly partisan addresses from ... Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday, with each harshly criticizing their predecessors and touting their agendas in a summit that was extraordinary in nature but ultimately broke little new ground. The event was organized by Hegseth’s team at the Pentagon, with generals and admirals in command across the globe and their top enlisted advisers — some traveling thousands of miles — ordered last week to Marine Corps Base Quantico.... Gen. Dan Caine, Trump’s hand-selected chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told attendees in his opening comments that the event was an  'unprecedented opportunity and honor' for the senior officers to hear directly from their civilian leadership. Trump ... [made] meandering remarks that stretched about an hour and 10 minutes....  

“Trump was introduced by Hegseth, who had planned the event without the president involved.... During his remarks, Hegseth, a former Fox News personality who served as an officer in the National Guard at times, lectured the men and women — each with decades more military experience — seated silently before him.... The assembled military brass sat through the presentations mostly silent, in keeping with the military’s nonpartisan tradition.” ~~~

     ~~~ Two conservatives at the Bulwark, Jonathan Last & Bill Kristol, discuss the event. They were quite horrified. They run a clip, too, of an example of Trump's disjointed rambling. ~~~

     ~~~ Last's article on Trump's speech is worth reading: “If you were expecting Triumph of the Will..., what you got instead was fat, disoriented Elvis stumbling through his set.... I promise you that the flag officers in attendance were more alarmed than amused.... The most consequential parts of the commander-in-chief’s speech were the sections in which he attempted to prepare flag officers for increased deployment of the military in American cities.... He said that 'quell[ing] civil disturbances' is 'going to be a big thing for the people in this room.'... I cannot recall another instance of a commander-in-chief repeatedly denigrating his predecessors to the military, by name, in public.... Most alarmingly, he said that Biden was an illegitimate president, the product of a fraudulent election.... The obvious inference: Only Trump is the legitimate commander-in-chief.... On the surface, Trump’s speech was ridiculous. Slump-shouldered and low-energy, Trump wandered and slurred.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Here is what Trump said that most alarmed me. ~~~

     ~~~ Brett Samuels of the Hill: Donald “Trump told a gathering of military leaders Tuesday they should use American cities as 'training grounds' and described a federal crackdown on crime in major cities as necessary due to 'a war from within.'... He signaled the leaders in the room could be tasked with aiding in federal interventions in Democratic-led cities such as Chicago and New York City. 'They’re very unsafe places, and we’re going to straighten them out one by one,' Trump said. 'And this is going to be a major part for some of the people in this room. That’s a war, too. It’s a war from within.... I told [Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth], we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military — National Guard, but our military, because we’re going into Chicago very soon,' Trump added. 'That’s a big city with an incompetent governor.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: That is the POTUS* looking into the faces of all of the nation's top brass and telling them their troops should use Americans as cannon fodder. When prior presidents addressed the military, it was to remind them of their importance of protecting not only the people but also the fragile democracy in which we live. This president* says gun 'em down -- oh, and to hell with democracy: ~~~ 

     ~~~Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a decorated veteran military officer, noted on the teevee Tuesday afternoon that Trump and the GOP Congress also had slashed aid to local police forces. So the plan, as I see it, is to take policing away from local control and turn it over to the military, under Trump's thumb. The Posse Comtatus Act be damned, the Supremes will most likely rubber-stamp Trump's plans. And who do you suppose, then, will be in charge of policing elections? Deciding who can vote and where? So much for democracy. ~~~

     ~~~ BTW, Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), another decorated veteran military officer, also said Tuesday afternoon that the only other places you see a Dear Leader gathering together all of his top military people to deliver to them a propaganda speech are dictatorships like Russia and China. We have arrived.    

 Marie: This is pretty much what the MSM are saying about the Michigan shooter: ~~~

~~~ Tim Arango, et al., of the New York Times: “The former Marine accused of killing four people in a fiery attack on a Michigan church held a deep grudge against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to two lifelong friends and other people who knew him. The animosity, the friends said, stemmed from a breakup with a religious girlfriend over a decade ago and led the man to rant about the church at his best friend’s wedding, refer to it as the Antichrist and, just days before the attack, spew invective against Mormons to a canvassing politician.” ~~~

     ~~~ BUT, as Akhilleus points out in today's thread: ~~~

     ~~~ Ed Pilkington of the Guardian: “The gunman who killed at least four worshippers, wounded eight and was shot to death by police on Sunday at a Mormon church in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, had a sign emblazoned with the last name of Donald Trump outside his house, public records show. The president responded to the church shooting on Sunday by saying 'there is still a lot to learn' about the deceased suspect, identified as 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford. 'This appears to be yet another targeted attack on Christians in the United States of America,' Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform. Trump’s comments were notably calm and measured compared with his remarks following the killing of the rightwing activist Charlie Kirk....”

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Riley Beggin of the Washington Post: “The federal government is on track to shut down Wednesday, as lawmakers in Congress remain at an impasse over dueling funding proposals with no signs of compromise ahead.... The Senate is expected to vote again Tuesday afternoon on the GOP-led funding extension. It would need 60 votes to pass, meaning some Democrats would have to back it.... [After a meeting Monday among Donald Trump and Congressional leaders, Sen. Chuck] Schumer [said] that it seemed like the president 'was not aware of the ramifications' of the expiration of the ACA subsidies, and that there was 'a real division' between Trump and the GOP congressional leaders on the matter.... But later Monday evening, Trump posted a fake video of Schumer and [House Minority Leader Hakeem] Jeffries at a news conference outside the White House to his Truth Social account, with Schumer saying things about immigrants that he hadn’t actually said and Jeffries wearing a sombrero he hadn’t been wearing. 'It’s a disgusting video, and we’re going to continue to make clear bigotry will get you nowhere,' Jeffries told MSNBC.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Both of these things can be true; that is, (a) that Trump was clueless about and troubled by the Obamacare subsidies expiring, and (b) that he posted a video insulting Democrats & Hispanics. ~~~

     ~~~ (a) Jordain Carney, et al., of Politico: “... Trump administration officials for the first time opened the door to possible bipartisan negotiations over an extension of soon-to-expire health insurance subsidies — a key Democratic demand.... Trump himself expressed openness to talking about the subsidies, said two people.... But they, like Vance, said a shutdown would impede those talks.... Democrats, however, said nebulous promises of future negotiations would not suffice....” ~~~

     ~~~ (b) Meredith Hill of Politico: “The president posted a vulgar AI-generated deepfake video to his Truth Social slamming the top Democratic leaders — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and 

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries — just hours after he hosted the two for an Oval Office meeting. The video depicts Schumer and Jeffries as if speaking to reporters following the meeting, but the fabricated audio has Schumer saying Democrats 'have no voters anymore, because of our woke, trans bullshit' and that 'if we give all these illegal aliens health care, we might be able to get them on our side so they can vote for us.' That appears to be a crude reference to a shutdown talking point pushed by Speaker Mike Johnson and other GOP leaders.... Jeffries is depicted in a sombrero and mariachi music plays in the background.” ~~~

~~~ Tyler Pager, et al., of the New York Times: Donald “Trump and top Democrats failed to strike an agreement during a private meeting on Monday, with Senator Chuck Schumer pointing to 'large differences' on health care and Vice President JD Vance saying that the government was probably 'headed to a shutdown.' Republican and Democratic leaders emerged from the White House blaming the other side for the stalemate as Congress faces a Tuesday deadline to fund the government. The ramifications of a government shutdown could be immense for the federal work force and Americans relying on an array of government services, with Trump officials signaling they plan to conduct mass firings if the government shuts down. In a letter to federal agencies, the White House Office of Management and Budget said agencies should 'use this opportunity to consider reduction in force.'” ~~~

~~~ NYT Says GOP Whopper-of-the-Week Is “Misleading.” Linda Qiu of the New York Times: “With Congress at an impasse over federal spending, Republicans have emerged with a new and misleading talking point: Democrats are shutting down the government to fund free health care for unauthorized immigrants. It is a message repeated by Vice President JD Vance, the official X account of Senate Republicans and Speaker Mike Johnson. The Democrats’ budget proposal seeks to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at the end of the year, and roll back Medicaid cuts in the tax cut and domestic policy law signed by ... [Donald] Trump in July. But the proposal does not provide free health care for unauthorized immigrants. Unauthorized immigrants are largely barred from federally funded health care programs. They cannot buy health care plans on government exchanges set up by the Affordable Care Act and therefore cannot receive any subsidies. They are also ineligible for Medicaid, Medicare and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The Democrats’ budget proposal does not make them eligible for these programs.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: How is a completely false assertion "misleading"? Like coaxing a blind man out in front of an oncoming bus while assuring him the road is "all clear." The Times would call that "misleading"; I'd call it "homicide." ~~~

~~~ Scott Lemieux in LG&$ has a few things to say about JayDee's and Donald's concepts of "negotiations." It's fair to say that both Donnie & the Twerp leave the "give-and" out of "give-and-take."

~~~ Wherein Trump Puts Himself in Charge of Gaza. Luke Broadwater & Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: Donald “Trump on Monday cast his plan for a cease-fire in Gaza as a landmark deal to bring peace after two years of catastrophic violence. But in reality, it was more like an ultimatum to Hamas. Standing alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, Mr. Trump unveiled a proposal to which both men had agreed. If Hamas refuses to do the same, Mr. Trump said, the United States will let Israel 'do what you would have to do.' 'Israel would have my full backing to finish the job of destroying the threat of Hamas,' said Mr. Trump, who under the plan would become the temporary chairman of a board in charge of the redevelopment of Gaza. The joint appearance by Mr. Trump and Mr. Netanyahu at the White House was a clear display of unity at a moment when Mr. Trump has shown signs of frustration with the Israeli prime minister, and when much of the world has grown horrified at Israel’s prosecution of the war against Hamas in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.” An AP story is here. ~~~

~~~ Trump's Gaza plan, released by the White House, is here, via the New York Times. Here's the plan via CNBC. (Also linked yesterday.) 

Trump Threatens Mamdani, New Yorkers. Patrick Svitek of the Washington Post: “New York Mayor Eric Adams’s decision to abandon his reelection campaign injected more urgency into efforts by insurgent front-runner Zohran Mamdani to consolidate Democratic support as he faced a renewed threat Monday by ... Donald Trump to cut off federal funding if he is elected in November. '[Mamdani] is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great City,' Trump wrote on social media. 'Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his FAKE Communist promises. He won’t be getting any of it, so what’s the point of voting for him?' Mamdani, a democratic socialist state lawmaker, is the favorite in the November election.... But he faces a field of opponents led by former New York governor Andrew M. Cuomo, who is running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary.... Mamdani has made inroads with the Democratic establishment since the primary but has yet to receive the support of the two most powerful Democrats from New York: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Chuck & Hakeem had better get of their butts & stand up to the fat fascist bully. (They're meeting with him today on another matter: keeping the federal government's lights on. Let's see how they do with that.) 

Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: “The Trump administration plans to end funding starting Wednesday for an oversight group that helps inspectors general root out waste, fraud and abuse, marking the latest example of Trump’s drive to limit federal watchdog activities. The group — called the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency — is the umbrella organization for 72 inspectors general across government. It informed four House and Senate committees on Saturday that it would 'cease our statutorily mandated functions and furlough 25 permanent employees' without funding, according to a letter obtained by The Washington Post. The letter said the decision came from the Office of Management and Budget, which has overseen broad staffing cutbacks under Director Russell Vought. CIGIE acts essentially as a watchdog of the watchdogs — providing training, peer reviews and cross-agency oversight work for inspectors general. It also runs oversight.gov, where whistleblowers can disclose wrongdoing and inspector general reports are shared publicly.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'm shocked, shocked to learn that Trump & Vought are not interested in cutting waste, fraud & abuse, after all. ~~~

~~~ Coral Davenport of the New York Times: “Russell T. Vought spent years drawing up plans to expand presidential power and shrink federal bureaucracy.... In the months since [Elon] Musk fell out with the president, Mr. Vought has at last begun to put his plans into action — remaking the presidency, block by block, by restoring powers weakened after the Nixon administration. His efforts are helping Mr. Trump exert authority more aggressively than any modern president, and are threatening an erosion of the longstanding checks and balances in America’s constitutional system. Now, as the government heads toward a shutdown when federal funding lapses on Tuesday, Mr. Vought, 49, is leveraging the moment to further advance his goals of slashing agencies and purging employees, with his office telling agencies to prepare for mass firings unless Congress can strike a deal to keep the government open.” The link is a gift link because you might want to make yourself aware of what a revolting person Vought is. ~~~

~~~ Speaking of repulsive Trumplodytes: ~~~

~~~ Hugo Lowell of the Guardian: “Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, has played a leading role in directing US strikes against suspected Venezuelan drug boats, according to three people familiar with the situation. At times, his role has superseded that of Marco Rubio, the secretary of state and national security adviser. The strikes on the Venezuelan boats allegedly carrying narcotics ... have been orchestrated through the homeland security council (HSC), which Miller leads as the homeland security adviser. Miller empowered the HSC earlier this year to become its own entity in Donald Trump’s second term, a notable departure from previous administrations where it was considered part of the national security council and ultimately reported to the national security adviser.... Miller’s role ... opens a window into the dubious legal justification that has been advanced for the strikes, which has been a matter of deep controversy amid allegations it amounted to extrajudicial murder in international waters.... It remains unclear who signed off on the legal justification for the strikes.” Via Heather Cox Richardson.

Ana Swanson of the New York Times: “The Trump administration released details on Monday for tariffs on imported wood, furniture and kitchen cabinets announced by ... [Donald] Trump last week, while delaying their implementation by two weeks to Oct. 14. The details, in a proclamation put out by the White House, offered a more nuanced and gradual tariff arrangement than the sudden and steep levies the president forecast in a series of social media posts on Thursday. But they still will set in place major new tariffs that could send home builders, and some homeowners, reeling. The proclamation said tariffs on imports of timber and lumber would be 10 percent. That number is lower than some had anticipated, and companies that pay that 10 percent tariff are not subject to the 'reciprocal' tariffs the president has put on other countries’ products, which are in some cases much higher.... Tariffs on other wood products, like furniture and kitchen cabinets, would be higher and rise in the coming months. The tariff on upholstered furniture will be 25 percent, rising to 30 percent on Jan. 1. A 25 percent tariff on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities will also rise, to 50 percent, as of Jan. 1.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What is this? The Ikea tariff? Or is it some misbegotten effort to get JayDee off the couch?

Farnaz Fassihi & Hamed Aleaziz of the New York Times: “The Trump administration is deporting a planeload of around 100 Iranians back to Iran from the United States after a deal between the two governments, according to two senior Iranian officials involved in the negotiations and a U.S. official with knowledge of the plans.... The deportation is one of the most stark efforts yet by the Trump administration to deport migrants no matter the human rights conditions they might be sent into.... For decades, the United States had given shelter to Iranians fleeing their homeland, which has one of the harshest human rights records in the world.” 

Noah Robertson, et al., of the Washington Post: “Military leaders have raised serious concerns about the Trump administration’s forthcoming defense strategy, exposing a divide between the Pentagon’s political and uniformed leadership as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth summons top brass to a highly unusual summit in Virginia on Tuesday.... The critiques from multiple top officers, including Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, come as Hegseth reorders U.S. military priorities — centering the Pentagon on perceived threats to the homeland, narrowing U.S. competition with China, and downplaying America’s role in Europe and Africa.... The debate over the National Defense Strategy — the Pentagon’s primary guide for how it prioritizes resources and positions U.S. forces around the world — is the latest challenge for top military officials navigating the Trump administration’s unorthodox approach to the armed forces. People familiar ... described a growing sense of frustration with a plan they consider myopic and potentially irrelevant, given the president’s highly personal and sometimes contradictory approach to foreign policy.”

Julie Bosman & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “One hundred National Guard troops will be deployed to Illinois at the request of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. military officials said on Monday, a mobilization that would occur over the objections of Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois, a Democrat.... [Donald] Trump has threatened for weeks to send the National Guard to the Chicago area, as he has done in Los Angeles and has promised to do in Portland, Ore., vowing to combat crime in cities led by Democrats.... Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago, a Democrat, also pushed back against the move, pointing out that violent crime in the city has dropped in recent years and the presence of National Guard troops would do little to assist local authorities in Chicago.... 

“In Broadview, Ill., a small suburb west of Chicago, an ICE facility has been the site of increasingly tense protests for several weeks. Demonstrators have tried to block government vehicles from entering and exiting the parking lot of the facility.... In downtown Chicago on Sunday, federal agents wearing face coverings and camouflage and carrying rifles stunned passers-by as they walked in a group, patrolling areas busy with tourists, questioning people and making arrests.” ~~~

~~~ Mack Liederman of Block Club Chicago: “Police in west suburban Broadview are investigating the assault of a local journalist by federal immigration authorities.... 'An ICE agent took a direct shot at my car today. Absolutely unprovoked,' [CBS Chicago Reporter Asal] Rezaei said on social media. 'My window was open and chemicals went all over my face. Been puking for two hours.' Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills said in a statement the village has launched a criminal investigation into the 'allegedly unprovoked attack'  from a 'chemical munition fired from the direction of the U.S. [ICE] detention facility.'” 

Camilo Montoya-Galvez of CBS News: "An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who was initially relieved of his duties after being captured on video pushing a woman to the ground outside an immigration court in New York City has been returned to duty, two U.S. officials ... told CBS News. The officials, who requested anonymity to discuss an internal move that has not been publicly announced, said the ICE officer was placed back on duty after a preliminary review of the incident. The move is a striking about-face, just a few days after the Department of Homeland Security released a statement denouncing the officer's conduct as 'unacceptable and beneath the men and women of ICE.'"  

The Sting. Carol Leonnig & Ken Dilanian of MSNBC: “Tom Homan, the White House border czar, became entangled in an FBI sting last year after an associate of his suggested to undercover FBI agents that Homan could facilitate future government contracts in exchange for big money, according to four sources familiar with the investigation and a government document. Julian 'Jace' Calderas, a former U.S. immigration official who worked under Homan in the Obama administration, allegedly proposed to the agents — who were posing as businessmen — that Homan, in exchange for $1 million, could help them win lucrative federal contracts if Donald Trump became president again, according to an internal Justice Department document.... Calderas, co-owner of a detention services and government contracting firm in Texas, first allegedly proposed the scheme in May 2023. 

“He held several subsequent conversations with the agents about his cash-for-contracts proposal, culminating in a Sept. 20, 2024, meeting in Dallas at which agents recorded Homan accepting $50,000 in cash.... That Calderas attended the meeting at which Homan allegedly accepted $50,000 in exchange for offering to facilitate future government contracts would have been an important factor for prosecutors. A conspiracy charge requires that more than one person enter into a corrupt agreement, and undercover federal agents can’t be part of a conspiracy.” Kash Patel & Todd Blanche dropped the case, saying there was nothing to see here.

     ~~~ OR, as the Mediaite headline phrases it, "... Tom Homan Investigation Began After ICE Colleague Bragged He Was For Sale."

Another Multi-Billion-Dollar Tech Giant Caves to Violent, Greedy U.S. Dictator. Kate Conger of the New York Times: “YouTube agreed to pay a $24.5 million settlement to ... [Donald] Trump and others who were suspended by the video streaming platform in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, according to a legal document filed on Monday. YouTube froze Mr. Trump’s account after the riot, blocking him from uploading new videos and arguing that the content could lead to more violence. Mr. Trump sued YouTube in October 2021, claiming that it and other social media firms that removed his accounts had wrongfully censored him. The vast majority of YouTube’s settlement payment — $22 million — will go to Mr. Trump, according to the filing in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. He has directed that the money be contributed to the Trust for the National Mall and to the construction of a ballroom at the White House. The remaining $2.5 million will be distributed among other plaintiffs in the case, including the writer Naomi Wolf and the American Conservative Union.... 'The law was on [the media's] side,' said Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law, who said the settlements [by YouTube & others] were akin to 'buying influence.'” 

     ~~~ CNN's story is here. The AP report is here.

Minho Kim of the New York Times: “A federal judge on Monday ordered the Trump administration to reverse the layoff notices sent out to nearly all remaining employees at Voice of America, a federal news organization that provides independent reporting to countries with limited press freedom.... In a scathing ruling that accused Trump officials of ignoring and disrespecting the court, Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia found that the administration had violated his April order to restore Voice of America’s news coverage so that it would 'serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news.' Despite his earlier order, Kari Lake..., who has led the administration’s efforts to gut Voice of America, and other Trump officials kept the news programming and staffing at the news agency bare bones. In August, a few days after Judge Lamberth criticized her for potentially violating his order, she moved to lay off 532 full-time journalists and support staff at the agency.” The AP's story is here.

A Chip Off the Old Blockhead. Eric Trump goes on a weird rant, claiming -- among other things -- that Joe Biden & Merrick Garland tried to break up Donald & Melania's marriage. Michael Luciano of Mediaite reports. 

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I can’t think of any two narratives that are any more in opposition than the one of the humanity that the Freedom Tower is a symbol for, and then how this president has spoken about immigrants and immigration. -- Ana Sofia Pelaez of the Miami Freedom Project ~~~

~~~ Florida. Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and his administration want to take over a vacant lot on the campus of Miami Dade College — next to the iconic Freedom Tower — to donate for the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library. The surprise move announced last week drew immediate backlash from many in Miami’s Cuban American community, who say the tower, known as the 'Ellis Island of the South,' represents the opposite of Trump’s mass deportation campaign and tough immigration policies. A state board, made up of the Florida Cabinet, is scheduled to take a final vote on the land transfer Tuesday morning at a meeting in Tallahassee....  The administration of John F. Kennedy Jr. began using the Freedom Tower in 1962 to handle the Cuban refugee crisis. More than 400,000 immigrants were processed at the tower over a span of about eight years.”

Indiana. This Is Sickening. Sabrina Tavernise of the New York Times: “Two days after Charlie Kirk was killed, Suzanne Swierc, an employee at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind..., posted on Facebook...: 'If you think Charlie Kirk was a wonderful person, we can’t be friends.' Her Facebook settings were private, but one of her followers must have taken a screen shot and sent it on without her knowledge.... Indiana’s Attorney General, Todd Rokita,.., call[ed] her comments 'vile.'... Five days later, Ms. Swierc was fired from her job as the director of health and advocacy at Ball State, one of more than 145 people around the country who’ve lost their jobs for posting negatively about Mr. Kirk. Mr. Rokita, the attorney general, noted the firing approvingly.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The person who should get fired here is Rokita, as he is speaking out against a central tenet of the U.S. Constitution that he has sworn to uphold. He cannot possibly do his job enforcing the law if he opposes the Constitution on which the laws are based. That woman has a perfect right to decide whom she "friends" on her damned Facebook page, and she most certainly has a right to implicitly -- and privately! -- criticize a person who said hateful things about Black people, immigrants, women & non-Christians. Ball State is a public university. Swierc wrote nothing that undermines the university or subverts whatever "principles" its leaders think the university represents. She is suing. If there is any justice in this country anymore, she should win.

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