Considering political candidates have been discarded by voters for one single indiscretion or misstep I was amazed and totally appalled that Trump made it through to the first term. Every time there has been a disgusting comment or misuse/abuse of the office I've thought that was the end of him. Apparently, the American people have developed an extremely high tolerance for this jackass.
The slush fund should, indeed, be the last straw, but I would not put a bet on it for anything
Karen - Maybe the republicans who buy T’s worthless products, or donate to their endless campaign emails/mailers, are finally upset because instead of being asked to waste their money willingly they finally see it for what it is - theft. No one gave T permission to steal our money from the Treasury and then turn around and give it away to the people who were completely lawless on J6, threatened to remove, by death no less, the next in the line of succession and then either pleaded guilty or were found guilty by their peers (or in the process of either of those outcomes). I want to believe that not ruling out giving money to even the most violent was a bridge too far. The government just needs to drop the pretext, and the word ”anti”, and call it what it is - a weaponization fund. It is a payroll for future coups.
The joke may be on the people who are expecting the money. Once T takes his cut of the money (we all know that he will) then Blanche will take his, after him are all of the other lawyers who are still waiting to be paid and then when you divide what is left over by the people who filed they might get a check that isn’t even worth the paper, ink and postage used to send it. Of course then there’s the taxes levied against the amount…something T is now exempt from paying but other recipients are not.
I think the slush fund is a smokescreen for the real objective of this exercise: immunity forever from IRS prosecution for Trump and practically everyone he deals with. That's a big deal, a free pass to cheat the government in perpetuity
Karen - Hopefully the states will continue to prosecute him since our federal government can’t seem to do the job. Especially when he no longer has the DOJ as his personal counsel. Disbar the lawyers who have ignored the rule of law as well. Wonder how many of the law firms would jump on board after the way they have been treated?
1. Trump had his Department of Justice allocate taxpayer money, to be awarded on vague criteria by a commission of people appointed by Trump's personal defense lawyer (who is now Acting Attorney General) and fired at will by Trump. The money is to be taken from a Congressionally-authorized existing fund, but the existing fund is for paying damages and settlements for lawsuits, which this isn't because the underlying lawsuit had already been dropped before the "settlement agreement" was reached, so there was nothing to "settle". That sounds like "stealing from the US Treasury" to me, even aside from the facts that the lawsuit was for an absurd $10 billion, that thousands of other people had their tax information leaked at the same time but got no damages at all from the IRS, that the leak happened during the first Trump administration so in a sense it's his fault, that Trump was on both sides of the "negotiation", and that the "settlement" wasn't overseen or approved by any judge or court.
3. The "agreement" (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441201/dl?inline) says Trump, Don Jr, Eric, and the Trump Organization "will not receive any monetary payment or damages of any kind." However, the DOJ memo (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441086/dl) says "Once the funds are deposited into the Designated Account, the United States has no liability whatsoever for the protection or safeguarding of those funds, regardless of bank failure, fraudulent transfers, or any other fraud or misuse of the funds." So if Trump were to tell his hand-picked commission members to give him half the money and split the rest among themselves, there would be no legal recourse. That's how President Trump and Blanche could "take their cut".
4. The Blanche addendum to the "agreement" (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441216/dl) says the President, Don Jr, Eric, and the Trump Organization will NEVER be prosecuted, sued, investigated, or punished for a wide range of Federal offenses, specifically including but not limited to tax violations. It doesn't apply to offenses committed after May 18, 2026, but it grants retroactive immunity for almost any Federal offense committed before then, whether discovered or not. Specifically, "(1) any matters that were raised or could have been raised in the Case or the Pending Agency Claims; (2) Lawfare and/or Weaponization; or (3) any matters currently pending or that could be pending (including tax returns filed before the Effective Date) before Defendants or other agencies or departments." Since Trump considers any investigation of him or his family as "Lawfare and/or Weaponization", that means pretty much any Federal investigation, crime, or civil action. In a way, this is even better than a Presidential pardon, because the pardon power only applies to crimes, not civil actions, the way the IRS usually recovers tax underpayments. So no, President Trump isn't exempt from paying taxes in the future, but he's just granted himself forgiveness for any tax cheating he's ever done in the past. And we have reason to believe he owes the IRS at least $100 million for double-counting deductions just in the past few years.
STEPHEN - I appreciate your response to his post about what I wrote. I thought that my post had facts (though no citations) and I sure did not believe that I was ranting. You did save me from showing what ranting looks like as I was contemplating my response - but thanks to you I no longer need to.
The main question I was going to ask him was that if it’s okay to pay reparations to insurrectionists why do they fight so hard against paying actual victims and/or the families of those ancestors who were removed from their land or flat out killed (Native Americans) or the ones who were forced into slavery (also removed from their motherland and at times outright killed) so a select few white men could prosper off their hard work? What about the predominantly wealthy black neighborhood that was bombed by law enforcement? We should pay reparations to all of them way before we pay a decommissioned penny to the people who blindly followed a felon into committing felonies.
But then I saw his responses to others and it seems like a bot. It’s hard to have a conversation with someone/something who is unwilling to listen to both sides and contemplate what is being discussed.
The corrupt deep state working with the democrats and their Pravda media rigged the 2020 election and orchestrated a false flag operation on Jan. 6 to try to fool the American people that the 2020 election wasn't rigged and Jan. 6 was an insurrection. The scum of the earth who did this destroyed thousands of honest, hard-working American patriot's lives. These patriots deserve the full retribution of the law.
President Trump waived his financial claim against the egregious overreach of the corrupt Biden administration's lawfare against him in order to provide monetary compensation to the victims of the US government lawfare against US citizens. Even this paltry monetary compensation isn't enough
You rightly demand "facts". Do you have any to support those claims?
Do you have any evidence that the 2020 election was rigged? If so, why did so many Republican election officials and judges fail to reach that conclusion? Why didn't the administration at the time stop it? If there was so much fraud, why has not a single person been charged with fraud at a scale that could have affected the results? Do you have any evidence that the Jan. 6 riot and assault on the Capitol Building was a "false flag operation"? If so, who led it, considering Trump was President at the time? How could such a huge conspiracy operate inside the Federal government without the President learning about it and taking action?
The "thousands of honest, hard-working American patriots" whose lives were "destroyed" were either convicted of actual crimes by a jury of their peers, or plead guilty to actual crimes. Do you claim that every one of these judges, every one of these juries, every one of these prosecutors, was corrupted by the "deep state"? In many cases the world witnessed those "patriots" on live TV attacking the Capitol building and threatening the lives of members of Congress, with the explicit intent of intimidating Congress into picking and choosing which of the already-cast electoral votes to count, so as to change the winner through mob violence -- about the farthest thing I can imagine from American patriotism.
President Trump, likewise, appears to have committed quite a number of actual crimes. He was indicted on multiple felonies by four different grand juries, in four different jurisdictions, by three different prosecutors, only one of whom worked for the Biden Administration (and that one was an independent counsel, intentionally shielded from political influence). Only the weakest of the four cases reached trial, but even that one resulted in conviction on all counts. Presidents Obama and Biden both scrupulously kept their hands off his case and, like most previous Presidents, left politically-sensitive cases to the non-partisan legal professionals at DOJ.
That said, politically-motivated "lawfare" and "weaponization" of the Justice Department are real problems, as we now see every day. Their most prominent practitioner has been Donald J. Trump, who in the past 16 months has made clear that the Justice Department's first priority is to take revenge on everybody who's ever disrespected or disobeyed him, no matter how weak the legal case, while giving a pass to his supporters no matter what crimes they commit.
In your heart, you know all that. The facts you demand are not on your side.
You are a sick, lying, fucked-up Trump troll asshole. In fact, if I didn't know better about trump's COMPLETE LACK OF BRAINS, I'd say this is Trump writing this B.S. himself!
Very funny! But not very original. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were delusional. Oh, wait ....
You know, the funny thing really is that the GOP has been perfecting their voter suppression tactics for some forty years and the 2020 election was no different from any other they've cheated the hell out of, purging voter rolls, etc. Don't try to tell any intelligent, informed person that kind of crap
Yeah, I agree. After all has been said and done and this jackass is still sitting in the Oval office(Jeff Tiedrich calls it the Oval Bordello which seems fitting) is hard to fathom. I gave up along time ago hoping that one extreme or egregious action would stop this lawless regime. A tidal wave in the mid- terms seems to be the only way that any of this bs will change and I am on pins and needles hoping this election will proceed accordingly.
Hey Reich, Here is another example of your brain trust borg. On average, how many of your subscribers does it take to cumulatively achieve a triple digit IQ?
Agree. Design by lucifer… people dont have to tell him to go to hell. They just have to say bring something light. Can't legislate against eternal damnation. Although hecis very good to his friends.
My hopes have been dashed so often that I'm almost afraid to hope again.
I cannot understand why so many people are blind to the reality that Trump is the ultimate conman. He makes P.T. Barnum look like a cheap side show barker!
Personally, I believe it is the promise of financial prosperity that keeps the MAGA crowd delusionally loyal.
That is why we have a bottom-up, not just a top-down problem in our toxic society.
Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure...or nothing. -- Helen Keller
“Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” --Helen Keller
The test of a democracy is not the magnificence of buildings or the speed of automobiles or the efficiency of air transportation, but rather the care given to the welfare of all the people. -Helen Adams Keller, lecturer and author (1880-1968)
Our democracy is but a name. We vote? What does that mean? It means that we choose between two bodies of real, though not avowed, autocrats. We choose between Tweedledum and Tweedledee.--Helen Keller, in a letter written in 1911
Hi Carol, I got sucked into this crap Deplore This is fooling himself with & read yer responses…I was even goaded into responding to him myself, after I posted it I realized how stupid and boring & self consumed he is, and how quickly he reminded me of a lesson my grandmother taught me when I was seven. She used to call me her “yeah, but…kid” and said I sounded like a little motor boat “but but but but!”! She asked me if I knew what a but is & I looked at her like she had two heads. She said, look what’s in front of your hip pockets-the largest muscles in the human body. Do you know what a but is in conversation?” She had me there, I was speechless-she laughed & said “A but is two opposing forces that hide an asshole!” “Every time I tell you the truth you agree and then contradict me with {but but but but…} and foul the air with the only thing that comes out yer little motor-SHIT AND HOT AIR!” That taught me a great deal over the years. Tanx Granny!🚫💩❤️🩹🙏🇺🇸🫡💜🫵🚫🛑🗣️📜⚖️🗽🦅👁️🔬🆘🚫🤥🍊🐘🦨💩💰🏴☠️🤡👑
I'm 83 and retired. I have plenty of time to waste. Strength and stamina, not so much.
We have all make an ass out of ourselves on occasion. Unfortunately, it is easier to laugh at others than it is to laugh at ourselves. That why I love Irish humor. The best stories are those where the joke is on us and the laughter is healing, not cruel.
The Irish are known for their "kissing the Blarney Stone." They never let "the facts" get in the way of a good story. If called out for their obvious exaggerations, the indignant response is likely to be, "Well, if it wasn't true, it shoulda been!"
Everyone has the untapped potential to become more "human" in a good way, even Deplore. Sometimes we just have to try to dig a little deeper to find it.
Of course, your grandmother was correct, too. People who find it difficult to defend their boundaries should be more cautious about choosing who to let in their lives.
I answered your question on the previous post that you invited me to read.
It may be that my answer was not satisfactory from your perspective, so I'll try to be more specific.
I can't understand how the electorate in the Red Southern States could believe that a wealthy New York real estate mogul would be able to successfully solve their socioeconomic/political challenges after having experienced the post-Civil War period of "Reconstruction" which was mostly a rape by Northern carpet-bagger shady businessmen.
Perhaps it is the racism that is the primary attraction. The wealthy white slave-owners did not directly "manage" their chattel slave labor force. The middle-management whites who had that task made up sizeable minority of the Southern middle class whose skill set was no longer an employable asset. Many became a class of "poor whites" whose primary unjust advantage in the job market was now the color of their skin. Poverty causes moral injury since survival often demands making immoral or amoral behavioral choices and moral injury causes shame and or guilt that is often repressed.
Trans-personal psychologists advise us to give more consideration to what may have happened to people rather than merely what's wrong with them.
No, you didn't answer the question I posed on the other post and you didn't answer the question I posed here.
I agree that you don't understand how President Trump is working to reverse decades of globalization that has hollowed out the American middle class who actually make things.
The democrats have always been the party of racism, slavery, Jim Crowe and segregation. They are racist today in their anti-white racism.
There was no middle class in the antebellum south and today blue states like California are driving out the middle class.
Poverty does not demand immorality. Furthermore, there are more whites in poverty than blacks yet blacks create crime disproportionately to their numbers. The whites and blacks that I know who live in poverty have higher morals than many of the affluent elites I know. And the sociologists and psychologists who preach that poor people should be held to a lower standard of morality than everyone else are fundamentally wrong and it contributes to the higher levels of crime than before LBJ's great society ruined the black nuclear family.
IMHO, the end of this heinous regime, indeed the end of the Republican party, and the end of 45 years of cutting taxes on the wealthy, will come after the DNC finally wakes up and nominates a popular, populist candidate. No more 53/47 compromises. We need a 70/30 vote, a large Democrat majority in both the Senate and the House, if we are ever to get America back.
But it won't come from a middle-of-the-road candidate.
Agreed, Michael! Now is the time to find candidates that see a better vision for America. An America where capitalism does not play a major role. An America where We the People live, work and share together. An America where there is health care available for everyone. An America where monopolies and billionaires have no voice in our government except as average American citizens. No more dark money. No more two-tiered justice system. No more targeting "others" because they are not like you. An America where everyone can pursue their own American dream. An America where our government works FOR US and is not beholden to one man ever again. Our candidate must be able to describe that type of America in a way that the majority can see it and want it! He/she must be able to explain how that America can be achieved. What it will take, how it will happen and what it will cost.
Is there any politician in America advocating the end of capitalism, as opposed to the reform of its uglier aspects? I am not sure that even Mamdani or Sanders would go that far. I was reminded of Fredric Jameson’s witticism that it is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism.
Democratic politicians continue to be almost as beholden to big money as their Republican counterparts and the next election will I predict be the biggest, free-wheeling display of the power of money in US politics in your entire history. It may indeed be the only way to finally remove Trump's baleful influence over the GOP.
Capitalism is a system of determining how to allocate capital, not a system of governance. The DNC is just about as "bribed" as the GOP by corporate interests. The Dems need to make it crystal clear that they aren't opposed to "capitalism", but what's going on in the US isn't even remotely related to what people think of as capitalism. It's a snake-pit of monopolies, financial chicanery, and legal structures to keep the proles down and to keep the rich, rich, and beyond the reach of law.
The time of the two-party democracy has reached its USE-BY date. What we need now is a well-crafted & popularly supported CENTRIST party one that can attract & hold 70% of the vote.
Then turn to the two extremes of the political left & the political right; both of which are as toxic as each other but differently so. To declare A POX ON BOTH YOUR HOUSES. Yet you are welcome in the centrist house if you FIRST give up your extremist views
I agree with you completely. That's why so many people who voted for trump would have vote for Bernie Sanders had he been the Democrat choice for President. I voted for Bernie Sanders in the Primary. I had to temporarily become a Democrat in order to do so but then changed back to my usual undeclared status. If Graham Platner had the experience he needs in government now, I would probably vote for him, or James Talarico. I would prefer to have someone who did not support the Netanyahu regime and the Zionist genocide in Gaza.
Ok, genius, who do you recommend? And given half the Senate is made of Republicans from the reddest of red states, a 70/30 Democratic majority is delusional.
I assume you're talking to me, so I'll give you an answer you're not gonna like: Sanders. If we had had Sanders in 2016, none of this nightmare would have happened. In hypothetical polls in early 2016, of Sanders v Trump and of Hillary v Trump, Sanders consistently beat Trump 70/30 with almost no-one undecided. Compare that with Hilary v Trump: 35/35 with 30% undecided.
Sanders has had only one message for years,and it's a good one: Tax the wealthy, and provide Medicare for all who want it. It is a powerful message and it resonates, even in the red states.
Is he too old? I don't think so. Adenauer was still brilliant at that age. And, if Sanders chose a much younger vice president and agreed to be a one term POTUS this would be winning ticket.
No, Trump at 79 is too old. Sanders is 84 and younger than Trump. Kelly is an interesting candidate but he still believes in Obamacare, which is basically Medicaid in disguise. Besides, Kelly will simply not get out the vote the way Sanders will. I would prefer someone like Platner, but he doesn't yet have any Senate experience.
"Obamacare" as you so ineligantly put it, is subsidies for private insurance. Red staters depend on the ACA and love it as long as you don't mention Obama.
Ah, the Sanders delusion again. CONGRESS, not the President, needs to pass your M4A fantasy. I'm more likely to be hit by lightning while winning the Powerball.
Michael - Why not Sanders as VP instead? Just inquiring because I am not sure if he actually can get past his age as being a factor but maybe as VP it would be more tolerable for some. Plus, Biden did promise to be a one term president and then we saw what happened. I’m not sure what people are willing to do these days so that is why I am asking. Honestly, I do want to know your thoughts. For what it’s worth I would have had no problem voting for him back then but I might hesitate this time around only because the sequel is usually not as good as the premiere. But I try to keep an open mind.
Republicans in West Virginia overwhelmingly voted for him to raise the minimum wage, promote union membership, and provide real economic relief. You know, "affordability".
David - The DNC also put their finger on the scale as well against him. That’s why I am curious if Sanders could actually go farther this time around if it was a serious issue.
The undoing will be the midterms; whether or not we are "permitted" to have one and if we are if it rigged or not. If djt decides the election will not take place or if it is rigged I hope there will be a huge revolt "the likes of which no one has ever seen before".
We need to stop looking at this (and all other illegal actions supported by Republicans in Congress) as solely based on fear against the wrath of Trump if they step out of line. What they're really afraid of, is the loss of the support/jobd/positions from their rich donors who promise to take care of them if they lose an election because of their support for Trump.
MKW - Yes, you are right. We need to remind them that it’s their constituents that they need to be worried about and held accountable if necessary and not their fat cat donors and a lucrative career after if they lay down and take it.
Here's a question. The 14th Amendment, Section 4, prohibits the U.S. or any state from paying debts or obligations to those participating in insurrection against the U.S. It states unequivocally: "all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be held illegal and void." See full section below.
The DT Slush Fund is obviously unconstitutional. Why isn't anyone talking about this?
Section 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any state shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.
He wants to wreck the federal government. Republicans with their small government and state's right rhetoric have always wanted to reduce the power of the federal government. Bankruptsy is one way to do it.
I don't know that he even thinks that far, though. He may simply be doing whatever he sees in the moment that will enrich him and his family and keep him in office and out of jail.
He knows his power and wealth goals are aided by wrecking the Fed govt.He knows what he is doing. And Repubs who think everything should be privatized anyway are ipso facto a weak counterforce.Repubs want to use the govt to furthe enhance the rightful dominance ! of their class, but they call it being good capitalists and being business friendly as the MO legislature calls their destructive campaign against their electorate.
J. Nol - It seems that they want states rights up until the state does something that they don’t like and then it’s back to screaming about the government having the power.
Yes. They are absolutists. It's their way and nobody else's. As anti-democratic as can be. A lot of them are absolutist thinkers, probably incapable of more subtlety or understanding how compromise works. In other words, they think like children.
Funny note: Every time I try to type in your name it fights me and wants to put it as Glorious…I don’t think you would mind if it would occasionally win. Could be wrong though…
Richard, if we wait for SOMEONE to step in, you will be waiting a long time. IT IS WE THE PEOPLE WHO MUST STEP IN. It is clear that a majority of Representatives or Senators will not come and save us nor anyone else. When an authoritarian governments have been overturned, it is most often the organizing of a vast and broad coalition that takes them down. I have previously listed ten countries that have had nonviolent revolutions. Up to now we have been aloof from those revolutions. Now is the time to study them and learn what they did right. We must engage in coalition building and increasing mass movements to get this done. Having a good showing in the upcoming election is a good step, but this is not a "you do it time."
Those of us who are elderly and or disabled still have a depth of experience to move OUR AGENDA FORWARD. The Republican Party has destroyed itself and the Democratic Party is led by people have made themselves impotent. There are only a few who are willing to fight for me or you, so we must take back our power! And a good place to start is in building a moral, ethical and just economy such as ECONOMIC DEMOCRACY.
Here are 10 examples of successful nonviolent revolutions.
Poland and Solidarity (1980s)- led by Lech Walesa with mass labor strikes and negotiations led to a peaceful transition to Democracy.
Czechoslovakia-Velvet Revolution in 1989. The result was the end of communist rule with almost no violence.
East Germany-Peaceful Revolution 1989 resulting in the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification with Germany.
Philippines-People Power Revolution in 1986- removed Ferdinand Marcos and the restoration of democracy under Corazon Aquino
Estonia-The Singing Revolution (1987to1991) led to Estonia regaining independence from the Soviet Union. It is considered one of the most successful examples of mass nonviolent resistance in modern history.
Tunisia-The Jasmine Revolution (2011) Nonviolent protests led to leadership change and democratic reforms.
Serbia-Bulldozer Revolution (2000) Student led movement used Nonviolent tactics-Overthrew Slobodan Miolosevic with a transition to democracy
Georgia- Rose Revolution (2003) Peaceful resignation of the president and new elections.
Ukraine-Orange Revolution (2004) Mas protests against election fraud resulting in re-run election and political reforms.
He has nothing left to lose. Rather like Putin, after the Malaysian plane shot down over Ukraine, he is hell bent on doing as much damage as he can before he shuffles of to warm (hot) pastures. Scary. This could get worse. These people are powerful and not sane.
Satan is busy preparing a circle of Hell just for Agolf Shitler, his sycophants, the gutless eunuchs in the House and Senate, and, while we're at it, the entire GQP/MAGAT Cult.
Hell's HOA may have clauses that prohibit the current GOP cabal from moving in. You've got to enforce some standards, or "those people" will move in and ruin everything. It would destroy property values you know.
Well, that certainly is true. Such a motley crew will definitely and negatively impact property values, won't they? The neighborhood would (and I apologize for this) go to Hell, wouldn't it? I have no doubt Satan is tightening up the restrictions in the HOA terms and conditions.
Don’t forget this side of Pond we’d be happy to see Putin go too. Those long range missiles uncomfortably close. Bibi might hitch a ride too. Whole world a lot safer and better off without ‘em!
final straw for what? he's still untouchable and wild. he's doing what he wants, he doesn't care what's legal and literally no one is stopping him.
final straws for him are congress growing a pair, arrests, prison, or death. I don't think any of that is happening any time soon. he's just a kid in a candy shop right now.
Increase the Supreme Court to 12, and limit their terms to 6 years. New Amendment to the Constitution banning states from gerrymandering House of Representative Districts. (since we know the Supreme won't do it).
I think there needs to be an odd number of Justices, to limit the ambiguity of tie votes. Thirteen makes sense because it would allow each Justice to be responsible for one of the thirteen Federal Appellate Court districts. I'd suggest staggered ten-year terms to give Justices a chance to develop their personal jurisprudence. Certifying a nominee's competence by the American Bar Association should also be a requirement.
MKW - The SC justices who have shirked their oath and duty should be removed immediately from the bench. The ones who have broken the law and enriched themselves have no business being allowed to serve. They have gone to extreme lengths to twist the law and ignore precedent. They did the same for the president. After their removal packing the court might no longer be necessary. I do agree with term limits but they should be staggered and written so that another McConnell doesn’t pull some shady stunt again.
Au contraire! My fellow America first populists elected President Trump for the third time to deconstruct the bloated, corrupt and incompetent administrative state, their enabling politicians and Pravda media. We believe that the “government derives it’s power from the governed” and we appreciate that President Trump is draining the swamp. This isn’t yet a failure but it’s not yet a total success because all of the swamp creatures still resist being drowned.
And you did not mention the second part of this art of the deal/steal: that it would make Trump and his family absolved from the results of any audits for the past fifteen years. He likely owes hundreds of millions of dollars, and thus this is a gift to him of the same amount. It makes it much worse.
Also, many are pointing out that payments to some of the January 6 defendants, many of whom plead guilty, will be used to fund guns and militias. That's not exactly what the Second Amendment is about, with its wording of a "well-regulated militia." I expect multiple lawsuits, and that this is a bridge too far for even the Supreme Court. And Congress may well stop it.
The tax audit amnesty seems even more fancifully made-up than the fund itself. I can't imagine what legal basis his minions invented and pitched to him.
John - “… and that this is a bridge too far for even the Supreme Court. And Congress may well stop it.” - I hope so but doubt it. Would like to be proven wrong. Also, his multiple pardons, beyond the insurrectionists, have erased any money owed by the convicted to their victims. He leaves behind a long list of people who have been wronged and re-victimized.
That's ridiculous; if the Trump family was guilty of tax-avoidance, the corrupt autopen Biden administration would have prosecuted. Same goes for the Epstein files.
I say he has overplayed his hand since day one and it has just gone on and on. No one has stopped him yet. I have no idea if this last bit of horror will be his undoing but of course I hope it will be.
... the act of hubris ... ALL THE OTHER ACTS OF HUBRIS ... the very emblem of Trump’s contempt for anything and everyone beyond himself and his own self-glorification ... "
Few have encapsulated this so neatly or made the nightmare more clear. He should have removed in his first time, but those crimes seem minor compared to the current travesty.
Sadly, there is never a last straw with this monster of a president. He will never be completely curtailed as president until he's out of office--and as a human being, not until his death. He is a kind of vampire upon the public good, welcomed in by his cronies and the Republican leadership. It ends badly, always.
I wish the people of the U.S. cared to pay attention to policy, to think about its effects and to *remember* policies as imposed and as altérable. But what Trump seems to have run aground on «”Who the hell does he think he is?” with his-
- abrupt destruction of the east wing
- depiction of himself as Jesus
- out of control and out of controllable grifting through the self-suit and gaudily snarky “reparations “ fund
- construction of a Six Flags of Pro Wrestling on White House grounds as a birthday president to himself
Policy? *shrug* He’s the president.
But his parade of pinchbeck godhood? That, people understand.
I’ll answer you. I pay attention to all of the political policies and I think President Trump is the greatest US president of my lifetime. I also find that those who don’t agree are generally not very intelligent and/or informed and/or are furious that Trump is decimating their grift at the public trough. None of them are capable of ideological discourse, they just remain silent or walk away.
It pleases me that Trump the builder is renovating the White House and Washington DC. These changes will be magnificent. President Trump recently reported that there are 21 water fountains in DC and when he took office none of them were functional. Now all 21 work. It pleases me that it will bother all of the low-IQ petulant children with Trump derangement syndrome that these magnificent accoutrements to our nation’s capital will forever be a standing testament to the greatest president of our lifetime, Donald J. Trump. They didn’t have to be, but they will. And that pleases me.
The meme “Trump the healer” was poorly conceived, but it wasn’t a reference to Jesus Christ.
So, explain to me what exactly is Trump’s “grifting”? You don’t seem to me to be someone who even understands the tax code.
Try to keep up, it’s not “Pro Wrestling” and it’s not for President Trump’s birthday. And I feel no obligation to “splain” it to you.
I don’t understand what exactly is “his parade of pinchbeck godhood”? It must be one of those left coast valley girl phrases that the rest of the world laughs at. Please explain it if you can.
If you like the policies of this regime, then you favor the denigrating of human labor, the draining of resources from labor and consumers to enrich the already-rich, the destruction of the environment and cultural treasures to build walls and shop floors and fuel shops for the creation of destructive unrealities, the construction of a police state and the diminishment of public rights to speech and choose, the promotion of infectious disease, and the draining of productive capacity to stuff a war machine, among other ends that are not mine.
So we have nothing to say to each other substantively. Even if I were inclined to converse with someone whose model of argumentation depends heavily on sneering.
I so hope you’re right, Professor 🙏🏻
Considering political candidates have been discarded by voters for one single indiscretion or misstep I was amazed and totally appalled that Trump made it through to the first term. Every time there has been a disgusting comment or misuse/abuse of the office I've thought that was the end of him. Apparently, the American people have developed an extremely high tolerance for this jackass.
The slush fund should, indeed, be the last straw, but I would not put a bet on it for anything
- Karen Cooper
I fully agree. All the evidence suggests that Trump is just getting warmed up.
YES YES YES .. There is no end to his Lord of the Flies routine.. except the usual one.
Karen - Maybe the republicans who buy T’s worthless products, or donate to their endless campaign emails/mailers, are finally upset because instead of being asked to waste their money willingly they finally see it for what it is - theft. No one gave T permission to steal our money from the Treasury and then turn around and give it away to the people who were completely lawless on J6, threatened to remove, by death no less, the next in the line of succession and then either pleaded guilty or were found guilty by their peers (or in the process of either of those outcomes). I want to believe that not ruling out giving money to even the most violent was a bridge too far. The government just needs to drop the pretext, and the word ”anti”, and call it what it is - a weaponization fund. It is a payroll for future coups.
The joke may be on the people who are expecting the money. Once T takes his cut of the money (we all know that he will) then Blanche will take his, after him are all of the other lawyers who are still waiting to be paid and then when you divide what is left over by the people who filed they might get a check that isn’t even worth the paper, ink and postage used to send it. Of course then there’s the taxes levied against the amount…something T is now exempt from paying but other recipients are not.
I think the slush fund is a smokescreen for the real objective of this exercise: immunity forever from IRS prosecution for Trump and practically everyone he deals with. That's a big deal, a free pass to cheat the government in perpetuity
- Karen Cooper
Well he almost has this now with his crooked SCROTUS giving him immunity from just about everything he could do as long as it was"official".smh
("SCROTUS" - thanks for the chuckle, Victoria.)
Karen - Hopefully the states will continue to prosecute him since our federal government can’t seem to do the job. Especially when he no longer has the DOJ as his personal counsel. Disbar the lawyers who have ignored the rule of law as well. Wonder how many of the law firms would jump on board after the way they have been treated?
Well, that's a fact free rant:
1. What money did President Trump steal from the US Treasury and how?
2. My previous post may help you understand the Jan. 6 fedsurection: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
3. How exactly are President Trump and Blanche going to "take their cut"?
4. How exactly is President Trump "exempt" from paying taxes?
Recognizing that facts are obviously complicated for you, but I look forward to any facts in response.
Facts and citations coming up.
1. Trump had his Department of Justice allocate taxpayer money, to be awarded on vague criteria by a commission of people appointed by Trump's personal defense lawyer (who is now Acting Attorney General) and fired at will by Trump. The money is to be taken from a Congressionally-authorized existing fund, but the existing fund is for paying damages and settlements for lawsuits, which this isn't because the underlying lawsuit had already been dropped before the "settlement agreement" was reached, so there was nothing to "settle". That sounds like "stealing from the US Treasury" to me, even aside from the facts that the lawsuit was for an absurd $10 billion, that thousands of other people had their tax information leaked at the same time but got no damages at all from the IRS, that the leak happened during the first Trump administration so in a sense it's his fault, that Trump was on both sides of the "negotiation", and that the "settlement" wasn't overseen or approved by any judge or court.
3. The "agreement" (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441201/dl?inline) says Trump, Don Jr, Eric, and the Trump Organization "will not receive any monetary payment or damages of any kind." However, the DOJ memo (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441086/dl) says "Once the funds are deposited into the Designated Account, the United States has no liability whatsoever for the protection or safeguarding of those funds, regardless of bank failure, fraudulent transfers, or any other fraud or misuse of the funds." So if Trump were to tell his hand-picked commission members to give him half the money and split the rest among themselves, there would be no legal recourse. That's how President Trump and Blanche could "take their cut".
4. The Blanche addendum to the "agreement" (https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441216/dl) says the President, Don Jr, Eric, and the Trump Organization will NEVER be prosecuted, sued, investigated, or punished for a wide range of Federal offenses, specifically including but not limited to tax violations. It doesn't apply to offenses committed after May 18, 2026, but it grants retroactive immunity for almost any Federal offense committed before then, whether discovered or not. Specifically, "(1) any matters that were raised or could have been raised in the Case or the Pending Agency Claims; (2) Lawfare and/or Weaponization; or (3) any matters currently pending or that could be pending (including tax returns filed before the Effective Date) before Defendants or other agencies or departments." Since Trump considers any investigation of him or his family as "Lawfare and/or Weaponization", that means pretty much any Federal investigation, crime, or civil action. In a way, this is even better than a Presidential pardon, because the pardon power only applies to crimes, not civil actions, the way the IRS usually recovers tax underpayments. So no, President Trump isn't exempt from paying taxes in the future, but he's just granted himself forgiveness for any tax cheating he's ever done in the past. And we have reason to believe he owes the IRS at least $100 million for double-counting deductions just in the past few years.
STEPHEN - I appreciate your response to his post about what I wrote. I thought that my post had facts (though no citations) and I sure did not believe that I was ranting. You did save me from showing what ranting looks like as I was contemplating my response - but thanks to you I no longer need to.
The main question I was going to ask him was that if it’s okay to pay reparations to insurrectionists why do they fight so hard against paying actual victims and/or the families of those ancestors who were removed from their land or flat out killed (Native Americans) or the ones who were forced into slavery (also removed from their motherland and at times outright killed) so a select few white men could prosper off their hard work? What about the predominantly wealthy black neighborhood that was bombed by law enforcement? We should pay reparations to all of them way before we pay a decommissioned penny to the people who blindly followed a felon into committing felonies.
But then I saw his responses to others and it seems like a bot. It’s hard to have a conversation with someone/something who is unwilling to listen to both sides and contemplate what is being discussed.
Anon: Like you, I suspect 'Deplore This' is a bot.
Anon and Stephen: I applaud your patience.
You miss the entire point:
The corrupt deep state working with the democrats and their Pravda media rigged the 2020 election and orchestrated a false flag operation on Jan. 6 to try to fool the American people that the 2020 election wasn't rigged and Jan. 6 was an insurrection. The scum of the earth who did this destroyed thousands of honest, hard-working American patriot's lives. These patriots deserve the full retribution of the law.
President Trump waived his financial claim against the egregious overreach of the corrupt Biden administration's lawfare against him in order to provide monetary compensation to the victims of the US government lawfare against US citizens. Even this paltry monetary compensation isn't enough
You rightly demand "facts". Do you have any to support those claims?
Do you have any evidence that the 2020 election was rigged? If so, why did so many Republican election officials and judges fail to reach that conclusion? Why didn't the administration at the time stop it? If there was so much fraud, why has not a single person been charged with fraud at a scale that could have affected the results? Do you have any evidence that the Jan. 6 riot and assault on the Capitol Building was a "false flag operation"? If so, who led it, considering Trump was President at the time? How could such a huge conspiracy operate inside the Federal government without the President learning about it and taking action?
The "thousands of honest, hard-working American patriots" whose lives were "destroyed" were either convicted of actual crimes by a jury of their peers, or plead guilty to actual crimes. Do you claim that every one of these judges, every one of these juries, every one of these prosecutors, was corrupted by the "deep state"? In many cases the world witnessed those "patriots" on live TV attacking the Capitol building and threatening the lives of members of Congress, with the explicit intent of intimidating Congress into picking and choosing which of the already-cast electoral votes to count, so as to change the winner through mob violence -- about the farthest thing I can imagine from American patriotism.
President Trump, likewise, appears to have committed quite a number of actual crimes. He was indicted on multiple felonies by four different grand juries, in four different jurisdictions, by three different prosecutors, only one of whom worked for the Biden Administration (and that one was an independent counsel, intentionally shielded from political influence). Only the weakest of the four cases reached trial, but even that one resulted in conviction on all counts. Presidents Obama and Biden both scrupulously kept their hands off his case and, like most previous Presidents, left politically-sensitive cases to the non-partisan legal professionals at DOJ.
That said, politically-motivated "lawfare" and "weaponization" of the Justice Department are real problems, as we now see every day. Their most prominent practitioner has been Donald J. Trump, who in the past 16 months has made clear that the Justice Department's first priority is to take revenge on everybody who's ever disrespected or disobeyed him, no matter how weak the legal case, while giving a pass to his supporters no matter what crimes they commit.
In your heart, you know all that. The facts you demand are not on your side.
You are a sick, lying, fucked-up Trump troll asshole. In fact, if I didn't know better about trump's COMPLETE LACK OF BRAINS, I'd say this is Trump writing this B.S. himself!
Very funny! But not very original. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were delusional. Oh, wait ....
You know, the funny thing really is that the GOP has been perfecting their voter suppression tactics for some forty years and the 2020 election was no different from any other they've cheated the hell out of, purging voter rolls, etc. Don't try to tell any intelligent, informed person that kind of crap
- Karen Cooper
If the Jan 6 “insurrection” was a “false flag operation,” why did Trump pardon the participants?
"Fedsurection"? Bless your heart.
Yeah, I agree. After all has been said and done and this jackass is still sitting in the Oval office(Jeff Tiedrich calls it the Oval Bordello which seems fitting) is hard to fathom. I gave up along time ago hoping that one extreme or egregious action would stop this lawless regime. A tidal wave in the mid- terms seems to be the only way that any of this bs will change and I am on pins and needles hoping this election will proceed accordingly.
To paraphrase Garth Brooks: He's got friends in low places.
My thoughts and feelings exactly.
Perhaps my previous post may help answer your question why those of us at the top of the IQ-curve recognize President Trump is the best President in our lifetime and continue to support him: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
Would you say you're enamored with Mr. Trump? There are people who can help deprogram you from your brainwashed delusions.
Child masquerading as an adult, what part of "I don't have the time or inclination to play with children" don't you understand?
And yet you're here jacking off in public.
Seems that deplorable gives himself away.
He’s nothing trying to be something and made himself
Deplorable.
Hey Reich, Here is another example of your brain trust borgs.
Stop! You're killin' me! LOL!!
Hey Reich, Here is an example of your brain trust borg; a child masquerading as an adult. I don't have the time or inclination to play with children.
Kindergarten DROPOUT!
Hey Reich, Here is another example of your brain trust borg. On average, how many of your subscribers does it take to cumulatively achieve a triple digit IQ?
You seem to have a limited repertoire -- this is the third time I've seen this same response. Are you a bot? Yeah, you're a bot.
All you have to do is look at his hand. Quite a metaphor.
Imagine what his brain looks like. Pure evil. Selfish. Like scrambled wires.
Hello JBR... A look at DJT's Malignant Brain would be a Hideous Sight...
Agree. Design by lucifer… people dont have to tell him to go to hell. They just have to say bring something light. Can't legislate against eternal damnation. Although hecis very good to his friends.
Like robt Kennedy. Worms in the brain. The new Kennedy compound.
Mush.
Elaine--To me the last straw was when he took the oath of office..
Good point!
The first time.
My hopes have been dashed so often that I'm almost afraid to hope again.
I cannot understand why so many people are blind to the reality that Trump is the ultimate conman. He makes P.T. Barnum look like a cheap side show barker!
They are in love with Pedophiles, and they approve of molesting. Degenerates like dildo Don turn them on.
Personally, I believe it is the promise of financial prosperity that keeps the MAGA crowd delusionally loyal.
That is why we have a bottom-up, not just a top-down problem in our toxic society.
Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure...or nothing. -- Helen Keller
“Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” --Helen Keller
The test of a democracy is not the magnificence of buildings or the speed of automobiles or the efficiency of air transportation, but rather the care given to the welfare of all the people. -Helen Adams Keller, lecturer and author (1880-1968)
Our democracy is but a name. We vote? What does that mean? It means that we choose between two bodies of real, though not avowed, autocrats. We choose between Tweedledum and Tweedledee.--Helen Keller, in a letter written in 1911
P.T. Barnum's shows, however, left the audiences happy.
I think President Trump is the greatest US President of my lifetime. How exactly am I being conned? Perhaps you should first read my previous post: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
You are certainly entitled to your opinion and I to mine.
As my Dear ol' Dad used to say, "Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one."
Hi Carol, I got sucked into this crap Deplore This is fooling himself with & read yer responses…I was even goaded into responding to him myself, after I posted it I realized how stupid and boring & self consumed he is, and how quickly he reminded me of a lesson my grandmother taught me when I was seven. She used to call me her “yeah, but…kid” and said I sounded like a little motor boat “but but but but!”! She asked me if I knew what a but is & I looked at her like she had two heads. She said, look what’s in front of your hip pockets-the largest muscles in the human body. Do you know what a but is in conversation?” She had me there, I was speechless-she laughed & said “A but is two opposing forces that hide an asshole!” “Every time I tell you the truth you agree and then contradict me with {but but but but…} and foul the air with the only thing that comes out yer little motor-SHIT AND HOT AIR!” That taught me a great deal over the years. Tanx Granny!🚫💩❤️🩹🙏🇺🇸🫡💜🫵🚫🛑🗣️📜⚖️🗽🦅👁️🔬🆘🚫🤥🍊🐘🦨💩💰🏴☠️🤡👑
I'm 83 and retired. I have plenty of time to waste. Strength and stamina, not so much.
We have all make an ass out of ourselves on occasion. Unfortunately, it is easier to laugh at others than it is to laugh at ourselves. That why I love Irish humor. The best stories are those where the joke is on us and the laughter is healing, not cruel.
The Irish are known for their "kissing the Blarney Stone." They never let "the facts" get in the way of a good story. If called out for their obvious exaggerations, the indignant response is likely to be, "Well, if it wasn't true, it shoulda been!"
Everyone has the untapped potential to become more "human" in a good way, even Deplore. Sometimes we just have to try to dig a little deeper to find it.
Of course, your grandmother was correct, too. People who find it difficult to defend their boundaries should be more cautious about choosing who to let in their lives.
You didn't answer my question; how do you think I'm being conned? I don't think you have the intellectual capacity to do so.
I answered your question on the previous post that you invited me to read.
It may be that my answer was not satisfactory from your perspective, so I'll try to be more specific.
I can't understand how the electorate in the Red Southern States could believe that a wealthy New York real estate mogul would be able to successfully solve their socioeconomic/political challenges after having experienced the post-Civil War period of "Reconstruction" which was mostly a rape by Northern carpet-bagger shady businessmen.
Perhaps it is the racism that is the primary attraction. The wealthy white slave-owners did not directly "manage" their chattel slave labor force. The middle-management whites who had that task made up sizeable minority of the Southern middle class whose skill set was no longer an employable asset. Many became a class of "poor whites" whose primary unjust advantage in the job market was now the color of their skin. Poverty causes moral injury since survival often demands making immoral or amoral behavioral choices and moral injury causes shame and or guilt that is often repressed.
Trans-personal psychologists advise us to give more consideration to what may have happened to people rather than merely what's wrong with them.
No, you didn't answer the question I posed on the other post and you didn't answer the question I posed here.
I agree that you don't understand how President Trump is working to reverse decades of globalization that has hollowed out the American middle class who actually make things.
The democrats have always been the party of racism, slavery, Jim Crowe and segregation. They are racist today in their anti-white racism.
There was no middle class in the antebellum south and today blue states like California are driving out the middle class.
Poverty does not demand immorality. Furthermore, there are more whites in poverty than blacks yet blacks create crime disproportionately to their numbers. The whites and blacks that I know who live in poverty have higher morals than many of the affluent elites I know. And the sociologists and psychologists who preach that poor people should be held to a lower standard of morality than everyone else are fundamentally wrong and it contributes to the higher levels of crime than before LBJ's great society ruined the black nuclear family.
What is going to be the undoing of this fucking heinous regime?
IMHO, the end of this heinous regime, indeed the end of the Republican party, and the end of 45 years of cutting taxes on the wealthy, will come after the DNC finally wakes up and nominates a popular, populist candidate. No more 53/47 compromises. We need a 70/30 vote, a large Democrat majority in both the Senate and the House, if we are ever to get America back.
But it won't come from a middle-of-the-road candidate.
Agreed, Michael! Now is the time to find candidates that see a better vision for America. An America where capitalism does not play a major role. An America where We the People live, work and share together. An America where there is health care available for everyone. An America where monopolies and billionaires have no voice in our government except as average American citizens. No more dark money. No more two-tiered justice system. No more targeting "others" because they are not like you. An America where everyone can pursue their own American dream. An America where our government works FOR US and is not beholden to one man ever again. Our candidate must be able to describe that type of America in a way that the majority can see it and want it! He/she must be able to explain how that America can be achieved. What it will take, how it will happen and what it will cost.
You gotta work on the 89,500,000 who didn't bother to vote in 2024
Is there any politician in America advocating the end of capitalism, as opposed to the reform of its uglier aspects? I am not sure that even Mamdani or Sanders would go that far. I was reminded of Fredric Jameson’s witticism that it is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism.
Democratic politicians continue to be almost as beholden to big money as their Republican counterparts and the next election will I predict be the biggest, free-wheeling display of the power of money in US politics in your entire history. It may indeed be the only way to finally remove Trump's baleful influence over the GOP.
Capitalism is a system of determining how to allocate capital, not a system of governance. The DNC is just about as "bribed" as the GOP by corporate interests. The Dems need to make it crystal clear that they aren't opposed to "capitalism", but what's going on in the US isn't even remotely related to what people think of as capitalism. It's a snake-pit of monopolies, financial chicanery, and legal structures to keep the proles down and to keep the rich, rich, and beyond the reach of law.
The time of the two-party democracy has reached its USE-BY date. What we need now is a well-crafted & popularly supported CENTRIST party one that can attract & hold 70% of the vote.
Then turn to the two extremes of the political left & the political right; both of which are as toxic as each other but differently so. To declare A POX ON BOTH YOUR HOUSES. Yet you are welcome in the centrist house if you FIRST give up your extremist views
ken.maynard7@gmail.com
Well said, Ken!
Vision means nothing if there is no way to enact it.
I agree with you completely. That's why so many people who voted for trump would have vote for Bernie Sanders had he been the Democrat choice for President. I voted for Bernie Sanders in the Primary. I had to temporarily become a Democrat in order to do so but then changed back to my usual undeclared status. If Graham Platner had the experience he needs in government now, I would probably vote for him, or James Talarico. I would prefer to have someone who did not support the Netanyahu regime and the Zionist genocide in Gaza.
Ok, genius, who do you recommend? And given half the Senate is made of Republicans from the reddest of red states, a 70/30 Democratic majority is delusional.
I assume you're talking to me, so I'll give you an answer you're not gonna like: Sanders. If we had had Sanders in 2016, none of this nightmare would have happened. In hypothetical polls in early 2016, of Sanders v Trump and of Hillary v Trump, Sanders consistently beat Trump 70/30 with almost no-one undecided. Compare that with Hilary v Trump: 35/35 with 30% undecided.
Sanders has had only one message for years,and it's a good one: Tax the wealthy, and provide Medicare for all who want it. It is a powerful message and it resonates, even in the red states.
Is he too old? I don't think so. Adenauer was still brilliant at that age. And, if Sanders chose a much younger vice president and agreed to be a one term POTUS this would be winning ticket.
Sanders is too old. Do not make that mistake again. Go with Kelly.
No, Trump at 79 is too old. Sanders is 84 and younger than Trump. Kelly is an interesting candidate but he still believes in Obamacare, which is basically Medicaid in disguise. Besides, Kelly will simply not get out the vote the way Sanders will. I would prefer someone like Platner, but he doesn't yet have any Senate experience.
"Obamacare" as you so ineligantly put it, is subsidies for private insurance. Red staters depend on the ACA and love it as long as you don't mention Obama.
Kelly is a corporate centrist. No thanks.
No, Graham Platner. He is on fire, taking a swing state by storm, and he's in his 40s.
One senate term, then all the way.
Ah, the Sanders delusion again. CONGRESS, not the President, needs to pass your M4A fantasy. I'm more likely to be hit by lightning while winning the Powerball.
Michael - Why not Sanders as VP instead? Just inquiring because I am not sure if he actually can get past his age as being a factor but maybe as VP it would be more tolerable for some. Plus, Biden did promise to be a one term president and then we saw what happened. I’m not sure what people are willing to do these days so that is why I am asking. Honestly, I do want to know your thoughts. For what it’s worth I would have had no problem voting for him back then but I might hesitate this time around only because the sequel is usually not as good as the premiere. But I try to keep an open mind.
Sanders was soundly defeated in the 2016 primary. Republicans voted for him because they thought it would be easy for Trump to beat him.
Republicans in West Virginia overwhelmingly voted for him to raise the minimum wage, promote union membership, and provide real economic relief. You know, "affordability".
David - The DNC also put their finger on the scale as well against him. That’s why I am curious if Sanders could actually go farther this time around if it was a serious issue.
Who is a great younger Sanders? Ro Khanna.
AOC
Who is that candidate? I see no charismatic and pragmatic individual in the current mix
The undoing will be the midterms; whether or not we are "permitted" to have one and if we are if it rigged or not. If djt decides the election will not take place or if it is rigged I hope there will be a huge revolt "the likes of which no one has ever seen before".
100% agree, Diane!
I have to believe that SOMETHING will finally stick! Perhapsnit os this. At least a few Rs in Congress seem to be waking up...
We need to stop looking at this (and all other illegal actions supported by Republicans in Congress) as solely based on fear against the wrath of Trump if they step out of line. What they're really afraid of, is the loss of the support/jobd/positions from their rich donors who promise to take care of them if they lose an election because of their support for Trump.
MKW - Yes, you are right. We need to remind them that it’s their constituents that they need to be worried about and held accountable if necessary and not their fat cat donors and a lucrative career after if they lay down and take it.
When you've been in deep coma for at least the last 10 years, that's quite an acheivement.
Besides death, a public perp walk into jail.
Polly - If shoe polish is a carcinogenic then that might take care of the problem. ;)
I think President Trump is the greatest US President of my lifetime. How exactly is his presidency "heinous"? Perhaps you should first read my previous post: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
Well he could totally bankrupt the country and then he would have to fuck off somewhere else.
Here's a question. The 14th Amendment, Section 4, prohibits the U.S. or any state from paying debts or obligations to those participating in insurrection against the U.S. It states unequivocally: "all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be held illegal and void." See full section below.
The DT Slush Fund is obviously unconstitutional. Why isn't anyone talking about this?
Section 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any state shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.
Because they deny it was an insurrection. Remember, they were just “tourists” 😡
None of the January 6 rioters were charged with insurrection.
https://legalclarity.org/has-anyone-been-charged-with-insurrection-from-january-6th/
The answer to your question is simple; only those at the bottom of the IQ-curve believe the lie that Jan. 6 was an insurrection. My previous post may help you understand the Jan. 6 fedsurection: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
How many last straws must we endure before congress or SOMEONE steps in????????? November can't come soon enough. Two weeks?
When oh when will Congress step up to the plate and say enough is enough and pull the 25th trigger????
Are you ready to have JD Vance as our next president?
What’s to lose, compared to what we have? At least I believe Vance would end the war Frump started. That would be a plus.
Yes for Vance. We can not continue with Trump. It’s a question of some hope versus the demonstrated destruction of Trump.
Jeannette, ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! We deserve better.
Congress can't do that, it has to be the VP and members of his cabinet who start the process.
https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/amendments/amendment-xxv
Barbara, waiting on someone else to step up to the plate is not action.
Do you feel like Trump is wrecking the economy and the country intentionally? Is he somebody's puppet that wants to destroy the economy?
It seems like if he were working directly for Putin he would be doing pretty much what he's been doing.
He wants to wreck the federal government. Republicans with their small government and state's right rhetoric have always wanted to reduce the power of the federal government. Bankruptsy is one way to do it.
I don't know that he even thinks that far, though. He may simply be doing whatever he sees in the moment that will enrich him and his family and keep him in office and out of jail.
He knows his power and wealth goals are aided by wrecking the Fed govt.He knows what he is doing. And Repubs who think everything should be privatized anyway are ipso facto a weak counterforce.Repubs want to use the govt to furthe enhance the rightful dominance ! of their class, but they call it being good capitalists and being business friendly as the MO legislature calls their destructive campaign against their electorate.
J. Nol - It seems that they want states rights up until the state does something that they don’t like and then it’s back to screaming about the government having the power.
Yes. They are absolutists. It's their way and nobody else's. As anti-democratic as can be. A lot of them are absolutist thinkers, probably incapable of more subtlety or understanding how compromise works. In other words, they think like children.
Gloria - Forgive my all caps - but YES and YES!
Funny note: Every time I try to type in your name it fights me and wants to put it as Glorious…I don’t think you would mind if it would occasionally win. Could be wrong though…
lol.
Richard, if we wait for SOMEONE to step in, you will be waiting a long time. IT IS WE THE PEOPLE WHO MUST STEP IN. It is clear that a majority of Representatives or Senators will not come and save us nor anyone else. When an authoritarian governments have been overturned, it is most often the organizing of a vast and broad coalition that takes them down. I have previously listed ten countries that have had nonviolent revolutions. Up to now we have been aloof from those revolutions. Now is the time to study them and learn what they did right. We must engage in coalition building and increasing mass movements to get this done. Having a good showing in the upcoming election is a good step, but this is not a "you do it time."
Those of us who are elderly and or disabled still have a depth of experience to move OUR AGENDA FORWARD. The Republican Party has destroyed itself and the Democratic Party is led by people have made themselves impotent. There are only a few who are willing to fight for me or you, so we must take back our power! And a good place to start is in building a moral, ethical and just economy such as ECONOMIC DEMOCRACY.
Here are 10 examples of successful nonviolent revolutions.
Poland and Solidarity (1980s)- led by Lech Walesa with mass labor strikes and negotiations led to a peaceful transition to Democracy.
Czechoslovakia-Velvet Revolution in 1989. The result was the end of communist rule with almost no violence.
East Germany-Peaceful Revolution 1989 resulting in the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification with Germany.
Philippines-People Power Revolution in 1986- removed Ferdinand Marcos and the restoration of democracy under Corazon Aquino
Estonia-The Singing Revolution (1987to1991) led to Estonia regaining independence from the Soviet Union. It is considered one of the most successful examples of mass nonviolent resistance in modern history.
Tunisia-The Jasmine Revolution (2011) Nonviolent protests led to leadership change and democratic reforms.
Serbia-Bulldozer Revolution (2000) Student led movement used Nonviolent tactics-Overthrew Slobodan Miolosevic with a transition to democracy
Georgia- Rose Revolution (2003) Peaceful resignation of the president and new elections.
Ukraine-Orange Revolution (2004) Mas protests against election fraud resulting in re-run election and political reforms.
He has nothing left to lose. Rather like Putin, after the Malaysian plane shot down over Ukraine, he is hell bent on doing as much damage as he can before he shuffles of to warm (hot) pastures. Scary. This could get worse. These people are powerful and not sane.
I’ve never heard of hell described as warm (hot) pastures. But I like it.
Pastures?
Satan is busy preparing a circle of Hell just for Agolf Shitler, his sycophants, the gutless eunuchs in the House and Senate, and, while we're at it, the entire GQP/MAGAT Cult.
Hell's HOA may have clauses that prohibit the current GOP cabal from moving in. You've got to enforce some standards, or "those people" will move in and ruin everything. It would destroy property values you know.
Well, that certainly is true. Such a motley crew will definitely and negatively impact property values, won't they? The neighborhood would (and I apologize for this) go to Hell, wouldn't it? I have no doubt Satan is tightening up the restrictions in the HOA terms and conditions.
Don’t forget this side of Pond we’d be happy to see Putin go too. Those long range missiles uncomfortably close. Bibi might hitch a ride too. Whole world a lot safer and better off without ‘em!
Mary - So, the word housewarming has a new meaning? ;)
Yep. It sure does.
Plenty of time for things to get worse.
It’s a concern for sure. Hoping am safe tucked away in SW UK and SW Portugal. Thing is it’s going to affect everyone in different ways.
Well said
final straw for what? he's still untouchable and wild. he's doing what he wants, he doesn't care what's legal and literally no one is stopping him.
final straws for him are congress growing a pair, arrests, prison, or death. I don't think any of that is happening any time soon. he's just a kid in a candy shop right now.
Increase the Supreme Court to 12, and limit their terms to 6 years. New Amendment to the Constitution banning states from gerrymandering House of Representative Districts. (since we know the Supreme won't do it).
I think there needs to be an odd number of Justices, to limit the ambiguity of tie votes. Thirteen makes sense because it would allow each Justice to be responsible for one of the thirteen Federal Appellate Court districts. I'd suggest staggered ten-year terms to give Justices a chance to develop their personal jurisprudence. Certifying a nominee's competence by the American Bar Association should also be a requirement.
MKW - The SC justices who have shirked their oath and duty should be removed immediately from the bench. The ones who have broken the law and enriched themselves have no business being allowed to serve. They have gone to extreme lengths to twist the law and ignore precedent. They did the same for the president. After their removal packing the court might no longer be necessary. I do agree with term limits but they should be staggered and written so that another McConnell doesn’t pull some shady stunt again.
How his whole control and GOP support destroyed the American image and trust in its system of government is the impact works wide. A complete failure.
Au contraire! My fellow America first populists elected President Trump for the third time to deconstruct the bloated, corrupt and incompetent administrative state, their enabling politicians and Pravda media. We believe that the “government derives it’s power from the governed” and we appreciate that President Trump is draining the swamp. This isn’t yet a failure but it’s not yet a total success because all of the swamp creatures still resist being drowned.
Are you still here?
And you did not mention the second part of this art of the deal/steal: that it would make Trump and his family absolved from the results of any audits for the past fifteen years. He likely owes hundreds of millions of dollars, and thus this is a gift to him of the same amount. It makes it much worse.
Also, many are pointing out that payments to some of the January 6 defendants, many of whom plead guilty, will be used to fund guns and militias. That's not exactly what the Second Amendment is about, with its wording of a "well-regulated militia." I expect multiple lawsuits, and that this is a bridge too far for even the Supreme Court. And Congress may well stop it.
The tax audit amnesty seems even more fancifully made-up than the fund itself. I can't imagine what legal basis his minions invented and pitched to him.
John - “… and that this is a bridge too far for even the Supreme Court. And Congress may well stop it.” - I hope so but doubt it. Would like to be proven wrong. Also, his multiple pardons, beyond the insurrectionists, have erased any money owed by the convicted to their victims. He leaves behind a long list of people who have been wronged and re-victimized.
That's ridiculous; if the Trump family was guilty of tax-avoidance, the corrupt autopen Biden administration would have prosecuted. Same goes for the Epstein files.
And only those at the bottom of the IQ-curve believe the lie that Jan. 6 was an insurrection. My previous post may help you understand the Jan. 6 fedsurection: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
My 2nd amendment rights protect my 1st and I laugh at anyone who would like me to recruit a "well-regulated militia" to enforce them.
I say he has overplayed his hand since day one and it has just gone on and on. No one has stopped him yet. I have no idea if this last bit of horror will be his undoing but of course I hope it will be.
To borrow a phrase: Thank you for your attention on this matter.
... the act of hubris ... ALL THE OTHER ACTS OF HUBRIS ... the very emblem of Trump’s contempt for anything and everyone beyond himself and his own self-glorification ... "
Few have encapsulated this so neatly or made the nightmare more clear. He should have removed in his first time, but those crimes seem minor compared to the current travesty.
Impeach the lard butt loser known as Trump, a despicable deadbeat loser and liar.
Don't forget proud child rapist!
Get him for Domestic Violence!
Sadly, there is never a last straw with this monster of a president. He will never be completely curtailed as president until he's out of office--and as a human being, not until his death. He is a kind of vampire upon the public good, welcomed in by his cronies and the Republican leadership. It ends badly, always.
Here’s hoping it sticks!
I wish the people of the U.S. cared to pay attention to policy, to think about its effects and to *remember* policies as imposed and as altérable. But what Trump seems to have run aground on «”Who the hell does he think he is?” with his-
- abrupt destruction of the east wing
- depiction of himself as Jesus
- out of control and out of controllable grifting through the self-suit and gaudily snarky “reparations “ fund
- construction of a Six Flags of Pro Wrestling on White House grounds as a birthday president to himself
Policy? *shrug* He’s the president.
But his parade of pinchbeck godhood? That, people understand.
I’ll answer you. I pay attention to all of the political policies and I think President Trump is the greatest US president of my lifetime. I also find that those who don’t agree are generally not very intelligent and/or informed and/or are furious that Trump is decimating their grift at the public trough. None of them are capable of ideological discourse, they just remain silent or walk away.
It pleases me that Trump the builder is renovating the White House and Washington DC. These changes will be magnificent. President Trump recently reported that there are 21 water fountains in DC and when he took office none of them were functional. Now all 21 work. It pleases me that it will bother all of the low-IQ petulant children with Trump derangement syndrome that these magnificent accoutrements to our nation’s capital will forever be a standing testament to the greatest president of our lifetime, Donald J. Trump. They didn’t have to be, but they will. And that pleases me.
The meme “Trump the healer” was poorly conceived, but it wasn’t a reference to Jesus Christ.
So, explain to me what exactly is Trump’s “grifting”? You don’t seem to me to be someone who even understands the tax code.
My previous post may help you understand the Jan. 6 fedsurection and the need for reparations: https://robertreich.substack.com/p/he-has-overplayed-his-hand/comment/267467592
Try to keep up, it’s not “Pro Wrestling” and it’s not for President Trump’s birthday. And I feel no obligation to “splain” it to you.
I don’t understand what exactly is “his parade of pinchbeck godhood”? It must be one of those left coast valley girl phrases that the rest of the world laughs at. Please explain it if you can.
If you like the policies of this regime, then you favor the denigrating of human labor, the draining of resources from labor and consumers to enrich the already-rich, the destruction of the environment and cultural treasures to build walls and shop floors and fuel shops for the creation of destructive unrealities, the construction of a police state and the diminishment of public rights to speech and choose, the promotion of infectious disease, and the draining of productive capacity to stuff a war machine, among other ends that are not mine.
So we have nothing to say to each other substantively. Even if I were inclined to converse with someone whose model of argumentation depends heavily on sneering.
None of that is true and it's obvious that you aren't intelligent enough to understand what I think.
I hope you’re right. Trump is viscous empty shell ready to explode.
Susan - I would prefer it if he were to implode…less mess to clean up. ;)
Dear Anon, Me too. Don't you wish that damn golden escalator went in reverse and tripped him up?
Susan - If it went in reverse, grabbed ahold of his pants and swollen ankles, sucked him under and shredded him…yes, that wound be nice. ;)
Agreed.
I hope Reich is right about this being the final straw.