Alex Horton & Tara Copp of the Washington Post: “A U.S. fighter jet crashed in southern Iran, prompting a search and recovery mission for the two-person crew, two U.S. officials said, marking the first known instance of an American aircraft going down inside hostile territory in the month-long conflict. The fate of the crew was not immediately clear. The aircraft involved appeared to be an Air Force F-15E, according officials and images of wreckage circulating by Iranian state media.... The incident marks the fourth lost F-15 since the war began. In early March, Kuwaiti personnel mistakenly shot down three of the jets. All six crew members ejected and were recovered safely.” At 10:30 am ET, this is a developing story. ~~~
~~~ Update. Barak Ravid of Axios: "One of two crew members of a U.S. fighter jet that was shot down over Iran was located and rescued by U.S. special forces, and the search for the second is ongoing, an Israeli official and a second source with knowledge of the situation told Axios.... ran is also hunting for the crew and has asked civilians in the area to join the search, offering a reward if they're found. Israel is helping the U.S. with intelligence in order to locate the other crew member, the Israeli official said.... The two crew members of the F-15 fighter jet ejected safely after being struck by Iranian fire, the sources said." ~~~
~~~ Update 2: MS NOW is reporting at 5:00 pm ET that the second crew member "has been captured." Two-and-a-half hours later, I'm not seeing this anywhere else, so I don't think it's true. ~~~
~~~ New York Times live updates are here. From the pinned item at 7:30 pm ET: “U.S. forces were searching on Friday for an American airman who bailed out of a fighter jet over Iran during the first shoot-down of a U.S. warplane by Tehran in five weeks of war, officials said. A second crew member was rescued. Iran’s military was also searching for the missing American from the destroyed plane, an F-15E Strike Eagle.... The officials said the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps had closed off an area in southwestern Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, where they believed the flier went down. During American rescue efforts, a U.S. UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter was hit by ground fire but managed to escaped safely, U.S. and Israeli officials said. Another U.S. warplane, an A-10 Warthog attack plane, crashed near the Strait of Hormuz about the same time as the F-15E, and the pilot was safely rescued, two U.S. officials said. They did not say what caused the plane to go down; the Iranian military said its air defense systems had hit an A-10. U.S. officials did not specify in which country the aircraft had crashed.”
~~~ Marie: Trump's & Hegseth's repeated claims that the U.S. & Israel had "obliterated" Iran's air defenses & that U.S. & Israeli planes were flying "unchallenged" over Tehran were just bull & bluster.
Jennifer Bendery of the Huffington Post: “The Pentagon has invited more than 3,500 employees to attend a Good Friday service at its in-house chapel. Except it’s only for Protestants, not Catholics. 'Just a friendly reminder: There will be a Protestant Service (No Catholic Mass) for Good Friday today at the Pentagon Chapel,' reads a Friday email sent by Air Force leadership, a copy of which was shared by an employee. 'I guess so the Catholics know their kind ain’t welcome,' said this employee, who requested anonymity to speak about internal communications. 'It’s so ridiculous.' A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed it is not hosting another, separate religious service for Catholic employees.” Thanks to RAS for the link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Wait a minute. The Trump administration is pretending it's concerned about informal discrimination against Jews at universities and businesses -- at the same time it is conducting official, formal discrimination against Roman Catholics at a federal facility, and during Holy Week??? This is astounding. In general, I don't think it's necessary to hold any religious services at the Pentagon because in the U.S., service members and employees can find their own houses of religion in the surrounding communities. But a nondenominational chapel should be open to all staff, particularly in a time of war, so that any of them may individually have a quiet moment during their work days. The majority of the Supreme Court justices are Roman Catholic (Roberts, Thomas, Alito, Sotomayor, Kavanaugh and Barrett). Somebody might want to ask them about Drunk Pete's attitude toward Catholics.
Marie: As you read the next story, bear in mind that Pam Bondi said She "said her transition out of the job would take place over the next month," according the WashPo story linked below. That means, in my mind, that she is likely to be in & out of the building for as much as a month: ~~~
~~~ Ken Dilanian & Carol Leonnig of MS NOW: "Within hours of the news that ... Donald Trump had fired Pam Bondi as attorney general, images began circulating of her framed portrait, unceremoniously removed from its place of honor near the president and vice president on the walls of Justice Department offices. One photo obtained by MS NOW showed Bondi’s portrait in a trash bin. Current and former DOJ officials said it’s a reflection of how deeply unpopular Bondi was with career officials and agents, thousands of whom left the department rather than follow her orders. Dozens more were forced out. Many of those officials remain angry about an episode at the beginning of her term, when Bondi entered a secure area of the DOJ offices of the national security division and saw that President Joe Biden’s portrait was still on the wall, along with former Attorney General Merrick Garland. Bondi demoted a respected career veteran over the pictures still hanging in the offices after Trump’s inauguration. In interviews, Bondi recounted how she took the photos down herself. She cited the episode as evidence that career DOJ employees were more loyal to Democrats than Republicans." Thanks to RAS for the link.
Today in Teleporting News. Top Trump Administration Official of the Day. Richard Fausset of the New York Times: Despite a claim by Gregg Phillips, a top official at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, “that he once teleported to a Waffle House in Rome[, Georgia]..., among roughly two dozen workers and regulars interviewed this week at Rome’s three Waffle House locations, none said they were aware of anyone traveling to the 24-hour restaurants by paranormal means, despite their reputation as powerful magnets for the sort of idiosyncratic characters who tend to surf the psychic fringes of the American South.
“In December, Mr. Phillips, 65, a former top health official in Texas, was appointed to head FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery. The office, with more than 1,000 employees and a budget of nearly $300 million, is central to FEMA’s job of responding to disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes and fires. Mr. Phillips was known, at the time, as a proponent of election fraud conspiracy theories, some of which were amplified by Mr. Trump. Things got stickier for Mr. Phillips last month, when an investigative report by CNN detailed how, on podcasts and social media, he had propagated other conspiracy theories, used violent rhetoric in discussing former President Joseph R. Biden, and recounted how, on two occasions, he had somehow found himself being moved, by forces beyond his control, dozens of miles from two different starting points in Georgia.”
Yes, Budgets Can Be Immoral: ~~~
~~~ Trump Wants Us to Spend Our Money on Wars, Not People. Riley Beggin of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump on Friday officially requested $1.5 trillion in spending for the Pentagon next fiscal year, which would be the largest defense budget in U.S. history. Trump also outlined some $73 billion in cuts to nondefense federal spending, including cuts to health research, K-12 and higher education, renewable energy and climate grants, a low-income housing energy program, and community development block grants. The cuts to nondefense spending represent a 10 percent reduction from the current fiscal year.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Jeremy Roebuck, et al., of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump announced Thursday that he was ousting Pam Bondi as attorney general, ending a tumultuous 14-month tenure in which she transformed the Justice Department into a tool for avenging the president’s grievances but frustrated him with her struggles to prosecute his enemies and her handling of files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The president called Bondi 'a Great American Patriot' and loyal friend in a social media post about her departure. He named Todd Blanche, Bondi’s chief deputy and Trump’s former personal lawyer, to take over as acting attorney general until a permanent replacement could be confirmed.... Bondi, in a post of her own, said she remains 'eternally grateful for the trust that President Trump placed in me to Make America Safe Again.' She said her transition out of the job would take place over the next month.” ~~~
~~~ The AP has a story here. Politico's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.)
Glenn Thrush & Tyler Pager of the New York Times: “Attorney General Pam Bondi had a pretty good idea her days were numbered.... [Donald] Trump had complained too freely, too frequently, to too many people about her inability to prosecute the people he hates. She was falling short of Mr. Trump’s unyielding, unrealistic demands for retribution against his enemies. She had made mistake upon mistake in her handling of the Epstein files. Her critics were in the president’s ear. Last month, Ms. Bondi told a friend that Mr. Trump’s willingness to fire Kristi Noem from her post as homeland security secretary meant she might be in jeopardy too. But Ms. Bondi had not expected Mr. Trump ... to drop the curtain quite so soon, according to four people familiar with the situation. On Wednesday..., [on their] drive to the Supreme Court..., Mr. Trump told her it was time for a change at the top of the Justice Department. Ms. Bondi ... grew emotional Wednesday in conversations with friends and colleagues after she realized she was out. The next morning, Mr. Trump made it official, and fired her via social media post.” Update: the link has been changed to one that may be a gift link. ~~~
~~~ Kristen Holmes, et al., of CNN: “Trump ... spoke with [Bondi] personally on Wednesday about the possibility [he would fire her]..., sources said. In the conversation, which one source described as 'tough,' Trump indicated Bondi was not long for her role and he would be replacing her in the near future, sources said.” ~~~
~~~ Phillip Nieto of the Daily Mail: "Attorney General Pam Bondi begged Donald Trump not to fire her in an explosive showdown at the White House after he accused her of an unforgivable offense.... 'She was unhappy and tried to change his mind,' [a] source said.... The announcement had been due to be made on Friday but has been rushed out after rampant media speculation erupted overnight. Trump's reasoning for the sudden dismissal comes in part because the President believes Bondi tipped off Eric Swalwell about the FBI's efforts to release investigative documents related to his relationship with an alleged Chinese spy.... It is unclear why Bondi would have intervened [in the Swalwell matter], but it is believed that Bondi and Swalwell have a friendly relationship." (MB: Remember, it's the Daily Mail.")
Jeffrey Toobin of the New York Times: “... the core of Mr. Trump’s dissatisfaction with the attorney general was apparently her failure to serve his need for revenge against his enemies. She did not prosecute enough of Mr. Trump’s adversaries, and the cases she did bring were failures.... The fact that Ms. Bondi has failed in these abusive prosecutorial efforts is cause for relief, not dismissal. It’s the rest of her record that has turned the Justice Department into an oxymoron that will take years, if not decades, to fix. Ms. Bondi herself has been a terrible spokesperson and symbol of the department — disrespectful of its honorable traditions, dismissive of critics, intolerant of dissent — and this was demonstrated most clearly with her inept handling of the Jeffrey Epstein matter....
“Under Ms. Bondi, the Justice Department had all but stopped doing its job of prosecuting crime.... Ms. Bondi’s Justice Department has remade itself as the legal auxiliary of [Mr.] Trump’s disastrous immigration enforcement practices.... Ms. Bondi’s lawyers have spent considerable time and money on the harassment, and worse, of people who have done no harm to anyone.... Under Ms. Bondi, too, right-wing culture warriors wield the power of the federal government.... Perhaps worst of all, Justice Department lawyers under Ms. Bondi have often behaved in shockingly unethical ways.... W whomever [Mr. Trump] chooses [to replace her], the future at the Justice Department looks like more of the same, and probably worse.” ~~~
~~~ Steve Benen of MS NOW: “As MS NOW’s Ken Dilanian reported, 'Pam Bondi was fired largely because Donald Trump grew dissatisfied with her inability to deliver on prosecuting his perceived enemies.' This is the entire story in one sentence: The president ousted Bondi, not because she corrupted the Justice Department, but because she didn’t corrupt it enough.... Bondi has always been there for Trump — dropping a case against his fraudulent 'university,' clumsily defending him during one of his impeachment trials, leading a Trump super PAC, even turning Main Justice into an extension of his political operation — but it ultimately wasn’t enough.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: I've read and heard numerous reports that one of the two major reasons Trump fired Bondi was her failure to get convictions against innocent people. As each attempt to convict the innocent bit the dust, commentators would say, "Oh, well, Trump really just wanted to make So-and-So's life miserable. He never expected she would be convicted." Apparently that's not true. Trump wanted prosecutors to win criminal cases against non-criminals. If he knew the people on his hit list weren't guilty of anything, then he's an evil old man. If he thought the people were criminals, then he's a crazy old man. Either way, this is not a person who should have any more power than the power that is inherent in the freedom to decide whether to have oatmeal or cornflakes for breakfast. ~~~
Meagan Vazquez of the Washington Post: “... House members from both political parties are demanding [Pam Bondi] still testify under oath about the Justice Department’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein. The Republican-led House Oversight Committee is probing the Justice Department’s investigation into the deceased sex offender and in March issued a subpoena for Bondi’s testimony with support from Democrats and some Republicans on the panel. On Thursday, a spokesperson for the committee, which is chaired by Rep. James Comer (R-Kentucky), was noncommittal about whether he would seek to enforce the subpoena.... But lawmakers from both parties who voted to subpoena Bondi argued that her job status should not affect whether she testifies.” An Axios story is here.
Blanche Has Been the Acting AG All Along. Alan Feuer of the New York Times: Todd Blanche “brings a mixed record to the job. He has spent the past year or so enabling the wholesale politicization of the Justice Department and losing the trust of many federal judges while still serving as a last-ditch bulwark against the president’s most extreme attempts to seek vengeance against his enemies. He has overseen the destruction of the department’s traditional norms of independence from the White House, often treating Mr. Trump not as a chief executive who could benefit from his legal advice but rather as a loudmouthed client whose orders must be followed. At the same time, he has on occasion ... held off some of the president’s most impulsive efforts to open criminal cases unsupported by the evidence. While it remains unclear how long Mr. Blanche will remain in his new job, whoever ends up replacing him — if, indeed, he is replaced — will step into a department that he has shaped in his own image. More than most Justice Departments, where the center of power typically resides in the attorney general’s office, this Justice Department has been largely guided by Mr. Blanche’s office.”
Marie: Found in the real "You've Never Seen Anything Like It" file: during his first term, Trump had six acting attorneys general by Lawrence O'Donnell's count and two confirmed AGs. During Trump's second term he had an acting AG (James McHenry) until Pam Bondi was confirmed. And now we have another acting AG: Todd Blanche. That's a total of eleven attorneys general in one full term and a little more than a quarter of Trump's second term. By contrast, Eric Holder was attorney general for all of President Obama's two terms, and Merrick the Unready was AG for all of President Biden's time in office.
It's not often that a fired employee leaves the boss who fired her a valuable parting gift. But here's some new DOJ work product designed to please the King: ~~~
~~~ Peter Charalambous & Alexander Mallin of ABC News, republished by Yahoo! News: "Donald Trump does not need to turn over his presidential records to the National Archives, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel concluded in an opinion this week. Rejecting a decades-old law enacted after the Watergate scandal to ensure the preservation of presidential records, Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser stated that the Presidential Records Act was unconstitutional and 'untethered from any valid and identifiable legislative purpose.... The PRA exceeds the oversight power because it serves no identifiable and valid legislative purpose. It exceeds any preservation power because Congress cannot preserve presidential records merely for the sake of posterity,' the 52-page opinion said.... The opinion -- if adopted by the Trump administration -- could upend the established process for ensuring the public ownership of presidential records.... [The] Department of Justice now says the president 'need not further comply' with the law governing the handover of his presidential records..., but the Trump administration could face a legal challenge if they attempt to implement the policy." A Washington Post story is here; the link is a gift link.
Trump, the War Crimes President*. The New York Times' liveblog of developments in the Iran war is here. From the pinned item at 5:00 am ET: “A drone struck a major oil refinery in Kuwait on Friday, setting several
units ablaze in the latest attack on energy infrastructure in the
Middle East war. There was no sign of a deal to end the fighting after ... [Donald] Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s power plants and bridges.... 'Our Military, the
greatest and most powerful (by far!) anywhere in the World, hasn’t even
started destroying what’s left in Iran,' he wrote on social media late
Thursday. 'Bridges next, then Electric Power Plants! New Regime
leadership knows what has to be done, and has to be done, FAST!' Intentionally targeting energy infrastructure could constitute a war crime under international law.
Earlier on Thursday, an airstrike that a U.S. official said was an American attack caused at least a partial collapse of a major highway bridge on a road between Tehran and a nearby city, killing at least eight people, Iranian news outlets said. Mr. Trump celebrated the damage to the bridge. He posted a video of a strike hitting the bridge, with the warning that more infrastructure would be destroyed if Iran did not 'make a deal.' Another strike, in Tehran, destroyed the Pasteur Institute of Iran, a major public health agency that produced and distributed vaccines, a spokesman for the health ministry said. It was unclear whether the United States or Israel was responsible for that attack.” ~~~
~~~ Barak Ravid of Axios: "The U.S. military on Thursday attacked major civilian infrastructure in Iran for the first time, hours after [Donald] Trump threatened in a prime-time address to bomb the country 'back to the Stone Ages.'... Trump celebrated the strike on Truth Social: 'The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow!'... The attack on the B-1 bridge near Tehran signals a widening of the U.S. military's targets and could be a first step toward attacks on energy, water and transportation infrastructure." A full New York Times story is here; the link appears to be a gift link.
Haley Britzky, et al., of CNN: “Roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers are still intact and thousands of one-way attack drones remain in Iran’s arsenal despite the daily pounding by US and Israeli strikes against military targets over the past five weeks, according to recent US intelligence assessments, three sources familiar with the intel told CNN. 'They are still very much poised to wreak absolute havoc throughout the entire region,' one of the sources said of Iran.”
Yeganeh Torbati of the New York Times: “Iran signaled on Thursday that it intended to continue to oversee shipping traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz, even after the war, though it insisted that it would not restrict transit. Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, said that Iran was drafting a protocol that would allow Iran and Oman to 'oversee transit through the Strait of Hormuz,' in comments reported by Iran’s state news outlet. But Gharibabadi said that such oversight ]will naturally not mean restrictions; rather, they are intended to facilitate and ensure safe passage and to provide better services to ships passing through this route.' The U.S. government insists that Iran has no legal right to exercise any control of the strait, which has generally been treated as an international waterway. But during the war, Iran has repeatedly ratcheted up its claims of authority there; it has recently made plans to charge tolls to passing ships.”
Trump the Strategerizer. David Sanger of the New York Times: “More than a month into a war that he insists will come to an end within two or three weeks..., [Donald] Trump has put himself in a strategic box from which he is finding no easy exit. Talks with Iran about a deal to end the conflict, to the degree they are substantive, have so far shown little promise. The key metrics of success described at various points by Mr. Trump — keeping Iran from possessing the fuel to make a nuclear weapon, helping the Iranian people topple a government much of the populace despises and reopening the Strait of Hormuz — remain in the distance, at best.... At this stage, Mr. Trump appears to be offering a host of sometimes contradictory paths forward, and faces the possibility that at the end of his own two-to-three week window, nothing much will have changed. And his promise to send Iran back to the 'Stone Ages' if it did not agree to his terms — which he did not specify on Wednesday night — would amount to an expansion of the war, not a winding down.” The link appears to be a gift link.
Trump the Merciless. Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: “During his first run for the White House..., [Donald] Trump assailed his predecessors for wasting trillions of dollars on unnecessary wars in the Middle East and argued that the money could have been used for the benefit of the United States.... Nearly a decade later, Mr. Trump is entrenched in his own Middle East conflict that by some estimates is costing the United States as much as a billion dollars per day.... As the White House prepares to unveil its 2027 budget this week, Mr. Trump made clear that military spending is a priority over any expansion of government social-safety net programs that many of his working-class supporters increasingly rely upon. 'The United States can’t take care of day care,' Mr. Trump said at [an Easter luncheon at] the White House on Wednesday. 'It’s not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all of these individual things, they can do it on a state basis.'... The United States is a big country that is 'fighting wars,' Mr. Trump said, 'We have to take care of one thing: military protection.'” ~~~
Anthony Faiola, et al., of the Washington Post: “The [Trump] administration’s depictions of a warlike God who picks sides have startled some in the Holy See, while [Pope] Leo has felt compelled to counter them.... On Thursday night, he spoke of blasphemy, then warned that 'we tend to consider ourselves powerful when we dominate, victorious when we destroy our equals, great when we are feared.' In a dramatic display on Good Friday, the 70-year-old pontiff will drive home his rebuttal further as he becomes the first pope since John Paul II to carry a cross through all 14 Stations of the Cross during a traditional rite in and around Rome’s Colosseum. He said this week that he is seeking to set an example for how 'Christ still suffers,' inviting 'all people of good will … [to] be bearers of peace.'... [A] senior Vatican official ... described the Trump administration’s invocations of God as 'an exploitation of faith.'”
Trump the Equivocator: “I’ll Let You Know in About Two Weeks.” Gregory Svirnovski & Jacob Wendler of Politico: “'We are on track to complete all of America’s military objectives shortly, very shortly,' [Donald Trump] he said in [his] speech [Wednesday night], which came a month after the White House launched a joint operation against Tehran in February. 'We’re going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks.'... [Trump has] offered up a two-week timeline when asked about his executive objectives countless times since returning to the White House last January.... Trump’s history of citing the vague deadline goes back to his first term, when he promised to announce health care and infrastructure plans within weeks.”
Trump the Desperate. Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: “In [his speech Wednesday night], a slurring Trump rehashed a bunch of his Truth Social posts, alternately boasting about America’s military progress while threatening war crimes. His speech told us very little, at least explicitly, but revealed quite a lot. First, he showed us that he has no plan to get out of the mess he created.... Absent a deal, he threatened to destroy Iran’s electric plants and, perhaps, its oil, which would be illegal under international law, not that the president cares.... By Thursday, American and Israeli strikes had already severely damaged the Pasteur Institute in Tehran, a major medical research center.... [The attacks on civilian infrastucture strengthen] the regime’s hand domestically.... Even Iranians who dislike their rulers have come to oppose the war.... Meanwhile, Iran’s leaders can surely see that Trump’s domestic position is weakening.... ;His desperation is obvious.”
Will Oremus of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump is facing a tough week of news.... But on the White House’s new mobile app, which topped Apple and Google’s download charts in the news category over the past week, the picture is much rosier.... When the Trump administration launched the app last week, it promised to
offer Americans 'a direct line to the White House — cutting through the
noise with unfiltered, real-time updates straight from the source.' So
far, that has begotten a steady flow of White House press releases and
livestreams, a veneer of carefully curated access and a glimpse into a
world in which only Trump’s triumphs make headlines.... The app, which was downloaded some 700,000 times in its first week...,
features updates from the president’s social media feeds and an ICE tip
line that invites users to report 'suspected criminal activity' right
from their phones. Experts said it is part of the Trump administration’s
broader effort to develop a state media apparatus as an alternative to
what it calls the 'fake news' mainstream media....” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Wow! This is great! Just this morning, I was just thinking of asking Trump to try to limit his scandals & gross mistakes to one a day so I wouldn't have to work so hard trying to keep up. From now on, the new White House app will be my one and only source. Why, I'll bet there will be no scandals and missteps to report. We can all sit smugly in our happy places and wait for upbeat push notifications from the White House.
Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: “The National Capital Planning Commission, which is led by allies of ... [Donald] Trump, approved the president’s $400 million White House ballroom project despite a deluge of negative comments from the public. But legal roadblocks remain after a federal judge ruled that Mr. Trump must get approval from Congress to proceed. The planning board’s approval came just days after Judge Richard J. Leon of the Federal District Court in Washington, a George W. Bush appointee, ordered the project halted.... The Justice Department has filed a notice of appeal, and Mr. Trump has shown a reluctance to bring the project to Congress, where it would face an uncertain fate.... Will Scharf, the chair of the planning commission and the White House staff secretary [-- and the guy who often presents executive orders to the president for his signature --], said the judge’s ruling should not affect the commission’s vote, or its desire to move ahead with the project.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: The usual scandals du jour notwithstanding, the following was the most jarring article I read yesterday. I'm not sure if all dictators think alike or Trump is the reincarnation of Hitler. The similarities of their inclinations are stunning. Whatever. We have got us our very own Fat Fuhrer. Read to the end: ~~~
~~~ ⭐Timothy Ryback in the Atlantic: “He wanted it big. He wanted lots of gold, lots of marble. He wanted visitors awestruck by his architectural expansion of the country’s symbolic seat of power. 'They should sense the strength and grandeur of the German Reich as they walk from the entrance to the reception hall,' Adolf Hitler told his chief architect, Albert Speer, outlining his plans for an extension to the old Reich chancellery, at Wilhelmstrasse 77 in Berlin.The new annex, connected to the chancellery by a marble corridor hung with crystal chandeliers, was part of Hitler’s ambitious plans to align the Berlin cityscape with his vision for the future of the country. Hitler wanted a Triumphbogen, a triumphal arch, twice the size of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. He wanted an 'Avenue of Splendor' for military parades. 'The Champs-Élysées is a hundred meters wide,' Hitler told Speer. 'We will make our avenue twenty meters wider.' A planned Volkshalle was to accommodate 180,000. The Eiffel Tower could fit beneath its cupola.” Thank you to akaWendy for this gift link. ~~~
Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: “While most public attention has focused on the aboveground portion of ... [Donald] Trump’s planned $400 million ballroom, what is underneath could prove to be the more complex and expensive portion of the project. Work crews have been digging in the earth for weeks, ripping out the Presidential Emergency Operations Center, or PEOC, to build something bigger, better and deeper underground. The PEOC, which was built during World War II to protect the president and other top officials in the event of an emergency, was where Vice President Dick Cheney was hustled after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, later to be joined by President George W. Bush and his national security teams. Mr. Trump was rushed there, too, during protests over the death of George Floyd in 2020. The bunker is beneath what was once the East Wing, which Mr. Trump tore down last year to make way for his ballroom.... As Mr. Trump’s ballroom faces legal challenges, he has been talking more openly about the bunker. He argues that the two are linked, which makes building the ballroom a matter of security. Here is what we know about the PEOC.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Just coincidence, I suppose, that the Führerbunker was located beneath the garden of the old Reich Chancellery. ~~~
~~~ Philip Kennecott of the Washington Post: “The Boeing 747 on display in a video announcing the design for Donald Trump’s presidential library is the giveaway. Trump, who doesn’t deserve a presidential library, is planning one of the biggest grifts of his career. That could have lasting consequences for American democracy.... [The skyscraper is] greatly larger than any existing presidential library. It is likely to have a significant commercial element, perhaps multiple floors devoted to a hotel, office space or high-end apartments or condos.... Emily Guglielmo, a licensed structural engineer with Martin/Martin Consulting Engineers, says that [the design concept presents] complex but not impossible engineering problems. But they will make the building more expensive — which means Trump will need to raise potentially billions of dollars to build his library.... Guglielmo describes the challenge of building a tower atop a column-free space [-- column-free because the plan is to put a number of flying machines in the first floor --] as a bit like building something on top of a bridge.... If a good building is the ideal expression of some thought or form, this building is almost perfect, the absolute embodiment of Trump’s greed and grift.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Yes But. On the plus side, the architects & structural engineers won't have to design any spaces to accommodate heavy books.
Joseph Choi of the Hill: Donald “Trump signed an executive order Thursday targeting imported brand name drugs with a 100 percent tariff, citing the U.S.’s 'import reliance' as reason for the decision.” MB: Choi doesn't say so, and I may be wrong, but I can't help but think that very sick people, desperate to get some of those drugs, will pay these 100% tariffs on top of drugs that already are more than they can afford. Politico has a more detailed story, but the reporters don't let on who will bear the cost of the tariffs.
Drunk Pete Fires Another General for No Reason. Greg Jaffe, et al., of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired Gen. Randy George, the Army’s chief of staff, on Thursday, a move that reflects growing hostility between Mr. Hegseth and the Army’s leadership, military officials said. General George, who was appointed to his position in 2023, led the Army out of one of its worst recruiting crises in history in 2024 and more recently has pushed the service to accelerate its acquisition of cheap drones and other kinds of weapons that have come to dominate the war in Ukraine. The tension with Mr. Hegseth was not rooted in substantive differences over the direction of the Army, military officials said. Rather it is the product of Mr. Hegseth’s long-running grievances with the Army, battles over personnel and his troubled relationship with Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll, the officials said. Over the last year, General George and Mr. Driscoll had formed a tight partnership, officials said. Mr. Hegseth has also clashed in recent months with General George and Mr. Driscoll over the defense secretary’s decision to block the promotion of four Army officers [-- two women and two men of color --] to be one-star generals....
“Senior Army officers reacted with anger and frustration to the news of General George’s dismissal, characterizing it as the latest blow to a service that already feels under siege by Mr. Hegseth.... Mr. Hegseth also fired Gen. David M. Hodne, who was promoted in October to lead the Army’s Transformation and Training Command, a key four-star position focused on Army modernization and doctrine. Mr. Hegseth also fired Maj. Gen. William Green Jr., the Army’s top chaplain, an official said.” Update: the link has been changed to one that appears to be a gift link. The AP story is here. The Washington Post story is here; this is a gift link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: If you read the whole NYT article, I think you'll be left with the impression that Gen. George was as effective a military officer as any person can be. If Trump were a real president, he would fire Petulant Pete and reinstate Gen. George, and perhaps Gens. Hodne & Green, too. ~~~
~~~ Here's a Republican Congressman who expressed surprise at George's forced retirement. Jennifer Bahney of Mediaite: “Rep. Richard McCormick (R-GA), a decorated Marine veteran, was caught off guard when a Newsmax host asked him Thursday about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sacking Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George.... '... that would be very surprising to me[,' McCormick said.]... 'I mean, Gen. George is a brilliant mind.... I’ve never heard him say anything contrary to what the president is trying to achieve. I thought he’s done a really good job of getting the army ready for war, so I’d like to hear more because that’s concerning to me.'”
~~~ Gordon Lubold & Courtney Kube of NBC News: "Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has taken steps to block or delay promotions for more than a dozen Black and female senior officers across all four branches of the military, some of whom are seen as having been targeted because of their race, gender or perceived affiliation with Biden administration policies or officials, according to nine U.S. officials familiar with the process. The process within the Army, the Air Force, the Navy and the Marines is structured to ensure the most qualified officers get promoted. Hegseth’s decision to intervene in the process has raised concerns among some officials within those military branches and the White House...." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Since Pete isn't culling every woman & minority from the promotions list, how does he know which ones to strike off? For the most part, he can't know these officers personally, so somebody is helping him massage the lists. The public has a right to know how he is making these irregular decisions.
A Change in Rhetoric; Not Much Change in Reality. Emmanuel Martinez & Marianne LeVine of the Washington Post: “Federal
immigration officers continued to target large numbers of immigrants
with no criminal record in the weeks after two U.S. citizens were shot
and killed in Minneapolis, newly released government data shows, despite
statements from Trump administration leaders indicating they wanted to
take a more targeted approach. White
House border czar Tom Homan said in late January that 'all operations
will be targeted' and prioritize 'criminal aliens, public safety threats
and national security threats.'... Donald Trump said he wanted
to see 'a softer touch' following the unrest in Minneapolis.... U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement data obtained through a Freedom of
Information Act lawsuit filed by the Deportation Data Project indicates
that arrest numbers have dropped. ICE averaged about 7,000 arrests a
week in the six weeks since Alex Pretti was shot and killed on Jan. 24 —
down from 9,000 earlier in January. But
a Washington Post analysis of the data shows that people with no
criminal record still make up the largest share of those detained. In
all, 42 percent of those detained in the six weeks after Pretti’s death
had no criminal record.”
Jacey Fortin of the New York Times: “The president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents this week after the authorities said he had been convicted of crimes by Israel more than three decades ago and had lied on his American green card application. The president, Salah Sarsour, 53, has led the group, which is the largest Islamic organization in Wisconsin, for five years. In a statement on Thursday, the group said that he was a legal permanent resident who had lived in the United States for more than three decades. Lauren Bis, a spokeswoman for the Homeland Security Department, said in a statement on Thursday that Mr. Sarsour had been convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of members of the Israeli armed forces and illegally attempting to possess weapons and ammunition. Mr. Sarsour, who has no criminal record in the United States, has been a frequent supporter of Palestinian rights and a board member of American Muslims for Palestine. That organization said in a statement on Wednesday that he was 'a pillar of the community and a law-abiding Milwaukee business owner.'”
There Was This. Jordain Carney, et al., of Politico: “The Senate sent its deal to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security back to the House on Thursday morning — marking what should be the beginning of the end of a historic partial government shutdown. The Senate’s action, taken in a mostly empty chamber just after 7 a.m., came less than a day after ... Donald Trump effectively endorsed a two-track strategy for DHS: funding most of it through a bipartisan deal with Democrats then using the party-line budget reconciliation process for immigration enforcement activities.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Then There Was That. Chris Stein of the Guardian: “The US House of Representatives on Thursday took no action on a compromise measure that would end the partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), raising questions about how much longer the record-long funding lapse will persist.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Because of the Other Thing. Mike Lillis & Sudiksha Kochi of the Hill: “Hard-line conservatives are seething after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) reversed course to back a Senate plan that detaches funding for immigration enforcement from a broader package to reopen the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Although Johnson had previously called the Senate proposal 'a joke,' he changed his tune Wednesday after President Trump endorsed the strategy.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Doktor Zoom of Wonkette was summing it all up here when, as he put it, "suddenly I was run over by Pam Bondi getting shitcanned." Which is sad. However, he also left us a nice gift link to a WashPo article about the whole mess, an article that looks like a rewrite because everything was happening all at once and the reporters couldn't keep it in order. I know. It's hard to keep up. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ The “Ridiculousness” of Mike Johnson. Michael Gold of the New York Times: “... House speaker [Mike Johnson] first panned, then endorsed, then punted on, then pitched and now is delaying a bill to reopen the Homeland Security Department, showing his vulnerability in the face of party rifts. Last Friday, [Mr.] Johnson indignantly dismissed a Senate-passed bill deal to reopen the Homeland Security Department without funding for immigration enforcement as a 'joke.' By Wednesday, he was jointly issuing a news release with the Senate leader endorsing it. But early Thursday morning, he declined to bring it up in the House, punting a chance to try to reopen the department until at least mid-April and avoiding the risk that hard-right Republicans would either block it or threaten to oust him for doing so. Then, he spent much of the afternoon huddled in a heated conference call with his angry G.O.P. colleagues, privately trying to persuade them to eventually embrace the deal, which he had decried as 'ridiculousness' just days before. That, too, apparently failed; there were no plans for the House to quickly reconvene, and by Thursday evening, it was not clear when or even whether Mr. Johnson might bring the bill up.”
R.J. Rico of the AP: “After crashing his SUV last week in Florida, Tiger Woods took out his phone and told a deputy, 'I was just talking to the president,' according to body camera footage released Thursday showing Woods’ arrest on a DUI charge. The phone conversation was not captured on video, but Woods could be heard saying, 'Thank you so much,' as he hung up and the deputy approached. It wasn’t clear if Woods was referring to ... Donald Trump, whose former daughter-in-law, Vanessa Trump, is dating Woods. Shortly after the golfer’s March 27 arrest, Trump was asked about Woods and told reporters: ;I feel so badly. He’s got some difficulty. Very close friend of mine. He’s an amazing person. Amazing man. But, some difficulty.'... The footage also shows how Woods appeared to be astonished as he was handcuffed after failing a sobriety test and a video from the back of the patrol car shows the handcuffed golfer hiccupping, yawning and repeatedly appearing to nod off during the 15-minute ride.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Richard Sandomir of the New York Times: “Biruté Galdikas, a primatologist who fulfilled her childhood ambition to study and preserve the lives of wild orangutans in the tropical rainforests of Borneo, where her half-century of research and conservation made her one of the world’s leading experts on that elusive and critically endangered great ape, died on March 24 in Los Angeles. She was 79.... Dr. Galdikas was one of three daring women who revolutionized primatology, following in the tradition of Jane Goodall, who studied chimpanzees in Tanzania, and Dian Fossey, who lived among mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Like them, Dr. Galdikas (pronounced gal-dee-kuhs) was mentored by Louis Leakey, the British-Kenyan paleoanthropologist whose study of early hominid fossils established the origins of mankind in Africa.”
27 comments:
Tom Nichols, in The Atlantic, on Hegseth’s War on America’s Military
"The United States is in the middle of a major war, but that didn’t stop Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Thursday from firing General Randy George, America’s most senior Army officer. George was the Army’s chief of staff, and he was cashiered along with another four-star general, David Hodne, and Major General William Green Jr., the top Army chaplain, in what has been a rolling purge by Hegseth of senior officers—particularly those close to the Secretary of the Army, Dan Driscoll.
Why were these men fired while U.S. forces are fighting overseas? The Defense Department has given no official reason for their dismissals, but likely they are the latest victims of Hegseth’s vindictive struggles with the Army, which he feels treated him poorly—the service “spit me out” he said in his 2024 book—as he struggles in a job for which he remains singularly unqualified."
Ashley Parker & Sarah Fitzpatrick, for The Atlantic, speculate that The Purge May Be Just Beginning
"One person close to the White House told us that Trump was buoyed by the reaction to his decision to remove Noem and that it made him more likely to move ahead with Bondi. (Still, an administration official cautioned that after Noem’s ouster, optics were a concern; officials worried that getting rid of Bondi would be viewed as jettisoning only the most “attractive” women, while keeping the men.)
....
Bondi did everything right—or, at least, everything Trump asked her to do—but in the end, it was not enough. For Trump, and for his succession of attorneys general, it is almost never enough. In some ways, Bondi’s official service to Trump seemed preordained to end the way it did, with a singular moment of crystalline humiliation, after weeks of low-grade indignities. "
First of all, no assistant attorney general or opinionating mofo gets to say that a LAW passed by Congress is unconstitutional and the president* can just ignore it and take anything he wants. That is the job of the Supreme Court (or in this case, the Supine Court). I am not at all sanguine that the court in its current makeup will agree that the Presidential Records Act is constitutional, but until it decides one way or the other, it's the law of the land.
The PRA was enacted in the wake of another Republican crook of a president who tried to destroy records to hide his crimes. Now we have another PoT crook of a president who will try to hold on to records to hide his many, many, many crimes.
Per Wikipedia:
"The PRA requires the president to ensure preservation of records documenting the performance of his official duties (44 U.S.C. § 2203(a)), provides for the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to take custody and control of the records (44 U.S.C. § 2203(g)), and sets forth a schedule of staged public access to such records (44 U.S.C. § 2204). Records covered by the PRA encompass documentary materials relating to the political activities of the president or members of the president’s staff if they concern or have an effect upon the carrying out of "constitutional, statutory, or other official or ceremonial duties of the President" (44 U.S.C. § 2201(2)).[6]"
Yeah, what they said.
The president is an employee of the American people, and as such, those records belong to us, not to him or her. The current occupant suffers from an ongoing delusion that everything belongs to him, the records, the White House, the military, the Injustice Department, Congress, the Supine Court, in effect, the entire country is his to do with what he wants.
Delusions are not laws. Some laws, when passed, might seem delusional, but that is for someone else to decide, not the fat gangster waddling around in the White House right now.
You can bet your seven hundred and fifty eight most bottom dollars however, that should the Court rule against him, he will begin sneaking records out of the White House. The Marred a Lardo bathrooms will be chock full of presidential records and top secret documents. And anything he can't pilfer, he will destroy. If some astute congressional budget person spots a couple hundred thousand dollars in a line item for paper shredders, that will be a dead giveaway. He's as crooked as the path walked by a blind drunk barfly at the tail end of a bender. Always has been. And no assistant assistant whatever gets to decide anything about anything. To hell with that.
Everything he does is stupid
Per the article Wendy has linked, above..."Bondi did everything right—or, at least, everything Trump asked her to do—but in the end, it was not enough...Bondi’s official service to Trump seemed preordained to end the way it did, with a singular moment of crystalline humiliation, after weeks of low-grade indignities."
First, nothing she did was "right" by a long chalk. In fact, doing whatever the Orange Monster commands is the textbook definition of "wrong", but I get what they're saying. Furthermore, humiliation and indignities of any level are far better than that screeching harpy deserves.
But there's a bigger reason Fatty should have kept Eva Braun Bondi in his gangster employ. By firing her, he has unwittingly (almost everything he does, short of pressing the button for more Diet Cokes and watching himself on TV is done in a witless fashion) shot the Epstein Files back into the limelight once again.
His stoopid and witless war had pretty much put his pedo-buddy in the shade. But Fat Hitler, always in need of some plot twist for the never ending Donald Show found that the show got a ratings bump by bumping off Klaus (ICE) Barbie, so why not give that same plot device another go and fire his other Nazi witch?
Except now, he has reopened the door to his grisly and disgusting past, just as one of his former victims is finding more and more corroboration to her story of his horrific treatment of her. And he has given new life to people like Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, inveterate Epstein Files hunters. This morning I heard Khanna on NPR detailing among the requirements for approval of a new AG, that he or she release ALL the files. My first thought was, yeah, that'll happen when Eric Trump trots down to the nearest US Army recruitment office and signs on the dotted line (it'll be an X, but I'm guessing they'll even take illiterate morons these days...I mean, look at the DefSec). Nonetheless, talk of the Epstein Files is BACK!
And it was the Orange Abuser who did it.
What a guy!
Knee slapper of the day!
And this is a good one. KKKaroline, Fat Hitler's whinging washer woman, whose job is to try to eradicate whatever stains the Orange Monster splashes on his gigantic bib every day, sez that he is most well read person in any room.
Hang on.....hahahahahahahahahahahaha.....(quick break for a breath...) hahahahahahahahahahaha....
Even better, she claims that after him, SHE is the most well-read person in the room. Double hahahahahahahahahahaha....
Is she kidding? My fifteen year old is better read than both of these illiterate bozos.
Just for shits N grins, let's see what Marie's friend Art Intel has to say about what constitutes a well-read person (I know you guys all know this, but c'mon...this'll be fun).
"A well-read person is generally defined as someone who has acquired broad, in-depth knowledge across various subjects through extensive reading of diverse literature. Rather than just reading a high volume of books, they engage with multiple genres—classics, contemporary, non-fiction, and international works—to understand different facets of the human experience."
In-depth knowledge across various subjects? Look, I know Fatty routinely claims he knows this and that and the other thing better than anyone, stuff like rocket science and nuclear fission and you name it...he probably believes he knows quantum physics better than Niels Bohr, all fantasy stuff bordering on insanity but whatever....shall we continue?
Here are key signs of a well-read person:
Diverse Reading Habits: They don't stick to one genre; they read widely across fiction, non-fiction, history, and science
High Empathy and Perspective: By experiencing life through countless characters, they naturally understand others' viewpoints and often defend different perspectives
Excellent Articulation: They use a wide vocabulary and articulate thoughts compellingly, possessing the language to explain complex ideas
Curiosity-Driven: They ask thoughtful questions and are genuinely curious about the world, rather than just trying to show off knowledge
Patience and Thoughtfulness: They are comfortable with ambiguity and have patience, reflecting an ability to sit with complex ideas
Connecting Ideas: They often say 'I read somewhere that...' and can connect current events to historical or literary themes.
Humble and Observant: They tend to be quiet, observant, and humble, prioritizing listening over dominating conversations.
Humble and observant, empathetic, understands other viewpoints, curiosity driven...yeah, those are all qualities we associate with both of these knuckleheads. And extensive vocabulary? Um....yeah, sure. Hahahahahaha....
Of course KKKaroline did say something about how he watches a lot of TV.
Sorry, KKK, watching TV does not make you well-read. Maybe if you're watching Nova and American Experience and the National Geographic channel, but not if you're bingeing on Fox and OAN and all those other swirly toilet bowl channels she and Fatty imbibe.
Anyway, just a bit of humor to start the day.
Most well-read person in the room.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.....
The Daemon Lover*
Yesterday, RAS pointed out that coke snorting, sex trafficker and almost AG, Matt Gaetz, has been talking aliens with some guy in a uniform. Oh, they're real alright. You betcha!
And what with Drunk Pete's incessant calls for everyone get down on their knees and pray to Jesus to help us murder more Mooslims, lt's clear that the Party of Traitors is not only full of treasonous, grifting, lying crooks and thugs, but pins the needle on religious nut job bullshit and all purpose weirdos.
And if you're gonna bring up grifters, liars, and weirdos, how can you possibly overlook the Couch Fucker himself, Shady Vance?
Mr. Hillbilly Allergy is coming out with a new book to balance off his tough-guy bro facade (yeah, the beard on those chubby cheeks just reeks of Dolph Lundgren ass-kicking bro-dom) with what appears to be Drunk Pete style religiosity. As a convert to Catholicism, it appears that Shady is more interested in DEMONS! than angels, or god and Jesus, even.
Recently, he went on some podcast with some other idiot you've never heard of, to talk ALIENS. But shhhhh.....they're not REALLY aliens. They're DEMONS! Yeah, baby. Demons. Cuz demons are in these days. No one wants to hear about namby-pamby angels anymore. Angels are so 80s and 90s.
And to make sure everyone knows how wicked smaht he is, Shady informs the five people listening to this podcast that demons are everywhere, but no one knows it.....“one of the devil’s great tricks is to convince people he never existed.” I'm sure Shady wants everyone listening to think he came up with this idea, but it's really a line he stole from the film "Usual Suspects". You know, if you're gonna steal a line, try not to make it such a famous one. In fact, if you're not going to attribute a line you steal, why not try making up one of your own? Schumck. Not only that, but if that's the devils best trick, it ain't working very well.
"Vance is tapping into a long, productive history of Christian-right activists and politicians getting attention by hijacking pop culture trends. Sometimes these efforts attempt to be positive; contemporary Christian music has long attempted to imitate secular chart success, but with a 'Jesus loves you' message. That has tended to be less effective, though, as much of the music is perceived as corny to those who aren’t living in a Christian fundamentalist environment.
Parasitical campaigns, where evangelicals attach themselves to the hot new cultural thing by condemning it, have proven more successful. Whether it’s the 1980s attacks on heavy metal and role-playing games, or more modern claims of seeing Satan lurking at Beyoncé concerts or, well, in 'KPop Demon Hunters,' the Christian right has been able to find the devil everywhere."
Hey, if they really want to find the devil, they should try the White House. "Ding-dong...is Donny at home?"
I'm not entirely sure if Vance is the most sniveling, vacuous, oleaginous slime bucket in recent American politics, but he is definitely in the running. Demons, my ass.
And hey, if this is what being a convert to Catholicism is most interested in, those fuckers can just stay where they were.
*Apologies to Shirley Jackson.
They appear to be firing military officers who object to committing war crimes. I didn't think my level of disgust could go any higher but once again I am wrong.
I'm convinced that Bondi's new private sector job is her just going back to working for part of the Trump Org. at one of their tentacles. They'll keep her in house because of how much she has seen and they can give her the payday with their illgotten goods that all the hangers-on salivate over.
Now it's not just our allies shooting down our planes
"Iran has shot down a U.S. fighter jet, per Iranian media and a source familiar with the incident, and a search and rescue effort is underway to locate two crew. It would be the first time since the beginning of the war that a U.S. jet was downed by enemy fire."
The Economist - Hey China
The Atlantic
"GOP Megadonor Gave $1.2M To Duffy’s Son-In-Law After Duffy Made Rule Change To Benefit His Company"
As seen on Bluesky, Mrs Betty Bowers on the destroyers of empires
Bible Mike....what a disgrace. A pusillanimous piñata. He's in a constant Punch n Judy show, always the one being punched. It's not that I feel bad for him. I don't. I feel bad for the country. We've had some pretty horrible Speakers over the last 20 years or so (all Republicans) but no one is as dismal and sycophantic as this POS. Typical of his "leadership" style, as he goes back and forth on the DHS funding disaster, in order to give his ass a chance to recover from all the paddling, he sends the House home for its TWO WEEK Easter vacation. Two weeks? Really? We are in a war, and a partial government shutdown, and these jabronis are going off on vacation? Okay, I get that it's Easter and Passover. Okay. Give them the day off like most Americans get. Two weeks is an insult. The House only works 140 something days a year anyway. And it's not like they're home checking in with their constituents, which I could see is a reasonable thing. The constituency for most of them are huge corporations.
Take the state of Kentucky where the PoT schemers just overrode the veto of a Democratic governor to their "Bayer-Monsanto Protection Act" which gives a huge corporation immunity from lawsuits stemming from residents and farmers who get sick and die while using their products. Does anyone really believe that these shitheads were meeting with actual residents who said "Oh, those poor suits at Monsanto! Can't you please do something to help them?"
Fuckers. Two weeks.
How interesting. The motherfckers in the House and the Senate are so overworked, always doing their best to help the 'murikan people, day and night, at least two hours a day, giving their all. And their all ain't much. They barely appear to do their jobs, and only the Dems working to put Dump on a spit and barbecued because he is a pedo, a lying POS, and demented on top of being so stoopid it hurts, are doing anything for the salaries they make. They all make me sick. Oh, and now a plane is likely shot down by the "totally obliterated" Iranians.They all should be put on a tumbrel and wheeled through the streets of large American cities. Dump himself need prison for life. They are enough to make anyone with a brain sick.
Also, Jet Blue and United just upped their luggage rates by at least $10/bag, more at the gate when not doing it ahead of time. This is something else to hang around the Fat Felon's neck, and with all that is all his fault, his neck will soon look like a charm(less) bracelet...
With all the vacations these Congress critters take you'd think that we could afford some of that childcare and healthcare that the fat slob was whining about being to much for our poor overworked government on Easter celebrations no less.
Jeanne,
Typically, well, historically at any rate, a ride in a tumbril was a "heady" experience, at least at the end. There are a few who could do with a bit of that.
Speaking of Jet Blue, I was on one of their planes a couple of weeks ago. The young guy next to me was reading the Bible. I noticed he was reading "Job". I nudged him and expressed my concern that he pick something a tad less ominous while we were on a plane. He laughed. I suggested maybe something like "Psalms", but not 'Revelations". Jesus. "Job" would be better. At least the guy was still alive at the end. Something all passengers hope for. Especially with all the excellent air traffic management going on lately.
The Situation Room
Bad News
"Last month, a U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was hospitalized after a sharp deterioration in his condition during a Federalist Society dinner in Philadelphia. According to people close to the incident, the event occurred on March 20, 2026.
According to sources, during the examination he was given intravenous fluids for dehydration, after which he returned home to Virginia under guard that night."
Always trying to take the country backwards.
"The White House on Friday sought $152 million to return the former Alcatraz prison island to active duty, following up on President Donald Trump’s call last year to transform the popular San Francisco Bay tourist destination.
The request was tucked into a proposed budget the White House released to fund the government for the 2027 fiscal year."
Trash, where they belong.
"Pam Bondi’s portrait already taken down at Justice Department
Just a day after her firing, the former attorney general’s pictures have been taken down — and discarded in a trash bin."
“I guess so the Catholics know their kind ain’t welcome,”
"The Pentagon has invited more than 3,500 employees to attend a Good Friday service at its in-house chapel. Except it’s only for Protestants, not Catholics. “Just a friendly reminder: There will be a Protestant Service (No Catholic Mass) for Good Friday today at the Pentagon Chapel,” reads a Friday email sent by Air Force leadership, a copy of which was shared by an employee."
This is how Republicans support veterans.
"
Trump's VA killed a home loan program. Vets are now losing their homes because of it
More than 10,000 veterans lost their homes to foreclosure since May of last year, when the Trump administration shut down a key safety net in the VA home loan program, according to the latest industry data. That is the highest pace of foreclosures for VA loans in a decade.
Another 90,000 vets are heading toward foreclosure. This comes after a years-long debacle inside the Department of Veterans Affairs has whiplashed thousands of vets between various enacted and canceled programs and left many of them on the brink of losing their homes — often through no fault of their own."
RAS: Good Friday is the only day of the year on which there is no Catholic Mass. Nowhere.
Even at the Pentagon
So the Pretender is now a war president. Must be banking on voters supporting him in the midterms for directing all that money to the military, where we know there's no waste, fraud, or abuse. Never has been...
Never forget what a conniving, lying, disgraceful piece of shit she is...
No Catholic Mass on Saturday either, not until sundown. The Easter Vigil service is the first Mass held in Catholic Churches since Thursday.
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