Judd Legum of Popular Information highlights some stories of Trump officials detaining U.S. citizens, sometimes even when they presented evidence they were citizens. RAS calls these "Kavanaugh Stops," and that's what they are. Congrats to Bart for finally becoming famous for something besides his youthful indiscretions -- which include (alleged!) gross sexual abuse. ~~~
~~~ Tom Sullivan of Hullabaloo posts video of Trump officials beating one young man who was walking down the street -- he had to be hospitalized -- and of other Trump officials violently detaining young men in Chicago & Colorado. Watch the videos. Thank you to RAS for the link.
At least watch the last few minutes (beginning at about 22 minutes in): ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~
Annals of “Journalism,” Ctd. Andrew Feinberg of the Independent: “... Donald Trump has reignited speculation over his health and physical stamina after he engaged in a bizarre interview with CNN conducted through text message over the weekend. For months, reporters and other observers have noted that Trump’s speech has often been slurred during appearances, pressed the White House on the origins of bruising and heavy makeup to cover it on Trump’s hand, and requested information on his health, only to be rebuffed by the White House.... Trump has also ... had difficulty walking in a straight line in recent weeks, while at the same time, he has noticeably cut back on his public appearances.... Now, the 79-year-old commander-in-chief has added to the questions with a written question-and-answer session, purportedly between him and anchor Jake Tapper.... [On Sunday morning's 'State of the Union' show,] Tapper ... narrate[d] the visual display of the purported text messages from the president.... The CNN anchor did not explain how he verified that it was the president — not any of his aides — who authored the written responses to his questions.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Lawrence O'Donnell of MSNBC went off on Tapper on last night's show, pointing out how Tapper wrote a whole book on how old and out of it Joe Biden was -- then let's Trump get away with responding to prepared written questions -- without even verifying who prepared the responses or telling listeners how long a time period passed between questions and answers.
Irie Sentner of Politico: “... Donald Trump on Monday said he would consider using the Insurrection Act to deploy the military if federal courts prevented him from deploying the National Guard to protect federal buildings and conduct law enforcement operations.... Trump told reporters in the Oval Office he did not yet see the need to use the Insurrection Act, but 'if I had to enact it, I’d do it, if people were being killed and courts were holding us up, or governors or mayors were holding us up.' 'You look at what’s happening with Portland over the years, it’s a burning hell hole,' Trump added. 'And then you have a judge that lost her way that tries to pretend that there’s no problem.' The Insurrection Act of 1807 is a federal law that allows the president to nationally deploy the U.S. military or federalize state National Guard troops to quell what the president deems an insurrection against the United States.” The New York Times report, by Chris Cameron, is here.
Robert Mackey of the Guardian: “Before a federal judge blocked Donald Trump from putting members of California’s national guard on the streets of Portland, Oregon, late on Sunday, the state’s Republican party welcomed the planned deployment in celebratory posts on social media.... On [Facebook, Instagram & X], the statement was illustrated with an image that seemed designed to support Trump’s false claim that protests against immigration sweeps in Portland are so out of control that the city is 'burning to the ground'. On one side of the image, a line of police officers held riot shields; on the other, a crowd of young men held up flares that lit up a night sky filled with red smoke.... It turned out that the image was not a photograph of a real event in Portland, but instead a fabrication created by combining two photographs of scenes that unfolded in South America nearly a decade apart.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: I briefly watched a segment on CNN last night which featured reporter Shimon Prokupecz (I think it was) standing across the street from the only ongoing protest in Portland. It consisted of maybe 50 people, by Prokupecz's estimate, who could be seen behind him, standing in a line on the sidewalk in front of Portland's ICE facility. At the time, the protesters weren't shouting or singing, they weren't holding torches, none was even encroaching on the street. That is, none of them qualified for so much as a jaywalking ticket. They could not have been less menacing, less violent or less in need of military suppression.
Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: On Sunday, Donald Trump treated a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Navy as a campaign rally. “He kept veering off script to rail about a 'rigged' election and 'woke' stuff. There was a group of MAGA true believers who follow him around the country seated by the stage. He called out to them. And he slammed the news media and his Democratic predecessors and inveighed against 'transgender for everybody,' which has become his latest over-the-top maxim meant to invoke liberal lunacy.... His attempts to politicize the military have become more blatant at a time when he is flexing his power over that military in ever new ways.... Over the weekend, Mr. Trump sent National Guard troops from Texas to Chicago, against the wishes of the Illinois governor, a Democrat. The president also ordered hundreds of out-of-state National Guard troops into Portland, Ore., setting off a showdown with a federal judge who blocked the administration’s moves on Sunday night....
“And on Friday, his administration carried out another strike on what it described as a drug trafficking ship in international waters; these strikes have alarmed a range of legal specialists in laws governing the use of force. Mr. Trump boasted about the strikes and the troop deployments to the sailors on Sunday. 'Now we’re in Memphis,' he said. 'And we are going to Chicago.' He talked about how he sent troops into Washington.”
Jonathan Chait of the Atlantic: Stephen Miller “equates opposition to Trump’s agenda with terrorism — and pushes for the use of state power to suppress it.... Violent defiance has become the animating vision through which Miller — and, therefore, on account of his sweeping influence over domestic politics, the Trump administration — views his conflict with Democrats, the media, the judiciary, or any entity that stands in his path.... As the shock of [Charlie Kirk's] murder has worn off, Miller is shifting to a more durable pretext: the political and legal backlash against Trump’s expansive deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.... A couple of weeks ago, Miller claimed that a disturbed gunman shooting Charlie Kirk impelled the government to crack down on the left. Now he says a handful of activists protesting ICE impel the government to crack down on the left. Violence ... is the pretext for which [Trump and Miller] transparently long.” Thank you to akaWendy for this gift link.
Robert Reich on Substack: “The direction we’re going is either martial law or civil war. Americans from so-called 'red' states, with the backing of their Republican governors and legislatures, are on the brink of using lethal force against Americans in so-called 'blue' states, whose Democratic governors and legislatures strongly oppose the moves.... I believe Trump and his enablers have worked this out in advance.... The first step has been for the Department of Homeland Security to deploy ICE agents to use aggressive tactics in targeted cities.... The second step is for such aggressive tactics to provoke demonstrations, and for Trump to exaggerate the scale and severity of them.... The third step is for Trump and Hegseth to deploy federalized National Guard troops to control the demonstrators, an act that’s already enflaming the public and provoking some actual violence.... The fourth step will be for Trump and Hegseth to invoke the Insurrection Act.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Hegseth's goal may be to have buff men in full military gear swagger around major cities' downtowns & break a few heads. But Trump has another plan, IMO: he wants to normalize this troop presence, then use it to "protect" polling places in Democratic-leaning cities. This "protection" would include seizing the ballot boxes and ultimately making sure Republicans won enough House & Senate seats to retain control of both Houses of Congress in 2026. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker was on Rachel Maddow's show last night, and he has drawn the same conclusion. So if you think I've gone off the deep end with this suspicion, well, maybe. But I'm jumping in with JB.
New York City Bar Press Release: “This September..., Donald J. Trump ordered U. S. military strikes against three private Venezuelan-flagged vessels on the high seas, killing at least 17 individuals and severely damaging or sinking those vessels. A fourth attack, which killed at least four more people, was carried out on October 3. None of these attacks was authorized under U.S. law and ... each of them appears to be an unlawful summary execution prohibited by both U.S. and international law. Although the President has, without proof, characterized the victims as 'terrorists' and drug traffickers, that claim, even if true, provides no justification for these unlawful executions. Even if, as recently reported, the President has communicated to Congress that he has 'determined' that the United States is in an 'armed conflict' with drug cartels, absent congressional authorization of these military actions, they remain unlawful.”
Erik Wemple, now of the New York Times: “The Defense Department on Monday loosened and clarified its new restrictions for press access to the Pentagon, after more than two weeks of negotiations with national news organizations. Under the rules, journalists requiring credentials to the Pentagon will not need approval from the department before publishing articles with information not officially released. News organizations widely interpreted an earlier draft as requiring that approval, drawing their condemnation.... The draft does, however, outline rules under which journalists could be deemed 'security risks' and have their credentials revoked. News outlets that want access to the Pentagon will have a week to review the policy and decide whether to sign. Failure to sign could leave them without press credentials to enter the Pentagon. By signing the policy, a reporter acknowledges the enclosed policies and procedures, 'even if I do not necessarily agree with such policies and procedures.'” The link appears to be a gift link.
RAS linked a post by digby republishing Kristi Noem's tweet, which Heather Cox Richardson mentioned in her letter linked yesterday. It's the third tweet down in digby's post. You really should watch the video Noem posts all the way through. It shows you just what the Homeland Security Secretary thinks is appropriate action against Americans by agents who report to her. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ And do take a look through digby's whole post. This is garbage digby says she pulled from the official White House account (including public responses) from just one 24-hour period. Your taxpayer dollars are funding this sludge.
“Rather Bizarre.” Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: “Michael Ellis, the deputy director of the C.I.A., has abruptly demoted a career lawyer who had been serving as the agency’s acting general counsel since January and installed himself in that role, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Ellis, who played a role in a series of controversies during ... [Donald] Trump’s first term, is also retaining his position as the No. 2 official at the C.I.A. John Ratcliffe, the agency director, had to authorize or could have overridden the move.... The move raised alarms among some current and former intelligence officials. Stephen Gillers, a New York University professor of legal ethics, called the arrangement 'rather bizarre.' Pointing to rules of professional conduct for lawyers that prohibit conflicts of interest, he said Mr. Ellis ... could not ethically give himself legal advice about issues that concern him — including whether policy actions he wants to take would be lawful.” This appears to be a gift link. ~~~
~~~ MEANWHILE. Jacob Bogage, et al., of the Washington Post: “The Trump administration has found its seventh leader for the Internal Revenue Service since the start of ... Donald Trump’s second term: the head of the Social Security Administration. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that Frank Bisignano, the Social Security commissioner, will also serve as the IRS’s 'chief executive officer,' a role that does not formally exist at the tax agency. The move sidesteps a potentially lengthy Senate confirmation process to fill a leadership vacuum at IRS as it prepares for filing season and tries to integrate massive changes to tax law from Trump and the GOP’s One Big Beautiful Bill.... Bessent will remain the acting IRS commissioner, he said in a statement, while Bisignano will handle 'all day-to-day IRS operations.' Any changes to the hierarchy of the IRS’s senior leadership are required by law to be vetted by the agency’s oversight board. That bipartisan body has been inactive for years because it lacks a quorum.”
Carol Leonnig & Ken Dilanian of MSNBC: “A top prosecutor in Virginia has informed colleagues she plans to decline to seek charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James, resisting intense pressure from ... Donald Trump, according to two people familiar with her discussions. Elizabeth Yusi, who oversees major criminal prosecutions in the Norfolk office of the Eastern District of Virginia, has confided to co-workers that she sees no probable cause to believe James engaged in mortgage fraud, the two sources told MSNBC. Yusi plans to present her conclusion to the president’s new interim U.S. attorney, Lindsey Halligan, in the coming weeks.... Prosecutors in the Eastern District are now bracing for Yusi to be fired for her own resistance to try a case that many lawyers have said lacks sufficient evidence.... In a Truth Social post Saturday, Trump called James 'SCUM,' saying she should be removed as New York attorney general and pointing to what he called 'her WITCH HUNT against President Donald J. Trump, and others.'” ~~~
~~~ Marisa Taylor & Chris Prentice of Reuters: “The Trump appointee accusing the president’s political foes of mortgage fraud skipped over his agency’s inspector general when making criminal referrals, according to seven people familiar with the matter, bypassing rules meant to ensure that federal officials don’t abuse their power for partisan purposes. Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, earlier this year made criminal referrals against targets including Lisa Cook, the Federal Reserve governor whom ... Donald Trump has tried to dismiss, for alleged crimes related to their mortgages. Breaking with standard procedures, Pulte circumvented that agency’s internal watchdog, typically the office that would make such referrals, by asking the Justice Department to investigate Cook and two other prominent officials...[:] New York Attorney General Letitia James and Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff.... [MB: Schiff is no longer a Congressman; he is a U.S. Senator now.] 'You can’t single out people for prosecution for political reasons,' said Richard Painter..., President George W. Bush’s ... top ethics attorney. 'It’s a clear violation of federal law.'”
Rhitu Chatterjee of NPR: "Psychiatrists have joined other public health groups in calling for the removal of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary. Two psychiatry organizations — the Southern California Psychiatry Society and the recently formed grassroots Committee to Protect Public Mental Health — have released statements saying that the actions of the leader of the Department of Health and Human Services have increased stigma, instilled fear and hurt access to mental health and addiction care."
Heather Cox Richardson writes a mini-biography of the execrable OMB Director Russell Vought & his Project 2025 antics -- which Trump has suddenly admitting he has adopted.
Nevertheless, They Persist. Marie: The most recent story I can find about the Trump-Epstein statue that has a short-term permit to be placed on the National Mall is this WUSA9 (Washington, D.C.) video, posted yesterday. The video shows the statue being removed for a second time, on Sunday, October 5. But Rachel Maddow reported last night that the statue has reappeared. Again.
Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: “The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal of the criminal conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein. The court’s action ends Ms. Maxwell’s attempt to overturn her conviction, meaning her only chance of an early release from prison is likely to be clemency from ... [Donald] Trump, with whom she used to socialize in the Florida and New York party scenes.” MB: Still, Ghislaine's old friend Donnie will surely pardon her, when and if it serves his interests. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Update. As I Was Saying. Andrew Feinberg of the Independent: “... Donald Trump on Monday said he’d consider a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell.... [During an Oval Office press availability,] Trump was asked whether he’d consider clemency for Maxwell.... 'You know, I haven't heard the name in so long. I can say this, that I'd have to take a look at it. I would have to take a look,' Trump said. He then said he would have to 'speak to the DOJ' and stressed that he did not know 'anything' about the matter despite the case dominating headlines for months over a bipartisan effort to force release of case files from the Justice Department’s attempt to prosecute [Jeffrey] Epstein.” ~~~
~~~ Here's Trump letting on to Kaitlan Collins of CNN that he can barely remember who Ghislaine Maxwell is. Trump tells Collins he'll have to "check with DOJ" to see what the department thinks about pardoning a person convicted of child sex-trafficking (because who can have an independent thought about pardoning a child sex-trafficker who hasn't even admitted to her crimes?!). See also Akhilleus' commentary below: ~~~
Ann Marimow & Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: “When the nine justices of the Supreme Court return to their raised mahogany bench each year on the first Monday of October, it typically marks the end of a three-month stretch of rest and reflection. But this summer’s traditional recess was anything but a cooling-off period. Instead, the justices churned through emergency requests from the Trump administration that sharply divided the court along ideological lines, in a reflection of how much President Trump’s agenda has consumed their calendar. The president’s policies will have an even more central role in the term that begins on Monday, after the justices agreed to take three cases with broad consequences for his agenda. In November, they will hear arguments about the legality of Mr. Trump’s sweeping tariffs, a centerpiece of his trade strategy. In December, they will consider Mr. Trump’s efforts to wrest control of independent agencies, and in January, his attempt to fire a member of the Federal Reserve Board. By the time the term ends in June, there could be others.” (Also linked yesterday.)
Marie: This small farmer speaks with authority when she agrees with my wild guess yesterday that Trump's farm bailout (which is still in the works) will go to Big Ag and not to small farmers. Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)
Marie: Donald Trump does not seem to even aspire to be president* of all Americans. He thinks only about a third of us are worthy, maybe another third can be wrangled into submission, and the rest of us should be deported or hanged for treason. Now it appears he is not even president* of all of Red Country: ~~~
~~~ Kelly Cho of the Washington Post: “Grammy Award-winning country singer-songwriter Zach Bryan teased a new song that appeared to criticize U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, drawing online backlash from some of his more conservative fans. Bryan — who rose to fame releasing his songs on social media — posted a one-minute clip of his new ballad on Instagram this past week. He sings, 'ICE is gonna come bust down your door,' and refers to the police as 'cocky,' followed by an expletive.” ~~~
Annals of “Journalism,” Ctd. Benjamin Mullin, et al., of the New York Times: “Paramount said on Monday that it was buying The Free Press, a digital news site founded as an alternative to traditional news organizations, and appointing its co-founder, Bari Weiss, as the editor in chief of CBS News. The purchase price was roughly $150 million in cash and Paramount stock.... A writer for The Nation, a progressive magazine, wrote that The Free Press publishes 'pro-establishment bilge' that allows wealthy Americans 'to pretend that they are actually besieged outsiders.'” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Matt Johnson in an MSNBC opinion piece: “David Ellison — the son of the billionaire, Trump-supporting Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and the chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance — told CNBC in August that 'we don’t intend to politicize' CBS. But last month's hiring of a Trump-supporting, conservative think tank veteran as CBS News' new 'bias monitor' — along with the purchase of The Free Press..., plus the elevation of [Bari] Weiss — is a clear signal he wants to steer one of American journalism’s oldest and most respected institutions in a distinctly right-leaning ideological direction.... The Free Press ... is reflexively critical of the left and — even after Trump’s re-election — almost obsessively focused on wokeness, while claiming to have 'heterodox' politics because it occasionally sprinkles in some gentle criticism of the right. When it comes to Israel, The Free Press is a hyperpartisan supporter of the Netanyahu government ... and its war in Gaza. The Free Press received seed money from several right-wing investors, including at least one member of the Trump administration. And a substantial amount of The Free Press’ original reporting reads like press releases from the Trump administration.” ~~~
~~~ Gary Legum of Wonkette has some thoughts on Bari Weiss, Ellison & Fils, and furious rotations in the grave of Edward R. Murrow. ~~~
~~~ (Marie: The most surprising thing to me about Weiss is that she had a staff job on the op-ed page of the NYT, when I was checking out the op-ed page of the NYT every damned day -- yet I would have sworn to you that up until about three weeks ago I never heard of her. How'd that happen? She must have been a really bad writer with extremely dumb ideas for me to completely ignore her that she is to me what Donald Trump pretends Ghislaine Maxwell is to him.)
Thanks, You Ignorant Dimwits. Ailia Zehra of Alternet: “Several prominent internet personalities who helped boost ... Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign are now publicly distancing themselves from his administration, nine months into his second term. Rolling Stone noted in a report published Monday that figures like Adin Ross, Joe Rogan, Andrew Schulz and Theo Von were among a wave of manosphere podcasters and streamers who gave Trump access to large audiences of young men during the election cycle. Their platforms often served as uncritical venues for Trump to promote his message. Now, some are expressing regret or frustration over their involvement. 'I really really wish I never got into politics,' Kick streamer Adin Ross told his viewers recently, the report noted. 'I just don’t think I’ll ever care enough again for another politician.'... Ross’s interview [of Trump] was one of several high-profile appearances Trump made on what the report called 'bro-focused' shows during the campaign.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Here's some advice, bro. When you don't know WTF you're talking about, STFU.
~~~~~~~~~~
South Carolina. Miranda Jeyaretnam of Time: "Police are investigating the cause of a fire that burned down the home of South Carolina Circuit Court judge Diane Goodstein, who had reportedly received death threats for weeks related to her work.... Goodstein was reportedly not at home at the time of the fire, but at least three members of her family, including her husband, former Democratic state senator Arnold Goodstein, and their son, have been hospitalized with serious injuries.... Law enforcement has not disclosed whether the fire is being investigated as an arson attack.... Last month, Goodstein had temporarily blocked the state’s election commission from releasing its voter files to the Department of Justice, a decision that was openly criticized by Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon and later reversed by the state Supreme Court." Thanks to RAS for the lead. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Update. Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "Law enforcement officials in South Carolina are investigating a fire that engulfed the home of a state judge and a former Democratic state senator but say there’s no current evidence the fire was intentionally set."
26 comments:
Some sick cosmic jokester has to be behind the confluence of the country’s 250th anniversary with the reign of this nation’s grim reaper, a demented demagogue whose hatred of democracy is rivaled only by his abysmal ignorance of the rationale underpinning the founding of the United States of America.
The combination of the celebration of our origin with the engine of our demise is beyond mortal ken, but it’s some sick shit anyway you look at it.
And now we have to pay for Little Caesar to slap his stroke-droopy puss on illegal tender.
The galactic insults abate not, nor do they diminish in monstrosity.
Fat Hitler, as is his wont, can’t leave well enough alone. His lackeys on the Supine Court tried to do him a solid by burying Maxwell’s plea for a hearing before their dark, treasonous majesties, the intent, no doubt, being to help the First Rapist evade his relentless bête noire, the Epstein connection, but the fat beneficiary of sex trafficking of yore can’t shut up about giving his old party pal a pardon.
Instead of blowing off a question about Maxwell, he pretends he never heard of her and has no idea what anyone’s talking about when they mention her name, a landmark in goofy risibility that does nothing but draw increased attention to his desperate and eternally failing attempts to extricate his waddling blubber from the Epstein swamp.
Drown in that muck, you despicable pig.
Experimenting
Picasso's Guernica
"On 26 April 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, the town of Guernica was razed to the ground by German aircraft belonging to the Condor Legion, sent by Adolf Hitler to support General Francisco Franco's troops. Bombs rained down on Guernica for hours in an "experiment" for the blitzkrieg tactics and bombing of civilians seen in later wars."
From Wikipedia
Politico
"Biden-era FBI requested Senate Republican phone records, lawmakers say
The FBI investigated Republican lawmakers as part of its Biden-era probe into President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, GOP Senators announced Monday.
The investigation under former special counsel Jack Smith ultimately culminated in a number of felony charges brought against Trump, but the case was dismissed after his reelection in 2024. The records, which were narrowly tailored around the date of the certification of the 2020 election in early January 2021, included phone data for Republican members of Congress.
“They’re casting this net, this fishing expedition against members of the Senate and the House,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chair of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, said in a press conference to announce the findings. “There is no predicate. There’s no reason for this other than a fishing expedition, which, again, should outrage and shock every American.”"
I saw a couple of these headlines. What Politico conveniently leaves out is that confederate congressmen were active publicly and behind the scenes working with Trump to push his bullshit narratives of winning the 2020 election. Johnson was part of the attempt to deliver lists of fake electors on January 6th. Investigating insurrectionists and the coup plotters was Smith's job. So checking who potential co-conspirator were talking to in the days before and directly after the attack was not only well within his mandate, but would have been a dereliction of duty not to look into it.
People's Lives
Circular Operation
They are coming for Social Security, they are just biding their time.
Liars
"Claim: 10 cars rammed ICE
Truth: No cars rammed ICE
Claim: She boxed ICE in
Truth: ICE boxed her in
Claim: She shot a rifle at ICE
Truth: She did not have a rifle
Claim: ICE returned fire
Truth: Only ICE fired
Claim: She drove herself to the hospital
Truth: Paramedics found her"
Liars
"Republicans post fake image of Oregon protest – using photos of South America
On closer inspection, however, it turned out that the image was not a photograph of a real event in Portland, but instead a fabrication created by combining two photographs of scenes that unfolded in South America nearly a decade apart.
A clear visual clue that the photograph was not taken in Portland was that the first officer’s shield is marked “Policia”, the Spanish or Portuguese word for police."
@RAS: Right you are about Ron Johnson's false claims that Jack Smith went on a fishing expedition. A "fishing expedition" is where you seek broad swaths of records when you have no idea what's in them & just hope you can find something juicy. (This, as a matter of fact, is how THE EMAILS!!! came to light.)
But Johnson, as you point out in your link, admitted to being part of the plot to overturn the 2020 election, and he was practically caught on tape trying to deliver fake electors' votes for Wisconsin & Michigan to Mike Pence. Other senators, to somewhat lesser degrees, likewise implicated themselves. It' is not a fishing expedition to try to get corroborating documentation to bolster what you already know or think you know via other sources.
The Politico reporter, Hailey Fuchs, should have at least made some reference to the facts instead of letting the Stupidest Man in the Senate (or runner-up, if you prefer Sen. Potato Head [Ala] for that distinction) do all the talking.
The Ragtime President*
Here are just two selections from Fat Hitler's rant to the generals last week. This is a guy who can barely speak. He's talking ragtime and going on about beautiful paper. Let's put. more gold on it. And "I love my signature. Everyone loves my signature..." Sure they do Donnie, Sure they do. Now be a good boy and eat your custard. Then we'll have a nice bath and go to bed."
Then it's "I rebuilt our nuclear. And we have submarines. And I sent them. One, no Two. and I can't tell you, but ours are great. Theirs are not."
Are you shitting me? This guy is the leader of the free world? He's lucky he can say "free world" without going off on a tangent about how Biden was going to sell that world and give it all to his crooked son...
Just read this stuff out loud. If you were sitting at the dinner table with relatives and you started yapping like this, they'd put you somewhere.
"You know, when I have a general and I have to sign for a general because we have beautiful paper, the gorgeous paper, I said throw a little more gold on it, they deserve it. Give me, I want the A paper, not the D paper. We used to sign a piece of garbage, I said this man's going to be a general, right?...
And I sign it -- actually, I love my signature, I really do. Everyone loves my signature. But I signed it very proudly. And I always think to myself, how can you have an autopen sign this? It's just so disrespectful. To me it's just totally disrespectful. And it turned out that almost everything he did was signed by autopen, except for when he gave his son, Hunter, a pardon, he signed that one.
And that's actually the worst signature I've ever seen. That was a bad -- the autopen looks much better. But as leaders, our commitment to every patriot who put on the uniform is to ensure that American military remains the most lethal and dominant on the planet, not merely for a few years, but for decades and generations to come, for centuries....
I rebuilt our nuclear, as you probably know, but we'll upgrade that also and just hope we never have to use it. We have to hope we never have to use it because the power of that is so incredible. I see things -- I don't think they'd show it to you. I really wouldn't want them to show it to you. But when you see the result of what's left, you never want to use that.
Never, never ever. We were a little bit threatened by Russia recently. And I sent a submarine -- nuclear submarine, the most lethal weapon ever made. Number one, you can't detect it, there's no way. We're 25 years ahead of Russia and China in submarines. Russia is actually second in submarines, China's third.
But you know, they're coming up, they're coming up. They're way lower in nuclear too, but in five years they'll be equal. They're coming up. And you don't have to be that good with nuclear. You could have 1/20th what you have now and still do the damage that would be, you know -- that'd be so horrendous. But I announced that based on his mention of nuclear, and it was really a stupid person that works for him, mentioned the word nuclear.
I moved a submarine or two, I won't say about the two, over to the coast of Russia, just to be careful because we can't let people throw around that word. I call it the 'n' word, there are two n words and you can't use either of them. You can't use either of them. And frankly, if it does get to use, we have more than anybody else.
We have better, we have newer, but it's something we don't ever want to even have to think about. But when somebody mentions it, that submarine started immediately thereafter and it's just lurking. But I'm sure we're not going to have to use it. But it's an amazing -- it's undetectable totally. Ours is -- theirs isn't. Theirs are totally detectable."
I'll tell you what else is undetectable. A working brain in his fat fuck. Oh, but Jake Tapper thinks this is all perfectly fine. Biden on his worst day never sounded this nuts.
Coal is no longer king!
"Renewable energy overtook coal as the world's leading source of electricity in the first half of this year - a historic first, according to new data from the global energy think tank Ember.
Electricity demand is growing around the world but the growth in solar and wind was so strong it met 100% of the extra electricity demand, even helping drive a slight decline in coal and gas use."
So guess who is number one in renewable energy, looking to the future?
China!
Guess who is looking to the past, like an idiot, and lagging far behind in renewable energy investments, even to the point of pulling funding for renewable research?
Us! Well, to be more exact, FATTY!
In fact, according to the NY Times, /Coal is unreliable, expensive, and dirty; Trump is going all in.
In just a few short months, the Fat Hitler regime has destroyed decades of scientific progress and continues to point the way to the distant past. Wrong Way Donnie does it again.
Interesting that Donnie Doolittle says our submarines are undetectable, but then
goes on to let everyone know where they are.
I think it's his brain that's undetectable.
May I see your papers?
Part of the Community For Years
Judd Legum
"How federal agents are terrorizing American citizens
On July 10, George Retes, a 25-year-old Army veteran, was detained by federal agents “while on his way to work as a security guard at a Southern California cannabis farm.” He told the agents that he was “an American citizen and that his wallet and identification were in his nearby car.” Retes was violently arrested and then “[h]eld in a jail cell for three days and nights.” While incarcerated, “he was not allowed to make a phone call, see an attorney, appear before a judge, or take a shower to wash off pepper spray and tear gas that the agents had used.”"
Just one of many stories of Kavanaugh Stops that picked up citizens by our abusive "law" enforcement.
"Back Pay?
Furloughed federal workers aren’t guaranteed compensation for their forced time off during the government shutdown, according to a draft White House memo described to Axios by three sources."
Westcoastman,
Hey, st least Fatty didn’t give out the exact coordinates along with detailed battle plans like Mr. Warrior Ethos, Drunk Pete.
RAS,
Re: photos of Ecuador being touted as honest to god violencia in Portlandia, Oregonia. Next thing you know, they’ll be posting phony AU
I images of guys with big black mustaches, wearing cartoonish sombreros, claiming they’re pictures of Democratic politicians.
They lie about everything.
More videos of the thugs attacking the people.
Tom Sullivan
"Professional law enforcement does not behave this way. Not in a democratic republic. But then….
Videos confirm why Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker advised his citizens to know their rights, have their cell phones ready, and document everything done by “[DHS secretary Kristi] Noem’s thugs.” Calling them law enforcement is unjustified."
And this,
Seth Abramson
"BREAKING: Stephen Miller—both Trump Administration capo and de facto head of DHS, ICE, and DOJ, has just declared that peaceful protesters are "street terrorists." Under an executive order signed by Trump just days ago, that means he is saying that all protesters in America can be arrested on sight."
"Brace yourselves. Have your cell phones ready and document everything. If ever there is an investigation and prosecution over these events, videos will be needed. The scene of the crime is far more dispersed than it was on January 6, 2021."
Akhilleus,
Ted Cruz already did the sombrero and moustache thing for all his fellow Senators. But they could at least put some effort into their lies. The amount of times Confederates have posted a picture of US protesters, which there are thousands, that turn out to be from some foreign country is ridiculous. They even have trouble finding pictures of the correct cities or their own districts. At least they are consistent.
*Democratic Senators
Dan Rather & Team for Steady remind us that yesterday was the start of the Supreme Court's new term and that "there has never been a more consequential term for the United States Supreme Court...never, in all [Dan's] years of watching the court, have there been so many cases that could so radically change America and give Donald Trump even more power in the process." Will the court codify Trump’s power grab?
"It feels as though the court has ruled on many of Trump’s actions since January 20, because it has, but only on a temporary basis. The court was in the middle of its last term when Trump took office, so its more than a dozen Trump-related rulings were temporary, issued in response to the administration’s multiple emergency requests. This is what is referred to as a “shadow docket.” Most of the decisions have allowed Trump to proceed until the court can take up the actual cases.
Up to this point the court has not directly dealt with the legality of Trump’s executive orders, his directives, or his policies. But over the next several months the justices will hear arguments in multiple cases concerning Trump, the separation of powers, the rule of law, and the scope of presidential power."
The conservative Supremes seem prepared to inflict more pain on the vulnerable...What nice guys and gals...
https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/07/politics/supreme-court-conversion-therapy-lgbtq-oral-arguments
If you have a chance, take a few minutes to listen to Marcy Wheeler, proprietor of emptywheel.net, as she wipes the floor with lying PoT scumbags.
One of the points she tackles is the constant lying by lying liars like lying Bible Mike, aka Trump testicle cozy, who, along with the rest of the mendacious lemmings carrying Fat Hitler's brackish water, screams that Democrats want to give free healthcare to illegal immigrants. As you can see in her video, the guy responsible for this is....(drum roll)....Ronald Reagan, who signed a bill guaranteeing any and every one access to healthcare. Marcy walks you through some of the details.
And screaming liars like the Comfy Sectional Assaulter, Shady Vance, are declaring that taxpayers should not be on the hook for extra healthcare. Tell that to Cosplay Kristi and her ICE goons who are costing us millions in "extra healthcare". How?
"Back on August 27, Kristi Noem’s goons raided a car wash in Carson, CA. In the process, they badly broke Bayron Rovidio Marin’s leg. The break was so bad, he has been hospitalized ever since. And in spite of the fact that they’ve never obtained a warrant or even claimed that Rovidio Marin is undocumented, ICE has been paying private guards to guard him 24/7 since then."
The guy is handcuffed to the bed with two to four guards in his room 24/7. But NO WARRANT. How is this even close to being legal?
Conservative estimates of this situation is around $400,000. Other innocent citizens thrown to the ground and beaten by ICE gorillas are suing the Trump administration for tens of millions, cases they are almost sure to win given the number of laws Kristi's goons break, as many laws as the bones they break.
How's that for "extra healthcare costs"?
But all of this is hidden by the MSM which chooses to nod its head and regurgitate traitor talking points about how it's all the fault of Democrats.
RAS,
Yeah, I pointed out last week the absolute disgusting nature of Cruz, he of Latin descent, using insulting memes of another Latin country trying to paint Democrats as stupid and lazy Mexicans in big mustaches and cartoon sombreros, not a surprise considering he's the same guy who let Trump get away with calling his wife a dog.
But none of this bullshit is new. Back during the George Floyd protests five years ago, Fox used the same tired footage of burning shop fronts and rioting crowds to maintain the fiction that cities were war zones long after the protests were ended. This was a multi-pronged strategies for lying to their viewers (from Google AI overview, taken from multiple sources):
"Repetition of old footage: During the summer of 2020, Fox News was observed reusing "b-roll" footage—supplemental video—from prior weeks during broadcasts about the George Floyd protests. As nationwide protests calmed and largely turned peaceful, Fox continued to show earlier, more violent clips. In some cases, timestamps were visible, but the continued emphasis on rioting was misleading and often presented in the present tense.
Exaggerated sense of crisis: Media watchdog organization Media Matters documented that Fox News prime-time shows used old video and images of violence at least 50 times in August 2020 alone. On more than 20 of those occasions, the visuals were from protests that occurred in May or June. The report concluded that the network was using the footage to 'create a false sense of a large-scale crisis across the United States'.
Digitally altered images: The Seattle Times and others reported that Fox News used digitally altered images for online stories about protests in Seattle's 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone' (CHAZ). One such image combined photos from different days to depict an armed man next to a smashed storefront. Fox later removed the images and issued a statement saying it 'regrets these errors'.
Footage from a different city: One digitally altered image on the Fox News website showed a burning building and car, with the headline 'Crazy Town' in reference to Seattle. However, the image was actually taken in St. Paul, Minnesota. Fox later admitted to the mistake."
In addition, the NY Times caught Fox <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/13/business/media/fox-news-george-floyd-protests-seattle.html>doctoring images</a> to help bolster their lies (NY Times 6/13/20):
"On Friday, Fox posted on its site a photo of a man armed with a rifle standing in front of the shattered glass of a storefront. The Seattle Times noted that it was a combination of several different photos from Getty Images taken over nearly two weeks."
The lying is strong with these assholes. It won't stop because they find that gullible, low information types gobble it up and repost their bullshit to all their equally low information pals online.
Paul Waldman supplying the spine the Dems have yet to find.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-175551522
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