The republicans continue to point out how the crime rate in DC has disappeared since Trump took over the control of an entire city. They love the results fostered by a modern day police state, Adolf is smiling. Trump is stirring the pot in an effort to take our attention away from the Epstein case. Crush our Democracy and use the juice to enhance the flavor of some sorted form of fast food. Our society is a powder keg and Trump is carrying a lit torch in an effort to find his way. Bolton was a deflection, DC is another of the same, and his desire to invade other cities is just his way of keeping the ball rolling. The man is obviously out of control and the worst is yet to come. The thought of declaring martial law isn't out of the question. One man is undermining the foundation of a country the world has looked to for direction and trust. Why are we allowing this to happen? The entire Republican party is under a spell of sorts; "Wingardium Leviosa," our very existence is up in the air. Trump is "The lord of the Flies" and he's been caught with his open. He ran on the idea of draining the swamp, instead he just relocated it to the Everglades where it wouldn't be so noticeable.
Hmmmm... I was torn between fighting fire with fire... and doing the counterbalance. I really don't like breaking the rules like this. They exist for a reason. But I also believe that when one party rewrites the rules, then any affected parties should follow suit. Think of it this way. If two people come to a fight with knives, then it's assumed to be an equal fight. But if one of them suddenly pulls out a gun, should the other one still fight with a knife?
Peggy, we are not going to have any fair elections. They’ve armed themselves with voter suppression tactics, and their goons will be at the polls. They’re moving to crush mail-in voting and even the use of voting machines. The truth is—we won’t be able to vote them out. It’s going to take something far more radical. The first crucial step is a mass demonstration on the 1st of Sept. If you care about our democracy, find where it’s happening in your area—be there, and be loud
They would, if Democrats reframe their messaging. Break the corporate monopolies to make a fairer capitalism and lower prices, increase taxes for the ultra-wealthy and use it to rebuild the economic social ladder by improving education and supporting family building, de-militarize to match our economic position in the world. This is not the time to be shy.
Harvey - I was torn between #2 and #3 but I settled on #2. The Democrats and independents have already lost so much because they continue to play by the old rules thinking decorum is still alive. I don’t want to sink as low as the republicans have but at this rate I don’t believe that our democracy is really functioning properly anymore. I am tired of watching the gaping mouths of the Democrats when they watch the Republicans rip up the rules time and time again. They didn’t vote to save certain laws because they never thought they would lose those rights. Well, we have. We want them to fight back but we also don’t want to seem like we are no better than they are. At this point I don’t know what should be done to counterbalance them without seeming like we are just as bad as they are. It is now obvious that the Republicans will do anything they can in order to stay in power and until enough people realize that what we once had is no longer our reality we will continue to sit and spin. I think that peaceful protests are a good thing but we are not reaching enough people for them to be effective - yet. Once people do realize what they are losing it might be too late. Plus, this administration doesn’t seem to care about what the people want. We need to make sure that if we do go low we have a way to get back up without losing our democracy let alone our identities.
Agree, Donna. If Dems had quit following the rules a decade ago -- by which time it was VERY apparent Repubs weren't and could care less -- we might not be living in Trump's hellscape. Again.
I hope the Ten Plagues of Egypt visit every MAGA who worships at the altar of Tin God Trump (except for killing the firstborn male child -- Trump might do that, but it's a bridge too far for normal people).
Play by the Rules? Democrats have not enforced the law against the criminal felony of insurrection, and the result is Trump and a fascist lawless autocracy. An insurrection by Trump began on January 6, 2021, and now continues in 2025 with his administration, Republicans in Congress and six justices on the Supreme Court. In 2029 after a Democrat is elected president, Democrats need to enforce Federal law (18 U.S. Code § 2383) which defines the criminal actions of insurrection in language that is clear and easy to understand:
“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”
Clear factual evidence of the ongoing insurrection exists in the multiple actions in 2025 that members of the Trump administration, Republicans in Congress, and six justices on the Supreme Court are violating the federal law (18 U.S. Code § 2383) by engaging in or assisting rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States and the laws thereof. Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed in 2025 against the illegal actions by Trump and his administration but the weak legal system stalls enforcement, arrest, and prosecution.
In 2029, all the insurrectionists need to be arrested, convicted, and imprisoned.
Yeah, and how will we do that when the SCOTUS has reversed 94% of the District Court decisions?? Corruption has invaded the "justice" system, and it was reinforced when SCOTUS ruled that the president can't be convicted of crimes committed under color of office. My head spins.
When the six corrupt conservative justices are removed by being arrested and jailed with a Democrat as president who can invoke the Insurrection Act to arrest, jail and replace them, SCOTUS is changed and can no longer deny justice and the rule of law. Democrats can then have all 9 justices appointed by Democrats.
That might be part of the reason, but Trump opened his mouth and lies came out. Musk funded propaganda so widespread that he had many sets of lies based on who was the audience.
I'm also convinced that Musk and his 18 year old workers had a much bigger impact on voting machines. New voting machines were installed before the election and no one was told. The race was very close, so why did Trump win all swing states?
There is also evidence that some counties in upstate NY, that Harris didn't receive one vote and voters have come forward signing affidavits stipulating that THEY voted for Harris and it wasn't counted.
OMG! True? Where can one see that evidence or reportage? Are any legal actions being taken? eg - by Mark Elias' group? IF this is true, immediate action should have been taken : affidavits collected, suits filed, police & FEC investigations demanded.
Who can we go to to right that wrong? Even if a lower court decides our votes were tampered with, and even if there's proof that Kamala Harris's votes were switched to Trump, we know from plenty of experience that Trump will go higher up in the court system until he reaches SCOTUS. Didn't a group of prominent attorneys band together to fight back to protect our democracy and rule of law specifically against the Trump administration's attacks?
Yeah, but how do you fight when the SCOTUS reverses 94% of the lower court decisions? And when SCOTUS ruled that the president can't be convicted of any actions committed under color of office?
Yes. Tampering with the voting machines in some swing states. Come on. These college kids he hired for DOGE knew how to hack into almost anything... because it can be done! They proved it in their first few days on the job.
Democratic voters who either stayed home or chose to throw away their vote by casting it for a third party aren't numerous enough to have cost Harris the Electoral College. They cost her votes, but the popular vote total is not how the United States elects a president. Those voters merely have large enough egos to believe they're important when they're actually not. In other words, "the math doesn't math" in the first place. The only actually competitive state where Harris lost significant support from anti-Netanyahu voters is Michigan. Even if there were enough voters who stupidly stayed home to flip Michigan, Harris lost by 86 Electoral Votes. Flip Michigan's 15 and Harris still loses, just by a smaller margin.
Second, those voters are about as ignorant as MAGA voters. Great, so you put on a performance and didn't vote for Harris. Guess what? You're now living in a timeline where people who support Netanyahu *even more* are running the US government. Just how did/does that help Gaza? Answer: It doesn't, it makes life for Gazans and Palestinians worse!!
Lastly, you've managed to contradict yourself in a really amazing way. You wrote "We [Democrats] did not lose the 2024 election because of our righteous and principled behavior" and then go on to argue that's exactly what happened!! Cutting off US aid to Israel would have been a "righteous and principled" stance, because military and other foreign aid is the US government funding American jobs through slight of hand.
Existing military hardware sent to countries like Ukraine and Israel is replenished by money spent by the US government. Furthermore, foreign aid isn't some giant bag of cash or a check sent to our allies and partners for them to spend however and wherever they want. It usually comes with multiple strings attached. The reason we know American weapons have been used against Palestinians and others throughout the Middle East for decades is the hardware sometimes actually states it's made here!! In other words, it's US government funding our own domestic defense industry, with Israel or another ally as the "middle man." They get the weapons they want, we keep Americans employed. For example, multiple defense contractors have built additional factories and hired more workers because of the war in Ukraine. Israel's wars also benefit the US economy. Giving up those benefits would require the US government to take a "righteous and principled stance."
Is this reply to Christine? If so, saying people who didn't vote or who voted for 3rd party candidates weren't enough to change the outcome is BS.
Harris lost Michigan by 80,103 votes, Pennsylvania by 120,226, and Wisconsin by 29,397 (Council on Foreign Relations), so less than 230K popular votes were worth 44 Electoral votes, exactly the margin of victory. If Harris had those 44 votes, she'd have won. Period.
Total turnout was about 3M less in 2024, and Harris lost by about 2.25M. So turnout wasn't key. Except in key places.
There is no question what the Dems have to do. The MAGAts don't give one shit about the rules, the law or the Constitution. We are under the thumb of a dictator - if you think that is hyperbole, than you have be sleep-walking
The hardcore red state magats are going to suffer the most when the economic downfall hits hard. Sadly, most of them will never let go of their orange blob god even when they're reduced to feeding their starving families bowls of dirt because real 'food' is beyond their reach (trump knows what he's doing, we won't be eating dirt for long). These hardcore cultists are a minority.
Conversely, we now see an increasing number of trump voters (many independents and those hit hard by tariffs) who seriously regret their vote. The growing economic woes aside, a lot of magas are furious about the Epstein files and aren't buying into the regime's, lousy, flimsy, ridiculous COVER UP efforts.
A growing sense of betrayal and "loss of faith" in the trump regime on many levels. That is why trump and his belligerent gangster cronies and traitors in the WH and in congress are now so desperate. WEAK, they are weak and "vulnerable". Power to the people....
No, they are not weak, they're not desperate and they don't think they're vulnerable....and sadly they're probably right.
Democrats have fundamentally misunderstand the problem in the first place because there's still a completely unwarranted belief all of this could be fixed if only the anti-Trump mass grew large enough.
That's false now, and it's always been false. Most GOP policies haven't enjoyed the support of a majority of American voters for at least 25-30 years.
Trump had the "extra" problems of Christian Nationalism, Project 2025, and even more extreme MAGA policies, which have *never* been supported by a majority of Americans. That's why Trump and other Republicans spent 2024 publicly running away from them as fast as they could. They didn't wake up on January 20, 2025 and suddenly decide to implement Project 2025. A minority of Americans were dumb enough and/or desperate enough to use motivated reasoning and convince themselves the campaign lies were true, so Trump won. Everything that's followed since was clearly planned out (but not by Trump or the majority of the knuckleheads in his cabinet.)
IMO, there's a fundamental misunderstanding about why Republicans engage in voter suppression. They aren't suppressing minority voters simply because they're racist. That's just the thing that gives them evil "warm and fuzzy" feelings inside, and it's gotten them votes from racists since the 1950s. From a strategic perspective, they suppress minority voters because minority populations have historically been opposed to post-Eisenhower Republican policies.
The second any of their own voters start using their brains and realize, "Wait, I've been lied to, and these people are going to f@*! me over!" those voters become part of the problem, and therefore must be surpressed. That's regardless of whether those people are straight, white and male, or the grandkids of Cubans in South Florida who are still angry that a nuclear war with the Soviet Union was pretty much the only line Kennedy wasn't willing to cross to get rid of Castro.
Successful, long term minority-majority governments, regardless if they're capitalist, communist or socialist, understand that maintaining power is what's important, not whether they have popular legitimacy. Lenin and Stalin knew in October 1917 that the Bolsheviks weren't supported by a majority of Russians. The Nazis *lost* support in the last free elections in Germany. That's precisely why those governments consolidated power the way they did and were never shy about lying to, surpressing or even eliminating former supporters. Eliminating the Nazis required some extremely ill conceived international decisions by Adolf Hitler, and eliminating communist governments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union took 75 years. The Chinese government continues to surpress millions of its own people to maintain power. This is actually the problem we face.
I disagree with your premise that republicans are "not weak, they're not desperate and they don't think they're vulnerable....and sadly they're probably right".
The only way the GOP can win elections is to cheat, steal, and lie. That makes them extremely "vulnerable" - all that work because otherwise, they're essentially unelectable. Furthermore, It's difficult to compare the USA, historically, with how other fascist and autocratic regimes suppress opposition. Many of the affected populations have never known the wealth, freedoms and democratic norms as enjoyed and taken for granted by USA citizens.
Americans are new to the suppression gambit, and it's not playing well with a large majority.. It's a THUG regime, and no matter how hard they try to cling to power with increasing levels of suppression, opposition is growing (look at the polls). In any event, if these republicans honestly believe they have nothing to fear they are also arrogant, egotistical, out of touch, and dang 'stupid'. It's not your old school GOP (they weren't great, but not horrific). The trump regime is really more of a lawless idiocracy than anything else, amoral, clowns and crooks with flame throwers. It can't end well for them...
There are no rules any more and haven't been for decades. The Dems have been played for chumps for a very long time, clinging as they have been to the illusion of "comity," "regular order," good-faith governance, and loyalty to the Constitution (aka Rule of Law).
Now there's no wasting time with subtlety and pretense. The lawlessness is right out in the open, gross illegality and corruption daily, with the régime laughing at the courts and hoisting the big middle finger.
We have no choice but to meet fire with fire, as Newsom put it: fight as absolutely viciously and ferociously as cornered animals, by means fair or foul. Again, at this point, and especially when our existence as a somewhat functional democracy is in dire jeopardy, there are no rules.
If we do not fight back with merciless hellfire, we will become a christo-fascist police state for a generation, or until the economy completely collapses and we have our own Berlin Wall moment. If we do fight back successfully but fail to implement a new market-based democracy that redistributes wealth and political power widely and deeply among the people, we will become just another autocratic oligarchy, a two-tiered society more or less along the lines of what we had before November 2024. Either way, we lose.
We have no choice but to fight fire with fire right now. But we cannot rationalize our way out of returning to democratic processes once the fight is won, if we are to rebuild as a much more just and equitable self-governing society.
I, too, was torn Donna. I do agree that we need to fight fire with fire in this instance. After we oust them, we need a major overhaul like after Watergate to shore up all of these loopholes. I think we will need to oust the judges, appointees, Congress members, and any others who are affiliated with this traitorous regime.
"Playing by the rules" works only when both sides agree to. The Democrats have been rolled by the GOP because they didn't recognize this until too late.
You should have cut their damn throat before they even got their knife out. It isn’t how you fight it’s who wins . If you have already decided physical violence is called for then do it right
It was a difficult choice. I chose only to counterbalance because I fear going down that road will normalize districting based only on political self interest which would end the idea of 'free and fair elections' as a cornerstone of democracy.
Agree, Jan, that 2010 ruling has had disastrous consequences not only from unlimited spending but also from not having to reveal where the funds are from. Big Money now determines policy, policy favourable only to Big Money. But redistricting intended to capture a super majority of voters from only one party is something else again. It will ensure permanent one party rule also known as dictatorship. Better laws are needed to prevent this type of redistricting.
Two thoughts. The scary thing is that he is not out of control. He is very much in control. That is truly scary. Second, he is not doing all this by himself. He has a think tank working hard to implement ideas thry have developed while Biden was president
Putin's trolls, and Putin, are influencing Trump and Trump's think tank. The Cold War never ended for Putin, who knew that he could never defeat the American military, but that a house divided against itself will not stand. Putin has destroyed Russia for his personal greed, and Trump is following suit with America for the same reason. The good news is that 2/3rds of the country is now coming to understand that he has been lying to them. But is that enough to overcome the propaganda blitz of an election campaign? Democrats need to be working on "Project 2029" starting now to undo the damage that is being done.
2peter, great comment. But they are not going to allow a fair election - Period. Stopping this dictatorial takeover is going to require something more radical. The first step is a massive demonstration on the Sept 1st. The 38% who support this insanity are progandized by the media otherwise their support would be in single digits.
Loomer has both of tRump's ears and Miller's. Knowing what she’s really about—and that she’s more of Trump’s advisor than anyone—would make your hair stand on end.
Harvey - In the past this kind of conspiracy behavior would have ended a person. Presently not so much. In the future it should never be allowed to happen.
He is not in control Putin is along with The Heritage Foundation . It’s all acting for him and those who voted for this turd still buy any line of shit fed to them
Gary - Third scary thought is if - somehow - the democrats win in the elections will Vance certify the results? He has already said that he never would have done what Pence did. He doesn’t care about the legality of his position in that ceremonial role.
Far too many Democrats fail to understand that the Heritage Foundation, Christian Nationalism, and the Chinese and Russians anti-American, anti-democratic goals have existed, and will continue to exist, irrespective of Donald Trump. It is an absolute mistake to make this all about Trump. This failure of imagination and strategic thinking will be why Democrats lose this war, and the enemies of the United States and democracy correctly understand this *is* a war. Most Democrats clearly do not.
For Trump, yes, the occupation of Washington, DC and the weaponization of the US government is a deflection, because he only thinks about anything in personal terms. Other than anger and rage against political opponents and people like Bolton he views as traitors to him personally, Trump doesn't have many, if any, original thoughts anymore.
More importantly, Trump's weaponization of the federal government and the rapid expansion of the militarization of law enforcement furthers the antidemocratic goals of Project 2025 and Christian Nationalism. Sewing internal division and economic and chaos also furthers Chinese and Russian strategic goals. China has already made significant gains by portraying itself as the "reasonable" nation in the Great Power Competition with the United States. Russia seeks to increase its importance by reducing the influence of the United States and international organizations like NATO, which people like Trump, Hegseth and other MAGA-types malign on a regular basis.
Epstein itself is a "distraction." We've got far bigger issues and enemies, and I really don't see many reasons to think most Americans are aware enough to see it. This isn't about Trump. This is about defeating and degrading/destroying the antidemocratic, anti-American people and organizations that created, funded and supported the rise of MAGA. Many of those people and institutions like the Heritage Foundation and evangelical Christian Nationalism concluded at least as far back as 2016 they can't get the version of America that they want democratically.
Even if democracy somehow survives Trump (which is unlikely), the misery caused by the OBBB, climate change and other issues/events we don't even see coming yet, ensures there will be another sadopopulist like him in the near future. Fight this war now, because even if we get a second chance, it'll be more difficult.
Chris, you capture something essential. This is not only about one man but about entrenched systems that thrive on fear, division, and control. I share your concern that unless we think bigger, the same forces will resurface again and again. What gives me hope is that people are beginning to imagine alternatives that touch every part of life, from how we govern, to how we learn, to how we care for each other and the planet. That kind of holistic shift is what makes real democracy possible and keeps it alive beyond any single election or leader.
Absolutely agree,Chris. And don’t forget about the the ‘tech bros’ that have made it clear that government needs to go away and nation-states need to replace it so government can be run by a group of CEOs. Pure Hunger Games. This isn’t going away with Trump.
I'm really not that worried about the tech bros ultimately.
There's a few reasons I'm not worried about them. The first is nationalism. At minimum, the Reagan Revolution, the Tea Party, and MAGA don't exist without a *very* heavy dose of nationalism. The entire GOP may not exist without nationalism. Right wing politics has also historically been the political bastion of bigoted morons who believe the "Jewish cabal" and one world government insanity. The tech bros aren't successfully selling their "group of CEOs" replacing nation-state governments to MAGA voters.
Secondly, I *highly* doubt that replacing government is even something they actually want. They're simply smart enough to know that since Reagan, "corporations good, government bad" plays well politically with a (increasingly small) number of voters. If corporations replaced governments, all the things they get now for free (because our tax code is so screwed up) they'd have to pay for if they ran the country, including collecting taxes from the rest of us.
Third, this trope that government would run better with a husinessman in charge has, in the US at least, been utter nonsense for 100 years. Hoover became a civil servant/politician after he made lots of money as a mining engineer. We all know how well electing him President went. Trump is merely the latest, and least successful, business person to become President. Both the pushback to Elon's influence in the federal government, and the stagflation and economic chaos that's coming for us from 2026-28, is going to do serious damage to the "businessman President" trope. At least until those of us who lived through the current insanity start dying off that is. Then humanity will likely repeat this mistake like we've reprated many of the mistakes that resulted in such "fun" things like Smoot-Hawley, the Guilded Age, and the Great Depression.
Successful fights against tyranny (e.g. Joe McCarthy) and bad government (Hoover) were led by well educated, well read individuals. Now that "woke" books have been taken off the shelves, the Dept. of Education destroyed, and the Smithsonian gutted (including removing Trump's two impeachment trials in the section on impeached presidents), we are on the slippery slope into fascism. I remember my parents' distressed reaction when househunting that there were no books in sight in any of those homes. And that was in the 1990s! The dumbing down of America began long ago, a foundation for a corrupt, tyrannical administration to take us further into ignorance, hunger and despair, and accelerating climate change disasters for which they will take no responsibility. Today we are faced with elected and unelected people in power who are bankrolled by mega corporations (that should have been prevented from becoming "mega" by existing antitrust legislation) and assisted by the ironically named "Citizens United" case that dumped billions of dollars into elections. It's all of a piece. Remember when Mitch McConnell ruled the Senate and we kept hearing "They're playing the long game."? Exactly, and it is going to take powerful forces to break the hold on our government, our lives, and our future.
What “bigger” issue than bringing the leaders of Gov and big business to Justice for the rape of 14 year old girls to Justice real Justice not the normal federal wall less camps where Maxwell got sent but to Gitmo with the same torture treatments and no more appeals or even a lawyer. If those girls don’t get Justice and those who participated in their rape aren’t punished preferably by hanging publicly then this country needs to start over. AMERICA doesn’t deserve to exist
Good comments on the Christian Nationalism (living in Texas I have seen just how extreme and determined they are to push their religion on everyone else), but the "Tech Bros" for lack of a better term are a problem too. With the Tech Bros it's not so much a fear that they will get elected (no one is voting for Elon Musk), but that they orchestrate a lot of pain with their money). Trump needs to be impeached, if that can't happen then I'm not sure what will happen but it likely will not be a peaceful transition.
Yes, I agree that this is a war on many levels. I do understand that this goes far deeper than Donald Trump. I just don't know "HOW" we are supposed to fight this war when we don't have the necessary "weapons" to destroy the opposition.
Normal channels have been destroyed! What we need is our own Nuclear Option.
“Fight!” you say. You’ve pretty much analyzed away every possible means we might have to fight. How do you pose we do it? Ask Europe to come to our aid?
"It is an absolute mistake to make this all about Trump. This failure of imagination and strategic thinking will be why Democrats lose this war, and the enemies of the United States and democracy correctly understand this *is* a war. Most Democrats clearly do not."
What I see/hear in various places is that this isn't about Trump, but as long as he's where he is, no "war" can be successfully prosecuted (for lack of a better word) because of him. He's in charge of the entire Executive Branch and empowered by many of the other elements involved -- Congress, the Sleazy 6 SCOTUS majority, and corporate media.
Imo, Trump cares about self-enrichment, power, and feeling important (including taking revenging on anyone he wants).
The anti-democratic elements play the "long game" and are fine using him. So a symbiotic relationship, which their leaders may recognize better than he does, but he doesn't care as long as he gets what he wants.
So where to start. Tom Gruver said "cut the head of the snake..." What's your #1?
Laurie, I think you should clarify. What is B. S.? Because I know you from every day posts and comments, and you are always supportive of comments like Chris Martin's. There must be communication breakdown in this, right?
Paula Dean, There are some statements made that I disagree with. I will always be turned off by the power and wealth of the "Tech bros". There is Nothing I can see to equate Hoover with tRUMP, because of any idea that he is a businessman. unless being a mob boss fits that description.
I have gone back and looked at some of his other comments, though, and you are right. He - Chris Martin - comes from a very different place than we do. I smell Wall Street.
Paula Dean ; I get your reasoning, but it has been a trying time and even good stress is stress. I just did not have the time or desire to go point by point over his long post. Sometimes I get weary. This regime is exhausting. I get rested to be able to keep on keeping on. "Discretion is the better part of valor". The Tech bros thing is what got to me. and suggesting that tRUMP is in any way a business man. At 74 years old I'm still working, even part time is work. If there are some things written that are total crap that I don't want to normalize, the whole thing seems rotten. It's like being "a little bit pregnant". Can never be true. Jive is jive, and when I see it, the whole thing is going to lose its legitimacy in my mind.
JayW ; If you can't tell the difference between Bullshit and a way to insult someone without an intelligent "reason" for insulting someone who voiced an opinion, Your retort says it all. It's easy, lazy and what you said.
He's the symptom, not the disease. It's only going to get sorted out when the people who voted him in (or felt that the Dems were as bad) get turned around. As much as Trump, it's ignorance, decadence, complacency, lack of empathy and disenfranchisement that has to be dealt with. As long as people won't accept that he is America, as opposed to some kind of aberration, you'll not get rid. That's why things like challenging Ai, media work is so important.
I do not usually believe that fighting fire with fire is a desirable approach. Doing so only to counterbalance I like better. But then there’s what Lincoln said in 1862 in his Second Annual Message to Congress: The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.
I share your sentiments other than your belief that the Republican Party is under “a spell of sorts”. It isn’t. The GOP is a fascist party, and it is fascist party by choice. The Party has been traveling towards for sixty years. What is truly frightening is how many Americans are Republicans and how popular Donald Trump is with Republicans. That’s what is truly frightening.
The Republican Party was moribund after GW Bush's disastrous presidency. Democrats fumbled,and enabled Trump to resurrect the party. Now Trump and his supporters are digging the party's grave. There is nothing republican about it anymore, and Trump is leading party members into chaos.
I cannot disagree with the notion that the Democrats fumbled things during the Obama years. I do take issue with the notion that the GOP was moribund following the George W. Bush presidency. Just the opposite. Conservatives, and the Republican Party have been playing the long game since 1973. That game is aimed at overturning the New Deal order and since the Reagan years the GOP has been recast to do that. But overturning the New Deal order cannot be done without a degree of lawlessness since the administrative state is, by definition, wants to use the state to level the playing field for average Joes. Since modern conservatism has deemed an active government to be illegal, fire must be fought with fire. Thus the GOP sanctions illegality. This is what Originalism and the Unified Executive Theory are all about and they define what it means to be a Republican in the 21st century. Beginning with Reagan and continuing down to the present each subsequent Republican president moving the ball farther down field. What was once radical is not radical enough and thus more is needed. The net result of all of this is going to define modern politics for the foreseeable future.
In 2008 Republicans lost all three branches of the federal government. Voters expected and demanded radical changes. Instead of striking the final blow, Obama adopted a policy of reconciliation. As an African American, he was fated to serve the ruling class. Voters understood that, and gave him two terms, and then they voted for Trump.
He’s winding up to declare martial law and cancel the elections. 2028 too. It’s a police state and must be stopped. If the Congressional Republicans give a damn about democracy they’ll start impeachment proceedings now.
You cannot finesse this. It needs a blunt instrument to pummel it into the ground. Stop pussy footing around. Trump's mob with kill every last one of you if you don't crush this attack on freedom. USE EVERY WEAPON YOU HAVE ALL AT ONCE SO THEY CANT REGROUP. YOURE ALREADY MONTHS BEHIND.
Here's a weapon we should not ignore: if the Texas redistricting shows racial preferences Democrats should immediately call it racist and file a lawsuit.
I suspect Trump is trying to stop mail-in ballots because he doesn’t have a means of intimidating voters who vote by mail. He will, however, intimidate people voting in person by using ICE goons to frighten voters, especially voters of color.
Here's the real reason. Democrats are more likely to vote by mail. Republicans are more likely to go to the polls. Mail-in ballots are easy... they allow time to think, you're not holding up the line at the polling site, you can mail them any time of day and any day of the week, they're easier for people with limited mobility, they keep people engaged even if they live miles from a polling site, you can vote no matter what the weather, etc. Trump does not want poor, disabled, or marginalized people to vote. And most of all, he does not want more Democrats voting.
Donna, everything you said, But here is a niggling thought. That donald Trump is in charge of the postal service, like everything else, it seems, Is this some kind of reverse psychology to get us to use mail in ballots, so he can destroy them all? I can't wait until he is GONE.
Donna - Agree. He also doesn’t want the military overseas to have a chance to vote either. Although there are many in the military who are republican or maga what he and Hegseth are currently doing to the military is not winning them votes. It will also disenfranchise the people who live out of country. They tried attacking them last time and lost in court only because they tried to destroy their chance of voting too close to the election. This time they are starting early. T has consistently voted by mail but now that he is back in office he doesn’t see the need to do it ever again.
Donna......Agree! Also if trump removed mail in ballots that would mean longer lines at the polling places on election day. People would be in line after the polls close but polls would have to stay open until all people in line voted. Most people would probably leave and not vote because of the lines.
And if they took away the voting machines and switch to paper ballots it would take hours if not days to count them all. That way more votes could "disappear". Maybe we should go back to the clunky old machine we had in the 70's.....haha.D
Yes, you’re right. More Dems use mail-in ballots, but by ICE goons and (next) armed guards will scare election volunteers, as well as people of color. My guess is that TACO will station them around ballot drop boxes and at voting centers, where White voters will be welcomed with a smile.
Call your local democratic office and they will provide an escort. Call a few days before the election. I am sure there will be dozens of people available for this. Good luck!
Putin told him to kill mail-in voting. The plan is clear: suppress or eliminate the vote. These power-hungry cowards have no intention of ever stepping aside—PERIOD. The GOP knows they can’t win fair elections, so voter suppression has been their weapon for decades, and now they’ve finally succeeded. Fueled by fear-mongering and enabled by voter apathy, we’ve let this go on too long. Too many have forgotten how sacred real democracy is. Maybe only the loss of it will finally jolt an ignorant public awake.
Hopeless is how I feel. A senior who came of age post WW2 so proud to be American. Fascism destroyed, rebuild the war torn world, lead the world in health and accepted new immigrants.
I am heartbroken and devastated that my final years is in a an Autocratic, mean, hateful tyrannical America. Our founding fathers are turning over in their graves.
Thank you for your kind words. Knowing history is essential so that terrible mistakes are not repeated. Today's youth seem to know little if anything about the dangers of autocratic rule. Prior to WW2 many in America were pro Fascism/Nazism.Only after America enters the war did everyone get to see the horrors of autocratic/fascist rule. America survived the Civil War but I am not hopeful regarding this current mess.
Some people like the idea of fascism because they feel helpless in a world stronger than they are, and imagine themselves wearing the jackboots to gain some strength and power, so they vote them in, only to find the jackboots pressing on their throats instead.
Helen, I'm in your boat, althought I vacilate from sad to hopeful. I hope you are able to stay positive on some small gains (like the court order to close Alligator Alcatraz)
That was an important win.. I love Everglades National Park however I fear the corrupt Supreme Court will give POTUS another win. Not only destroying lives but the natural world around us....What has America become
I was born in 49 to a family of Italian immigrants who fled fascism. My father loved America and would be heartbroken to see what our country has come to.
I would like to have chosen both fight fire with fire and to counterbalance because I feel that is exactly what Governor Newsom is doing. He said that if Texas did gerrymander for republicans, then he would redraw California's districts to counterbalance it! This is where Democrats absolutely have to fight fire with fire. I said yesterday in a comment, we have to hold our nose and no more Mr/Mrs Nice Guy, gloves are off and fight back with everything we've got. The very idea that we are allowing one old demented man tell the whole country, "You will do what I say" in every single aspect of our life is so UNAMERICAN! I wondered yesterday if we were the minority and the fascist were the majority and so many people let me know that we are definitely in the majority. There are so many more Americans that love their freedoms and rights and Democracy than there are magas, maga-republicans, and a regime that exalts nation and race above the individual and wants to repress and dictate how everyone is going to live. When we get our country back, we must address gerrymandering by using map-making tools, independent redistricting commissions and federal legislation. I enjoyed the Coffee Klatch today in that cute little cafe in Texas. Thank you, Professor Reich and Michael Lahanas-Calderon! It was a great way to start my day!
Peggy - It’s now going to be up to the voters in California to decide if they are going to vote to gerrymander themselves. I hope they will - and won’t be the only state since Ohio is also about to gerrymander their maps as well. Ohio has to redraw the maps this year because of an Ohio SC ruling and they must hold public hearings. They never listen to anyone during those meetings and do what they want. That’s how we turned from a blue to purple to red state. So even if California voters decide to counter Texas we will need another state to counter Ohio. This is where the slippery slope comes in. I’m not against it IF we fix it fairly, and permanently, in the future. I, too, think that we are in the majority but we need to get our butts in gear.
PJ - Thank you for the information. Kind of unsurprising that the Congressman Moore has changed his views once elected. I am against gerrymandering because there never seems to be a stop to it once it is done. Regardless if it is done by the left or right it is just wrong. Not surprising either that the legislature ignored the will of the people. Same thing happens here all the time with citizens initiatives in Ohio.
Wonderful news for Utah indeed! I do hope that you get the maps in time. Apparently T is holding a secret meeting with representatives from Indiana reference their maps and how they might gerrymander them. Nothing good comes out of shady back room meetings. The games have begun.
Anon........the democrats (once in power) need to write a law that the maps can only be changed every TEN years after the census and no more gerrymandering when ever the repugs feel like it!
Pamela - Same here but T just held a secret meeting with the GOP representatives from Indiana about redistricting/gerrymandering. You know it is a shady meeting when they twist themselves into knots trying not to talk about what we all know they talked about.
I had noticed that the box for your first name had first misspelled. That gave me pause, but since Reich is a trusted source, I thought it was okay. :(
Maps decide the decade. Thank you, Professor Reich. “Second coup” through gerrymanders and D.C. control is the quiet plan in plain sight. The question isn’t fire with fire. It’s how to lock fair rules so we don’t live inside one party’s map.
Two quick proofs. In 2019, Rucho pushed federal courts out of partisan gerrymandering cases, so the real fight moved to states where rules and courts set the floor. Shelby County in 2013 gutted preclearance, so bad maps and voter tricks spread faster because the guardrail vanished.
The answer is structure, not vibes. Independent commissions and strong state courts make fair maps durable because they remove self-dealing at the source. Targeted litigation under voting rights that still stand works because precise records still bite. Organizing around map hearings flips outcomes because local bodies fear public sunlight.
If this helped, tap Recommend so this climbs in feeds, and drop one question for his next explainer on what mix of commissions, litigation, and local pressure actually wins fastest. Compact receipts live at www.xplisset.com.
There's no way to "lock fair rules," X, as long as the Supreme Court can't be trusted. Imo the Roberts Court beats the Taney Court as the worst SCOTUS in US history. At least the 4 Horsemen of the 1930's were honorable men.
Jan, I feel you on this Court. We can’t count on it. But we also don’t have to wait on it. This year, federal courts did strike down illegal maps and force fixes to one Deep South state that now has a second Black-opportunity district locked for the decade, and another state’s two-district plan is in effect while SCOTUS re-hears the case. In short: the lower-court + VRA §2 route still bites.
For Texas, the path is real: a three-judge federal panel can fast-track a §2 case. If plaintiffs bring tight evidence (expert data + illustrative fair maps) and show Black/Latino vote dilution, the court can order a remedy before 2026. SCOTUS may review, but §2 remains governing law after Milligan so yeah Texas can lose.
What we do now: push state reforms (independent commissions, strong state courts) and fuel the Texas §2 suit—fund the plaintiffs, recruit mappers, gather voter declarations, keep hearings public. We don’t need this Court to move the floor.
“…while SCOTUS rehears the case” is the problem, X. Has this SC EVER upheld a lower court ruling that supported federal voting rights protections?
The Constitution only works if all 3 branches do their mandated jobs. Congress is supposed to lead the way, and we all know how well that’s been working. The SC was the LAST bastion for democracy, and it’s gone full-fascist.
I hope what you say happens, but I have no faith in it. If you’re correct, I’ll join you dancing in the streets.
Pity about the petition not being usable at this time. It sounded like we were finally going to do something to remove Trump from office. He’s poisoning the country. I hope there’s is more we can do to stop him from ruining our country.
Robert! BIG MISTAKE!!!!!!! Book tour is no excuse. If you post it, I am very likely to trust it. You owe us more about the provenance of the petition. I need to understand better that to which which I have exposed myself.
I agree with this. I depend on trustworthy leaders to point me toward legitimate ways to push back on the administration. Apparently, I can't trust Robert Reich. I'm on the verge of unsubscribing from this Substack, since I wonder how much else here is suspect. A little transparency from Robert would go a long way in addressing my nervousness.
I don't know why Reich thought to post something not vetted. But I do know that I have experienced 'fakes' posing here as people they are not, and I have reported it to Substack. So just beware.
But Reich does still need to provide more clarity on why he sent out his post on the petition so we can be ensured of a trusted site despite hackers that happen everywhere these days.
Professor Reich and Michael: i voted for "yes, but only to counterbalance" what texass is doing to steal the upcoming midterm elections. at least california has the decency to put this voting option on the ballot and to resume their normal voting maps after he-who-cannot-be-named dies in office.
i view what is happening politically in ameriKKKa right now as a civil war using pens not guns, for the time being. so every citizen must fight back, it's our DUTY.
one thing i learned recently about texass that surprised me a bit is texass is a BLUE state -- they have 1.5-2 million more registered democrats than republicans ... so how did evil overlords like greg abbott get into power? it seems they will never get rid of that creepy bastard now that he's wormed his way into power. ann richards would be rolling over in her grave to see such an evil unserious human got into office until this guy dies.
i also learned that the GOP is working on a bill to strip voting rights from all overseas americans. so if that passes (and why wouldn't it?) that would mean that american citizens overseas will be DOUBLE taxed (paying both american taxes and income taxes of their country of residence) AND would lose the right to vote. can anyone say TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION?? https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/gop-pushes-new-bill-that-would-strip-voting-rights-from-overseas-citizens/
and for those who tell overseas americans to dump their citizenship, costing $2350 (the cost has increased since the last time i checked) ... this is quite expensive, especially considering we are already double-taxed. who has $2350 just laying around, waiting to be dumped into he-who-must-not-be-named's foreign bank accounts?
We don’t register a party. You just ask at the primary vote for either ballot and you only get to vote in one. You can swap every time if you want. In my county we rarely have a Democratic candidate for local positions.
He is a psychopath, doing what psychopaths do. You are right , Frances. He must be deposed by any means possible.
And honest question: the totally corrupt, fascist Roberts Court gave him immunity for the crimes committed in his role of “president “. What about the crimes committed by the rest of his regime, including all Republicans.( Also, “immunity “ implies that his actions are indeed crimes.)
Another question: trump has committed plenty of crimes that have nothing to do to do with his “presidency “. In not bringing him to justice, he is essentially above the law. What is the reason behind that?
The Roberts Court is completely illegitimate. We must stop calling it “supreme “, we must not refer to them as “justices” . And Thomas and his wife are criminals.
It seems to me that tRUMP cannot control himself. He is a pathological liar, as you said, so he will not be able to be reformed or even shamed. The evildoers around him do have control of their desires and actions - and we can see what they want and intend to do. It's their good luck to have a pathological liar to be the front man. I think Vance is more dangerous because he does not appear to be a pathological liar - just a plain ole liar.
Yes! Newsom is Awesome!! Fight! Stand up, For Heaven’s (and Our) Sake!
GIVE US NUMBERS OF Seats at stake:
“If they do this in All Red States and We do this in all Blue States we WILL Win By (???) Seats— BUT ONLY IFYOU ALL VOTE!! Thousands are already Marching in the streets of America. Let’s Go!”
Professor, THIS. CAN. WORK. #ProjectCarrot provides the path to a #BlueHouse absolutely shredding the Trump administration for their #OverreachRampage BY THIS SEPTEMBER!
The escape hatch from Trump’s dumpster fire can be triggered through the simple choice by DNC Chair Martin to vow not to support or fund a Dem against a House Republican who declares him or herself an independent, caucusing with Dems. He’ll instruct the state chairs to do the same.
If Trump’s cruel overreach dooms their seat anyway, urge them to #FlipTheHouseNOWandBeHeroesForever
This is the first stage of what I call #ProjectCarrot. Read the link to discover the whole extended plan, from this and other DNC inducements to switch, through the first phases of a #BlueHouse, and on to #PresidentialCensure. This last phase is a way to get Trump to roll back many of his travesties, with greed as his personal carrot: if he’s impeached and removed, he can’t keep his $400M jet.
If just the first phase of Project Carrot above is confirmed, then Indivisible and other groups can join in the online and curbside messaging. Ask these potential defectors to become #ConstitutionalConservatives, adopting a label that disgruntled Republicans can get behind.
These CC members can be #PolarOppositePatriots, working alongside Dems to stop Trump despite massive philosophical differences.
Professor, you know and have the ear of Rep Ro Khanna. He and Rep Thomas Massie are co-sponsors of a bill demanding the release of the full Epstein files (with victim identities redacted of course).
Massie, a House Republican, has said that he won’t run for reelection because of the direction that his party is careening towards.
So here’s the play, Robert, that can make your decades of advocacy for the working man pay off by literally starting the steamroller that will crush #RepublicFascism and save our democracy by this fall:
Talk to Ken Martin about his role in #ProjectCarrot above. With his thumbs up, ask Khanna to put the full idea in front of Massie, including the notion of labeling himself as a #ConstitutionalConservative throwing his hat back into the ring to run as an independent. Martin will protect Massie’s seat in 2026 and welcome him as a #PolarOppositePatriot with the singular focus of saving, then building back, American’s benevolent government.
That would be one down, two to go in #FlippingTheHouseThisSummer. Massie can be the first big crack, with the might of 200 million Americans behind him forcing a wider breach.
And when that mission is accomplished, the full potential of the House will deliver a #TopDownSmackDown on Trump‘s #SquanderingOfAmericasGreatness.
So who’s with me on this? The professor was a little squeamish about telling us that his book is now the No. 1 best seller. If his movie, “The Last Class” gets a Best Documentary Oscar, that will put an even bigger lump in his throat.
Maybe if we get him to save democracy, and by extension our planet, perhaps we can finally encourage him to take a bow…
Trump is interested in aggrandizement and money. Others on his team want cultural revolution and power.
What we are seeing was planned in advance. Sequence is tactical and connected to current events. I think they are doing their best to succeed.
I think they realize they are behind the curve they wanted to be on. Intimidation is a Trump staple. So they go with normalizing fascist behavior.
He said he wants people to join in rather than call him a dictator. That was revealing. He wants approval and a population that supports him. In the end this is going to get uglier as time passes. They will not give up but must be driven out. If numbers opposing the plans prevail and teamTrump keeps losing battles, the end will work out. But that is a long uncertain haul. Burning us out is a key strategy. Trump does not relent though he caves in frequently.
Robert Important: Must See—Vigilantes Inc Free Movie…
Greg Palast, Investigative Journalist, has the evidence… And a Warning for 2026
Trump Lost. Vote Suppression Won.
Here are the numbers...
* by Greg Palastfor the Hartmann ReportJune 16, 2025
Trump lost. That is, if all legal voters were allowed to vote, if all legal ballots were counted, Trump would have lost the states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia. Vice-President Kamala Harris would have won the Presidency with 286 electoral votes.
GREG PALAST: --- "For two decades, I was a forensic economist for government agencies including the US Justice Department; taught statistics at Indiana University; provided expert calculations of vote suppression for the ACLU, NAACP, and RainbowPUSH and won the Global Editors Award for my data journalism on vote suppression measurements for reports done for Al Jazeera, BBC, Rolling Stone and The Guardian.
The republicans continue to point out how the crime rate in DC has disappeared since Trump took over the control of an entire city. They love the results fostered by a modern day police state, Adolf is smiling. Trump is stirring the pot in an effort to take our attention away from the Epstein case. Crush our Democracy and use the juice to enhance the flavor of some sorted form of fast food. Our society is a powder keg and Trump is carrying a lit torch in an effort to find his way. Bolton was a deflection, DC is another of the same, and his desire to invade other cities is just his way of keeping the ball rolling. The man is obviously out of control and the worst is yet to come. The thought of declaring martial law isn't out of the question. One man is undermining the foundation of a country the world has looked to for direction and trust. Why are we allowing this to happen? The entire Republican party is under a spell of sorts; "Wingardium Leviosa," our very existence is up in the air. Trump is "The lord of the Flies" and he's been caught with his open. He ran on the idea of draining the swamp, instead he just relocated it to the Everglades where it wouldn't be so noticeable.
Hmmmm... I was torn between fighting fire with fire... and doing the counterbalance. I really don't like breaking the rules like this. They exist for a reason. But I also believe that when one party rewrites the rules, then any affected parties should follow suit. Think of it this way. If two people come to a fight with knives, then it's assumed to be an equal fight. But if one of them suddenly pulls out a gun, should the other one still fight with a knife?
I like this, Donna! None of us like having to fight republicans the way they fight, but in order to save our country, we must!
Peggy, we are not going to have any fair elections. They’ve armed themselves with voter suppression tactics, and their goons will be at the polls. They’re moving to crush mail-in voting and even the use of voting machines. The truth is—we won’t be able to vote them out. It’s going to take something far more radical. The first crucial step is a mass demonstration on the 1st of Sept. If you care about our democracy, find where it’s happening in your area—be there, and be loud
Let me know how the mass demonstration works out fer ya. I prefer the French method of direct confrontation and bringing the country to a halt.
Who said you can’t do both?
Find enough people will the courage to do so.
Do you expect truck drivers, auto workers, steel mill workers to take your side?
They would, if Democrats reframe their messaging. Break the corporate monopolies to make a fairer capitalism and lower prices, increase taxes for the ultra-wealthy and use it to rebuild the economic social ladder by improving education and supporting family building, de-militarize to match our economic position in the world. This is not the time to be shy.
They will once they realized they've been screwed with no KY by this administration.
Harvey - I was torn between #2 and #3 but I settled on #2. The Democrats and independents have already lost so much because they continue to play by the old rules thinking decorum is still alive. I don’t want to sink as low as the republicans have but at this rate I don’t believe that our democracy is really functioning properly anymore. I am tired of watching the gaping mouths of the Democrats when they watch the Republicans rip up the rules time and time again. They didn’t vote to save certain laws because they never thought they would lose those rights. Well, we have. We want them to fight back but we also don’t want to seem like we are no better than they are. At this point I don’t know what should be done to counterbalance them without seeming like we are just as bad as they are. It is now obvious that the Republicans will do anything they can in order to stay in power and until enough people realize that what we once had is no longer our reality we will continue to sit and spin. I think that peaceful protests are a good thing but we are not reaching enough people for them to be effective - yet. Once people do realize what they are losing it might be too late. Plus, this administration doesn’t seem to care about what the people want. We need to make sure that if we do go low we have a way to get back up without losing our democracy let alone our identities.
I will definitely be there, Harvey! Thanks for the heads up!
...And, bring your friends.
Peggy Freeman ; Yes!
Agree, Donna. If Dems had quit following the rules a decade ago -- by which time it was VERY apparent Repubs weren't and could care less -- we might not be living in Trump's hellscape. Again.
I hope the Ten Plagues of Egypt visit every MAGA who worships at the altar of Tin God Trump (except for killing the firstborn male child -- Trump might do that, but it's a bridge too far for normal people).
When Democrats play by the rules and Republicans don’t, it’s like they get to shoot at a basket that’s 2 inches wider all the time.
Play by the Rules? Democrats have not enforced the law against the criminal felony of insurrection, and the result is Trump and a fascist lawless autocracy. An insurrection by Trump began on January 6, 2021, and now continues in 2025 with his administration, Republicans in Congress and six justices on the Supreme Court. In 2029 after a Democrat is elected president, Democrats need to enforce Federal law (18 U.S. Code § 2383) which defines the criminal actions of insurrection in language that is clear and easy to understand:
“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”
Clear factual evidence of the ongoing insurrection exists in the multiple actions in 2025 that members of the Trump administration, Republicans in Congress, and six justices on the Supreme Court are violating the federal law (18 U.S. Code § 2383) by engaging in or assisting rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States and the laws thereof. Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed in 2025 against the illegal actions by Trump and his administration but the weak legal system stalls enforcement, arrest, and prosecution.
In 2029, all the insurrectionists need to be arrested, convicted, and imprisoned.
Yeah, and how will we do that when the SCOTUS has reversed 94% of the District Court decisions?? Corruption has invaded the "justice" system, and it was reinforced when SCOTUS ruled that the president can't be convicted of crimes committed under color of office. My head spins.
When the six corrupt conservative justices are removed by being arrested and jailed with a Democrat as president who can invoke the Insurrection Act to arrest, jail and replace them, SCOTUS is changed and can no longer deny justice and the rule of law. Democrats can then have all 9 justices appointed by Democrats.
We did not lose the 2024 election because of our righteous, principled behavior. We lost because of bloody and looming wars.
Kamala, as had Joe, refused to curb the supply of offensive weapons to Netanyahu.
That might be part of the reason, but Trump opened his mouth and lies came out. Musk funded propaganda so widespread that he had many sets of lies based on who was the audience.
I'm also convinced that Musk and his 18 year old workers had a much bigger impact on voting machines. New voting machines were installed before the election and no one was told. The race was very close, so why did Trump win all swing states?
There is also evidence that some counties in upstate NY, that Harris didn't receive one vote and voters have come forward signing affidavits stipulating that THEY voted for Harris and it wasn't counted.
OMG! True? Where can one see that evidence or reportage? Are any legal actions being taken? eg - by Mark Elias' group? IF this is true, immediate action should have been taken : affidavits collected, suits filed, police & FEC investigations demanded.
Who can we go to to right that wrong? Even if a lower court decides our votes were tampered with, and even if there's proof that Kamala Harris's votes were switched to Trump, we know from plenty of experience that Trump will go higher up in the court system until he reaches SCOTUS. Didn't a group of prominent attorneys band together to fight back to protect our democracy and rule of law specifically against the Trump administration's attacks?
Harris' (and the Dem party's) total failure to challenge even the most bizarre-looking results has always confounded me.
Playing by the rules includes doing what the rules allow!
Yeah, but how do you fight when the SCOTUS reverses 94% of the lower court decisions? And when SCOTUS ruled that the president can't be convicted of any actions committed under color of office?
Bullshit!
We lost because of Elon Musk
Yes. Tampering with the voting machines in some swing states. Come on. These college kids he hired for DOGE knew how to hack into almost anything... because it can be done! They proved it in their first few days on the job.
That's only part of the reason and I believe did play a part. I also believe that there was suppression in the Swing states and who knows what else!
Absolute nonsense.
Democratic voters who either stayed home or chose to throw away their vote by casting it for a third party aren't numerous enough to have cost Harris the Electoral College. They cost her votes, but the popular vote total is not how the United States elects a president. Those voters merely have large enough egos to believe they're important when they're actually not. In other words, "the math doesn't math" in the first place. The only actually competitive state where Harris lost significant support from anti-Netanyahu voters is Michigan. Even if there were enough voters who stupidly stayed home to flip Michigan, Harris lost by 86 Electoral Votes. Flip Michigan's 15 and Harris still loses, just by a smaller margin.
Second, those voters are about as ignorant as MAGA voters. Great, so you put on a performance and didn't vote for Harris. Guess what? You're now living in a timeline where people who support Netanyahu *even more* are running the US government. Just how did/does that help Gaza? Answer: It doesn't, it makes life for Gazans and Palestinians worse!!
Lastly, you've managed to contradict yourself in a really amazing way. You wrote "We [Democrats] did not lose the 2024 election because of our righteous and principled behavior" and then go on to argue that's exactly what happened!! Cutting off US aid to Israel would have been a "righteous and principled" stance, because military and other foreign aid is the US government funding American jobs through slight of hand.
Existing military hardware sent to countries like Ukraine and Israel is replenished by money spent by the US government. Furthermore, foreign aid isn't some giant bag of cash or a check sent to our allies and partners for them to spend however and wherever they want. It usually comes with multiple strings attached. The reason we know American weapons have been used against Palestinians and others throughout the Middle East for decades is the hardware sometimes actually states it's made here!! In other words, it's US government funding our own domestic defense industry, with Israel or another ally as the "middle man." They get the weapons they want, we keep Americans employed. For example, multiple defense contractors have built additional factories and hired more workers because of the war in Ukraine. Israel's wars also benefit the US economy. Giving up those benefits would require the US government to take a "righteous and principled stance."
Is this reply to Christine? If so, saying people who didn't vote or who voted for 3rd party candidates weren't enough to change the outcome is BS.
Harris lost Michigan by 80,103 votes, Pennsylvania by 120,226, and Wisconsin by 29,397 (Council on Foreign Relations), so less than 230K popular votes were worth 44 Electoral votes, exactly the margin of victory. If Harris had those 44 votes, she'd have won. Period.
Total turnout was about 3M less in 2024, and Harris lost by about 2.25M. So turnout wasn't key. Except in key places.
Wars were a factor, Charles, but not decisive imo.
Yea change that to castration before any births
Good modification, Tom.
We aren't dealing with normal.
Jan.......you can thank McConnell for breaking the rules time and time again! His legacy will not be nice!
Abso-frickin'-lutely, Pamela!
Not too far for me!
There is no question what the Dems have to do. The MAGAts don't give one shit about the rules, the law or the Constitution. We are under the thumb of a dictator - if you think that is hyperbole, than you have be sleep-walking
The hardcore red state magats are going to suffer the most when the economic downfall hits hard. Sadly, most of them will never let go of their orange blob god even when they're reduced to feeding their starving families bowls of dirt because real 'food' is beyond their reach (trump knows what he's doing, we won't be eating dirt for long). These hardcore cultists are a minority.
Conversely, we now see an increasing number of trump voters (many independents and those hit hard by tariffs) who seriously regret their vote. The growing economic woes aside, a lot of magas are furious about the Epstein files and aren't buying into the regime's, lousy, flimsy, ridiculous COVER UP efforts.
A growing sense of betrayal and "loss of faith" in the trump regime on many levels. That is why trump and his belligerent gangster cronies and traitors in the WH and in congress are now so desperate. WEAK, they are weak and "vulnerable". Power to the people....
As I mentioned, there are attorneys who recently banded together to fight Trump's lawless brutes, from his cabinet down to his MAGA militias. They are taking on the Trump administration for their fascist attacks on lawyers who won't be intimidated. https://www.bestlawfirms.com/articles/law-firms-fighting-trump-executive-orders-find-support/6645
No, they are not weak, they're not desperate and they don't think they're vulnerable....and sadly they're probably right.
Democrats have fundamentally misunderstand the problem in the first place because there's still a completely unwarranted belief all of this could be fixed if only the anti-Trump mass grew large enough.
That's false now, and it's always been false. Most GOP policies haven't enjoyed the support of a majority of American voters for at least 25-30 years.
Trump had the "extra" problems of Christian Nationalism, Project 2025, and even more extreme MAGA policies, which have *never* been supported by a majority of Americans. That's why Trump and other Republicans spent 2024 publicly running away from them as fast as they could. They didn't wake up on January 20, 2025 and suddenly decide to implement Project 2025. A minority of Americans were dumb enough and/or desperate enough to use motivated reasoning and convince themselves the campaign lies were true, so Trump won. Everything that's followed since was clearly planned out (but not by Trump or the majority of the knuckleheads in his cabinet.)
IMO, there's a fundamental misunderstanding about why Republicans engage in voter suppression. They aren't suppressing minority voters simply because they're racist. That's just the thing that gives them evil "warm and fuzzy" feelings inside, and it's gotten them votes from racists since the 1950s. From a strategic perspective, they suppress minority voters because minority populations have historically been opposed to post-Eisenhower Republican policies.
The second any of their own voters start using their brains and realize, "Wait, I've been lied to, and these people are going to f@*! me over!" those voters become part of the problem, and therefore must be surpressed. That's regardless of whether those people are straight, white and male, or the grandkids of Cubans in South Florida who are still angry that a nuclear war with the Soviet Union was pretty much the only line Kennedy wasn't willing to cross to get rid of Castro.
Successful, long term minority-majority governments, regardless if they're capitalist, communist or socialist, understand that maintaining power is what's important, not whether they have popular legitimacy. Lenin and Stalin knew in October 1917 that the Bolsheviks weren't supported by a majority of Russians. The Nazis *lost* support in the last free elections in Germany. That's precisely why those governments consolidated power the way they did and were never shy about lying to, surpressing or even eliminating former supporters. Eliminating the Nazis required some extremely ill conceived international decisions by Adolf Hitler, and eliminating communist governments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union took 75 years. The Chinese government continues to surpress millions of its own people to maintain power. This is actually the problem we face.
I disagree with your premise that republicans are "not weak, they're not desperate and they don't think they're vulnerable....and sadly they're probably right".
The only way the GOP can win elections is to cheat, steal, and lie. That makes them extremely "vulnerable" - all that work because otherwise, they're essentially unelectable. Furthermore, It's difficult to compare the USA, historically, with how other fascist and autocratic regimes suppress opposition. Many of the affected populations have never known the wealth, freedoms and democratic norms as enjoyed and taken for granted by USA citizens.
Americans are new to the suppression gambit, and it's not playing well with a large majority.. It's a THUG regime, and no matter how hard they try to cling to power with increasing levels of suppression, opposition is growing (look at the polls). In any event, if these republicans honestly believe they have nothing to fear they are also arrogant, egotistical, out of touch, and dang 'stupid'. It's not your old school GOP (they weren't great, but not horrific). The trump regime is really more of a lawless idiocracy than anything else, amoral, clowns and crooks with flame throwers. It can't end well for them...
BRAVO! to you, Judith of Montreal. You understand Americans better than most Americans.
"The hardcore red state magats are going to suffer the most when the economic downfall hits hard." Works for me.
I'm an independent and I did NOT vote for Trump and never will.
There are no rules any more and haven't been for decades. The Dems have been played for chumps for a very long time, clinging as they have been to the illusion of "comity," "regular order," good-faith governance, and loyalty to the Constitution (aka Rule of Law).
Now there's no wasting time with subtlety and pretense. The lawlessness is right out in the open, gross illegality and corruption daily, with the régime laughing at the courts and hoisting the big middle finger.
We have no choice but to meet fire with fire, as Newsom put it: fight as absolutely viciously and ferociously as cornered animals, by means fair or foul. Again, at this point, and especially when our existence as a somewhat functional democracy is in dire jeopardy, there are no rules.
If we do not fight back with merciless hellfire, we will become a christo-fascist police state for a generation, or until the economy completely collapses and we have our own Berlin Wall moment. If we do fight back successfully but fail to implement a new market-based democracy that redistributes wealth and political power widely and deeply among the people, we will become just another autocratic oligarchy, a two-tiered society more or less along the lines of what we had before November 2024. Either way, we lose.
We have no choice but to fight fire with fire right now. But we cannot rationalize our way out of returning to democratic processes once the fight is won, if we are to rebuild as a much more just and equitable self-governing society.
Or maybe drugged out on Kool-Aid, Harvey.
Donna : Brilliant! That is why I chose "Fight fire with fire", like Gavin Newsome.
I, too, was torn Donna. I do agree that we need to fight fire with fire in this instance. After we oust them, we need a major overhaul like after Watergate to shore up all of these loopholes. I think we will need to oust the judges, appointees, Congress members, and any others who are affiliated with this traitorous regime.
The Republican party didn't just "rewrite" the rules. They threw the rulebook in the dumpster and then set fire to it. So did the Supreme Court.
"Playing by the rules" works only when both sides agree to. The Democrats have been rolled by the GOP because they didn't recognize this until too late.
David, imo too many Dems STILL don’t recognize it.
And agreeing to requires follow-thru. Repubs renege.
You should have cut their damn throat before they even got their knife out. It isn’t how you fight it’s who wins . If you have already decided physical violence is called for then do it right
It was a difficult choice. I chose only to counterbalance because I fear going down that road will normalize districting based only on political self interest which would end the idea of 'free and fair elections' as a cornerstone of democracy.
Agree in theory, Cindy, but “free and fair elections” went out the window at least as far back as Citizens United.
The Roberts Court makes me sick.
Agree, Jan, that 2010 ruling has had disastrous consequences not only from unlimited spending but also from not having to reveal where the funds are from. Big Money now determines policy, policy favourable only to Big Money. But redistricting intended to capture a super majority of voters from only one party is something else again. It will ensure permanent one party rule also known as dictatorship. Better laws are needed to prevent this type of redistricting.
Better laws for sure, Cindy! And better people to interpret and enforce them too.
Iow, better congressional members (to pass laws), better Chief Execs (to enforce them), better SC Justices (to interpret them).
Let's start by defining "better." 😊
ABBRS. ANYBODY BUT REPUBLICANS. They should be punished politically for generations for their betrayal of the country and we, the people.
on rare occasions the end justifies the means,donna-this is one of those times
Actually, Brooks I think the end has to "over-justify" the means -- don't just equal their means, surpass them so your "end" is more secure.
possibly,since the end-as i see it-is to continually try to create 'a more perfect union'-but regardless,we're at that point-and i hope not past it
I hope not too, Brooks. But I'm no longer sure.
it looks dicey
The rules are all ready broken.
Blue-state legislators need to get the message out loudly and clearly that:
-it's only an emergency, balancing response to red-states' unprecedented actions
-they're not diluting voters' voices by changing state-level districts
-they're giving it to voters to approve
btw - I already got in the mail, and recycled, a glossy 4-page flyer from Libertarian Charles Munger telling me to oppose the CA ballot measure
Will you respond to it, Mitch? If so, how?
Two thoughts. The scary thing is that he is not out of control. He is very much in control. That is truly scary. Second, he is not doing all this by himself. He has a think tank working hard to implement ideas thry have developed while Biden was president
Putin's trolls, and Putin, are influencing Trump and Trump's think tank. The Cold War never ended for Putin, who knew that he could never defeat the American military, but that a house divided against itself will not stand. Putin has destroyed Russia for his personal greed, and Trump is following suit with America for the same reason. The good news is that 2/3rds of the country is now coming to understand that he has been lying to them. But is that enough to overcome the propaganda blitz of an election campaign? Democrats need to be working on "Project 2029" starting now to undo the damage that is being done.
2peter, great comment. But they are not going to allow a fair election - Period. Stopping this dictatorial takeover is going to require something more radical. The first step is a massive demonstration on the Sept 1st. The 38% who support this insanity are progandized by the media otherwise their support would be in single digits.
Miller in one ear, Loomer in the other. No es bueno.
That way he has input from both the smart and dumb types of crazy…
I'm glad we are not "Stuck in the middle with them".
Loomer has both of tRump's ears and Miller's. Knowing what she’s really about—and that she’s more of Trump’s advisor than anyone—would make your hair stand on end.
Harvey - In the past this kind of conspiracy behavior would have ended a person. Presently not so much. In the future it should never be allowed to happen.
tRump is only THEIR figure head. If he dropped dead nothing would change
He is not in control Putin is along with The Heritage Foundation . It’s all acting for him and those who voted for this turd still buy any line of shit fed to them
Gary - Third scary thought is if - somehow - the democrats win in the elections will Vance certify the results? He has already said that he never would have done what Pence did. He doesn’t care about the legality of his position in that ceremonial role.
Far too many Democrats fail to understand that the Heritage Foundation, Christian Nationalism, and the Chinese and Russians anti-American, anti-democratic goals have existed, and will continue to exist, irrespective of Donald Trump. It is an absolute mistake to make this all about Trump. This failure of imagination and strategic thinking will be why Democrats lose this war, and the enemies of the United States and democracy correctly understand this *is* a war. Most Democrats clearly do not.
For Trump, yes, the occupation of Washington, DC and the weaponization of the US government is a deflection, because he only thinks about anything in personal terms. Other than anger and rage against political opponents and people like Bolton he views as traitors to him personally, Trump doesn't have many, if any, original thoughts anymore.
More importantly, Trump's weaponization of the federal government and the rapid expansion of the militarization of law enforcement furthers the antidemocratic goals of Project 2025 and Christian Nationalism. Sewing internal division and economic and chaos also furthers Chinese and Russian strategic goals. China has already made significant gains by portraying itself as the "reasonable" nation in the Great Power Competition with the United States. Russia seeks to increase its importance by reducing the influence of the United States and international organizations like NATO, which people like Trump, Hegseth and other MAGA-types malign on a regular basis.
Epstein itself is a "distraction." We've got far bigger issues and enemies, and I really don't see many reasons to think most Americans are aware enough to see it. This isn't about Trump. This is about defeating and degrading/destroying the antidemocratic, anti-American people and organizations that created, funded and supported the rise of MAGA. Many of those people and institutions like the Heritage Foundation and evangelical Christian Nationalism concluded at least as far back as 2016 they can't get the version of America that they want democratically.
Even if democracy somehow survives Trump (which is unlikely), the misery caused by the OBBB, climate change and other issues/events we don't even see coming yet, ensures there will be another sadopopulist like him in the near future. Fight this war now, because even if we get a second chance, it'll be more difficult.
Chris, you capture something essential. This is not only about one man but about entrenched systems that thrive on fear, division, and control. I share your concern that unless we think bigger, the same forces will resurface again and again. What gives me hope is that people are beginning to imagine alternatives that touch every part of life, from how we govern, to how we learn, to how we care for each other and the planet. That kind of holistic shift is what makes real democracy possible and keeps it alive beyond any single election or leader.
Absolutely agree,Chris. And don’t forget about the the ‘tech bros’ that have made it clear that government needs to go away and nation-states need to replace it so government can be run by a group of CEOs. Pure Hunger Games. This isn’t going away with Trump.
I'm really not that worried about the tech bros ultimately.
There's a few reasons I'm not worried about them. The first is nationalism. At minimum, the Reagan Revolution, the Tea Party, and MAGA don't exist without a *very* heavy dose of nationalism. The entire GOP may not exist without nationalism. Right wing politics has also historically been the political bastion of bigoted morons who believe the "Jewish cabal" and one world government insanity. The tech bros aren't successfully selling their "group of CEOs" replacing nation-state governments to MAGA voters.
Secondly, I *highly* doubt that replacing government is even something they actually want. They're simply smart enough to know that since Reagan, "corporations good, government bad" plays well politically with a (increasingly small) number of voters. If corporations replaced governments, all the things they get now for free (because our tax code is so screwed up) they'd have to pay for if they ran the country, including collecting taxes from the rest of us.
Third, this trope that government would run better with a husinessman in charge has, in the US at least, been utter nonsense for 100 years. Hoover became a civil servant/politician after he made lots of money as a mining engineer. We all know how well electing him President went. Trump is merely the latest, and least successful, business person to become President. Both the pushback to Elon's influence in the federal government, and the stagflation and economic chaos that's coming for us from 2026-28, is going to do serious damage to the "businessman President" trope. At least until those of us who lived through the current insanity start dying off that is. Then humanity will likely repeat this mistake like we've reprated many of the mistakes that resulted in such "fun" things like Smoot-Hawley, the Guilded Age, and the Great Depression.
Successful fights against tyranny (e.g. Joe McCarthy) and bad government (Hoover) were led by well educated, well read individuals. Now that "woke" books have been taken off the shelves, the Dept. of Education destroyed, and the Smithsonian gutted (including removing Trump's two impeachment trials in the section on impeached presidents), we are on the slippery slope into fascism. I remember my parents' distressed reaction when househunting that there were no books in sight in any of those homes. And that was in the 1990s! The dumbing down of America began long ago, a foundation for a corrupt, tyrannical administration to take us further into ignorance, hunger and despair, and accelerating climate change disasters for which they will take no responsibility. Today we are faced with elected and unelected people in power who are bankrolled by mega corporations (that should have been prevented from becoming "mega" by existing antitrust legislation) and assisted by the ironically named "Citizens United" case that dumped billions of dollars into elections. It's all of a piece. Remember when Mitch McConnell ruled the Senate and we kept hearing "They're playing the long game."? Exactly, and it is going to take powerful forces to break the hold on our government, our lives, and our future.
But cut the head of the snake is a damned good place to start
If the snake is coiled and prepared for defense a better strategy may be a flank attack.
Or a 12 gauge
Absolutely correct in all aspects.
What “bigger” issue than bringing the leaders of Gov and big business to Justice for the rape of 14 year old girls to Justice real Justice not the normal federal wall less camps where Maxwell got sent but to Gitmo with the same torture treatments and no more appeals or even a lawyer. If those girls don’t get Justice and those who participated in their rape aren’t punished preferably by hanging publicly then this country needs to start over. AMERICA doesn’t deserve to exist
Good comments on the Christian Nationalism (living in Texas I have seen just how extreme and determined they are to push their religion on everyone else), but the "Tech Bros" for lack of a better term are a problem too. With the Tech Bros it's not so much a fear that they will get elected (no one is voting for Elon Musk), but that they orchestrate a lot of pain with their money). Trump needs to be impeached, if that can't happen then I'm not sure what will happen but it likely will not be a peaceful transition.
Yes, I agree that this is a war on many levels. I do understand that this goes far deeper than Donald Trump. I just don't know "HOW" we are supposed to fight this war when we don't have the necessary "weapons" to destroy the opposition.
Normal channels have been destroyed! What we need is our own Nuclear Option.
Any suggestions?
Whether you do or do not have a "nuclear option" you should have a plan for a long game.
“Fight!” you say. You’ve pretty much analyzed away every possible means we might have to fight. How do you pose we do it? Ask Europe to come to our aid?
"It is an absolute mistake to make this all about Trump. This failure of imagination and strategic thinking will be why Democrats lose this war, and the enemies of the United States and democracy correctly understand this *is* a war. Most Democrats clearly do not."
What I see/hear in various places is that this isn't about Trump, but as long as he's where he is, no "war" can be successfully prosecuted (for lack of a better word) because of him. He's in charge of the entire Executive Branch and empowered by many of the other elements involved -- Congress, the Sleazy 6 SCOTUS majority, and corporate media.
Imo, Trump cares about self-enrichment, power, and feeling important (including taking revenging on anyone he wants).
The anti-democratic elements play the "long game" and are fine using him. So a symbiotic relationship, which their leaders may recognize better than he does, but he doesn't care as long as he gets what he wants.
So where to start. Tom Gruver said "cut the head of the snake..." What's your #1?
B.S.
LOL! Such "insightful" commentary. Perhaps one day you'll become educated enough to use actual full sentences.
Sometimes BS is all that is needed when what you are replying to is just that “BULLSHIT”
Chris Martin . I did use a full sentence when an intelligent member of this forum asked me an intelligent question.
Chris, "Bullshit" is an "actual full sentence."
Laurie, I think you should clarify. What is B. S.? Because I know you from every day posts and comments, and you are always supportive of comments like Chris Martin's. There must be communication breakdown in this, right?
Paula Dean, There are some statements made that I disagree with. I will always be turned off by the power and wealth of the "Tech bros". There is Nothing I can see to equate Hoover with tRUMP, because of any idea that he is a businessman. unless being a mob boss fits that description.
I have gone back and looked at some of his other comments, though, and you are right. He - Chris Martin - comes from a very different place than we do. I smell Wall Street.
I agree with you, but not with calling his entire comment B. S.
Most of what he said was on the 👃
Paula Dean ; I get your reasoning, but it has been a trying time and even good stress is stress. I just did not have the time or desire to go point by point over his long post. Sometimes I get weary. This regime is exhausting. I get rested to be able to keep on keeping on. "Discretion is the better part of valor". The Tech bros thing is what got to me. and suggesting that tRUMP is in any way a business man. At 74 years old I'm still working, even part time is work. If there are some things written that are total crap that I don't want to normalize, the whole thing seems rotten. It's like being "a little bit pregnant". Can never be true. Jive is jive, and when I see it, the whole thing is going to lose its legitimacy in my mind.
JayW ; If you can't tell the difference between Bullshit and a way to insult someone without an intelligent "reason" for insulting someone who voiced an opinion, Your retort says it all. It's easy, lazy and what you said.
Back to Jr. High, JayW?
Oh, goody.
He's the symptom, not the disease. It's only going to get sorted out when the people who voted him in (or felt that the Dems were as bad) get turned around. As much as Trump, it's ignorance, decadence, complacency, lack of empathy and disenfranchisement that has to be dealt with. As long as people won't accept that he is America, as opposed to some kind of aberration, you'll not get rid. That's why things like challenging Ai, media work is so important.
Yes, Trump is their poster child
I do not usually believe that fighting fire with fire is a desirable approach. Doing so only to counterbalance I like better. But then there’s what Lincoln said in 1862 in his Second Annual Message to Congress: The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.
I share your sentiments other than your belief that the Republican Party is under “a spell of sorts”. It isn’t. The GOP is a fascist party, and it is fascist party by choice. The Party has been traveling towards for sixty years. What is truly frightening is how many Americans are Republicans and how popular Donald Trump is with Republicans. That’s what is truly frightening.
The Republican Party was moribund after GW Bush's disastrous presidency. Democrats fumbled,and enabled Trump to resurrect the party. Now Trump and his supporters are digging the party's grave. There is nothing republican about it anymore, and Trump is leading party members into chaos.
I cannot disagree with the notion that the Democrats fumbled things during the Obama years. I do take issue with the notion that the GOP was moribund following the George W. Bush presidency. Just the opposite. Conservatives, and the Republican Party have been playing the long game since 1973. That game is aimed at overturning the New Deal order and since the Reagan years the GOP has been recast to do that. But overturning the New Deal order cannot be done without a degree of lawlessness since the administrative state is, by definition, wants to use the state to level the playing field for average Joes. Since modern conservatism has deemed an active government to be illegal, fire must be fought with fire. Thus the GOP sanctions illegality. This is what Originalism and the Unified Executive Theory are all about and they define what it means to be a Republican in the 21st century. Beginning with Reagan and continuing down to the present each subsequent Republican president moving the ball farther down field. What was once radical is not radical enough and thus more is needed. The net result of all of this is going to define modern politics for the foreseeable future.
In 2008 Republicans lost all three branches of the federal government. Voters expected and demanded radical changes. Instead of striking the final blow, Obama adopted a policy of reconciliation. As an African American, he was fated to serve the ruling class. Voters understood that, and gave him two terms, and then they voted for Trump.
Liberals support democracy and the rule of law but conservatives are now lawless fascists who don’t
Bolton is not a deflection, he is a victim like the other victims. He sounded off about Trump and is paying the price. Trump and the GOP should hang.
Yes, Golding was prescient. I also love his book "The Inheritors". We humans carry with us the urge to destroy anything we don't understand.
He’s winding up to declare martial law and cancel the elections. 2028 too. It’s a police state and must be stopped. If the Congressional Republicans give a damn about democracy they’ll start impeachment proceedings now.
He wants to I stall a national police state. He wants to distract from Epstein.
You cannot finesse this. It needs a blunt instrument to pummel it into the ground. Stop pussy footing around. Trump's mob with kill every last one of you if you don't crush this attack on freedom. USE EVERY WEAPON YOU HAVE ALL AT ONCE SO THEY CANT REGROUP. YOURE ALREADY MONTHS BEHIND.
Yes. Each option offered in today’s poll is reactionary. Unfortunately however, the rules have been thrown out the window of this train.
“War, children. It’s just a shot away.”
Here's a weapon we should not ignore: if the Texas redistricting shows racial preferences Democrats should immediately call it racist and file a lawsuit.
I suspect Trump is trying to stop mail-in ballots because he doesn’t have a means of intimidating voters who vote by mail. He will, however, intimidate people voting in person by using ICE goons to frighten voters, especially voters of color.
Here's the real reason. Democrats are more likely to vote by mail. Republicans are more likely to go to the polls. Mail-in ballots are easy... they allow time to think, you're not holding up the line at the polling site, you can mail them any time of day and any day of the week, they're easier for people with limited mobility, they keep people engaged even if they live miles from a polling site, you can vote no matter what the weather, etc. Trump does not want poor, disabled, or marginalized people to vote. And most of all, he does not want more Democrats voting.
Donna, everything you said, But here is a niggling thought. That donald Trump is in charge of the postal service, like everything else, it seems, Is this some kind of reverse psychology to get us to use mail in ballots, so he can destroy them all? I can't wait until he is GONE.
Donna - Agree. He also doesn’t want the military overseas to have a chance to vote either. Although there are many in the military who are republican or maga what he and Hegseth are currently doing to the military is not winning them votes. It will also disenfranchise the people who live out of country. They tried attacking them last time and lost in court only because they tried to destroy their chance of voting too close to the election. This time they are starting early. T has consistently voted by mail but now that he is back in office he doesn’t see the need to do it ever again.
Donna......Agree! Also if trump removed mail in ballots that would mean longer lines at the polling places on election day. People would be in line after the polls close but polls would have to stay open until all people in line voted. Most people would probably leave and not vote because of the lines.
And if they took away the voting machines and switch to paper ballots it would take hours if not days to count them all. That way more votes could "disappear". Maybe we should go back to the clunky old machine we had in the 70's.....haha.D
Yes, you’re right. More Dems use mail-in ballots, but by ICE goons and (next) armed guards will scare election volunteers, as well as people of color. My guess is that TACO will station them around ballot drop boxes and at voting centers, where White voters will be welcomed with a smile.
Spot on! I was thinking that he wanted to end mail-in voting and use hand-marked paper ballots because the machines that count them can be rigged.
But a massive ICE presence near precincts on voting day would definitely be his play.
Voting in person is frightening for those of us who are elderly and differently abled as well because it will be hard to protect ourselves
Call your local democratic office and they will provide an escort. Call a few days before the election. I am sure there will be dozens of people available for this. Good luck!
Putin told him to kill mail-in voting. The plan is clear: suppress or eliminate the vote. These power-hungry cowards have no intention of ever stepping aside—PERIOD. The GOP knows they can’t win fair elections, so voter suppression has been their weapon for decades, and now they’ve finally succeeded. Fueled by fear-mongering and enabled by voter apathy, we’ve let this go on too long. Too many have forgotten how sacred real democracy is. Maybe only the loss of it will finally jolt an ignorant public awake.
Hopeless is how I feel. A senior who came of age post WW2 so proud to be American. Fascism destroyed, rebuild the war torn world, lead the world in health and accepted new immigrants.
I am heartbroken and devastated that my final years is in a an Autocratic, mean, hateful tyrannical America. Our founding fathers are turning over in their graves.
I'm so sorry, Helen. Thank you for your comment. We need your voice. Please keep speaking up.
The younger people who are beginning to learn what loss of freedom means need you.
Thank you for your kind words. Knowing history is essential so that terrible mistakes are not repeated. Today's youth seem to know little if anything about the dangers of autocratic rule. Prior to WW2 many in America were pro Fascism/Nazism.Only after America enters the war did everyone get to see the horrors of autocratic/fascist rule. America survived the Civil War but I am not hopeful regarding this current mess.
Some people like the idea of fascism because they feel helpless in a world stronger than they are, and imagine themselves wearing the jackboots to gain some strength and power, so they vote them in, only to find the jackboots pressing on their throats instead.
Or hurting their sore feet!
Helen, I'm in your boat, althought I vacilate from sad to hopeful. I hope you are able to stay positive on some small gains (like the court order to close Alligator Alcatraz)
That was an important win.. I love Everglades National Park however I fear the corrupt Supreme Court will give POTUS another win. Not only destroying lives but the natural world around us....What has America become
Indeed, this was good news! I hope it remains.
I was born in 49 to a family of Italian immigrants who fled fascism. My father loved America and would be heartbroken to see what our country has come to.
My father and many extended family members fled Europe
Maybe only half of our founding fathers but not the slave owners are turning over in their graves. We started off this nation on the wrong foot!
I would like to have chosen both fight fire with fire and to counterbalance because I feel that is exactly what Governor Newsom is doing. He said that if Texas did gerrymander for republicans, then he would redraw California's districts to counterbalance it! This is where Democrats absolutely have to fight fire with fire. I said yesterday in a comment, we have to hold our nose and no more Mr/Mrs Nice Guy, gloves are off and fight back with everything we've got. The very idea that we are allowing one old demented man tell the whole country, "You will do what I say" in every single aspect of our life is so UNAMERICAN! I wondered yesterday if we were the minority and the fascist were the majority and so many people let me know that we are definitely in the majority. There are so many more Americans that love their freedoms and rights and Democracy than there are magas, maga-republicans, and a regime that exalts nation and race above the individual and wants to repress and dictate how everyone is going to live. When we get our country back, we must address gerrymandering by using map-making tools, independent redistricting commissions and federal legislation. I enjoyed the Coffee Klatch today in that cute little cafe in Texas. Thank you, Professor Reich and Michael Lahanas-Calderon! It was a great way to start my day!
Well said
Peggy - It’s now going to be up to the voters in California to decide if they are going to vote to gerrymander themselves. I hope they will - and won’t be the only state since Ohio is also about to gerrymander their maps as well. Ohio has to redraw the maps this year because of an Ohio SC ruling and they must hold public hearings. They never listen to anyone during those meetings and do what they want. That’s how we turned from a blue to purple to red state. So even if California voters decide to counter Texas we will need another state to counter Ohio. This is where the slippery slope comes in. I’m not against it IF we fix it fairly, and permanently, in the future. I, too, think that we are in the majority but we need to get our butts in gear.
Utah has been valiantly battling gerrymandering for years, any day there will be a court decision coming down that may affect other states.
https://utahnewsdispatch.com/2025/08/08/looming-redistricting-ruling-may-push-utah-into-spotlight/?emci=a9dedde1-767f-f011-b484-6045bdeb7413&emdi=4c15d1e5-7d7f-f011-b484-6045bdeb7413&ceid=4135606
PJ - Thank you for the information. Kind of unsurprising that the Congressman Moore has changed his views once elected. I am against gerrymandering because there never seems to be a stop to it once it is done. Regardless if it is done by the left or right it is just wrong. Not surprising either that the legislature ignored the will of the people. Same thing happens here all the time with citizens initiatives in Ohio.
https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2025/08/25/utah-judge-orders-new-non/
Good news from Utah!
Wonderful news for Utah indeed! I do hope that you get the maps in time. Apparently T is holding a secret meeting with representatives from Indiana reference their maps and how they might gerrymander them. Nothing good comes out of shady back room meetings. The games have begun.
Anon........the democrats (once in power) need to write a law that the maps can only be changed every TEN years after the census and no more gerrymandering when ever the repugs feel like it!
Pamela - Completely agree and when it’s time to change the maps they need to take the politicians out of the equation.
Absolutely, Anon!
Anon........I believe Illinois and New York will step in to counter any red state that gerrymandering. As long as it's seat for seat I'm all for it.
Pamela - Same here but T just held a secret meeting with the GOP representatives from Indiana about redistricting/gerrymandering. You know it is a shady meeting when they twist themselves into knots trying not to talk about what we all know they talked about.
Do you know where that petition came from at this point? I signed it and now feel concerned about where that info went.
Yep, me too. And sent it on to friends.
Would like some answers, please.
I signed too. Is there more information about this petition?
I know, Elizabeth! I signed it, too, and now am worried!
Me too! Also forwarded to friends...
I had noticed that the box for your first name had first misspelled. That gave me pause, but since Reich is a trusted source, I thought it was okay. :(
There have been fake posts on Reich's Substack I have reported to Substack. Reich needs to be more forthcoming about this matter.
Maps decide the decade. Thank you, Professor Reich. “Second coup” through gerrymanders and D.C. control is the quiet plan in plain sight. The question isn’t fire with fire. It’s how to lock fair rules so we don’t live inside one party’s map.
Two quick proofs. In 2019, Rucho pushed federal courts out of partisan gerrymandering cases, so the real fight moved to states where rules and courts set the floor. Shelby County in 2013 gutted preclearance, so bad maps and voter tricks spread faster because the guardrail vanished.
The answer is structure, not vibes. Independent commissions and strong state courts make fair maps durable because they remove self-dealing at the source. Targeted litigation under voting rights that still stand works because precise records still bite. Organizing around map hearings flips outcomes because local bodies fear public sunlight.
If this helped, tap Recommend so this climbs in feeds, and drop one question for his next explainer on what mix of commissions, litigation, and local pressure actually wins fastest. Compact receipts live at www.xplisset.com.
There's no way to "lock fair rules," X, as long as the Supreme Court can't be trusted. Imo the Roberts Court beats the Taney Court as the worst SCOTUS in US history. At least the 4 Horsemen of the 1930's were honorable men.
Guardrails below SCOTUS exist and 2025 proved it.
Jan, I feel you on this Court. We can’t count on it. But we also don’t have to wait on it. This year, federal courts did strike down illegal maps and force fixes to one Deep South state that now has a second Black-opportunity district locked for the decade, and another state’s two-district plan is in effect while SCOTUS re-hears the case. In short: the lower-court + VRA §2 route still bites.
For Texas, the path is real: a three-judge federal panel can fast-track a §2 case. If plaintiffs bring tight evidence (expert data + illustrative fair maps) and show Black/Latino vote dilution, the court can order a remedy before 2026. SCOTUS may review, but §2 remains governing law after Milligan so yeah Texas can lose.
What we do now: push state reforms (independent commissions, strong state courts) and fuel the Texas §2 suit—fund the plaintiffs, recruit mappers, gather voter declarations, keep hearings public. We don’t need this Court to move the floor.
Paper wins.
Love this, Xplisset! Totally spot on!
“…while SCOTUS rehears the case” is the problem, X. Has this SC EVER upheld a lower court ruling that supported federal voting rights protections?
The Constitution only works if all 3 branches do their mandated jobs. Congress is supposed to lead the way, and we all know how well that’s been working. The SC was the LAST bastion for democracy, and it’s gone full-fascist.
I hope what you say happens, but I have no faith in it. If you’re correct, I’ll join you dancing in the streets.
I signed petition and forwarded to others.
Where did my signature go???
Pity about the petition not being usable at this time. It sounded like we were finally going to do something to remove Trump from office. He’s poisoning the country. I hope there’s is more we can do to stop him from ruining our country.
It wouldn’t have removed him from office. I signed too but as a symbol of protest. It wasn’t a legal mechanism for removal.
Nor do we know its source!
Robert! BIG MISTAKE!!!!!!! Book tour is no excuse. If you post it, I am very likely to trust it. You owe us more about the provenance of the petition. I need to understand better that to which which I have exposed myself.
I agree with this. I depend on trustworthy leaders to point me toward legitimate ways to push back on the administration. Apparently, I can't trust Robert Reich. I'm on the verge of unsubscribing from this Substack, since I wonder how much else here is suspect. A little transparency from Robert would go a long way in addressing my nervousness.
I don't know why Reich thought to post something not vetted. But I do know that I have experienced 'fakes' posing here as people they are not, and I have reported it to Substack. So just beware.
But Reich does still need to provide more clarity on why he sent out his post on the petition so we can be ensured of a trusted site despite hackers that happen everywhere these days.
Professor Reich and Michael: i voted for "yes, but only to counterbalance" what texass is doing to steal the upcoming midterm elections. at least california has the decency to put this voting option on the ballot and to resume their normal voting maps after he-who-cannot-be-named dies in office.
i view what is happening politically in ameriKKKa right now as a civil war using pens not guns, for the time being. so every citizen must fight back, it's our DUTY.
one thing i learned recently about texass that surprised me a bit is texass is a BLUE state -- they have 1.5-2 million more registered democrats than republicans ... so how did evil overlords like greg abbott get into power? it seems they will never get rid of that creepy bastard now that he's wormed his way into power. ann richards would be rolling over in her grave to see such an evil unserious human got into office until this guy dies.
i also learned that the GOP is working on a bill to strip voting rights from all overseas americans. so if that passes (and why wouldn't it?) that would mean that american citizens overseas will be DOUBLE taxed (paying both american taxes and income taxes of their country of residence) AND would lose the right to vote. can anyone say TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION?? https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/gop-pushes-new-bill-that-would-strip-voting-rights-from-overseas-citizens/
and for those who tell overseas americans to dump their citizenship, costing $2350 (the cost has increased since the last time i checked) ... this is quite expensive, especially considering we are already double-taxed. who has $2350 just laying around, waiting to be dumped into he-who-must-not-be-named's foreign bank accounts?
We don’t register a party. You just ask at the primary vote for either ballot and you only get to vote in one. You can swap every time if you want. In my county we rarely have a Democratic candidate for local positions.
yeah, i KNEW i shoulda checked that before i wrote it. grrr.
Trump is a pathological liar with no ethics and boundless ambition to become a tyrant of America. He must be stopped!
He is a psychopath, doing what psychopaths do. You are right , Frances. He must be deposed by any means possible.
And honest question: the totally corrupt, fascist Roberts Court gave him immunity for the crimes committed in his role of “president “. What about the crimes committed by the rest of his regime, including all Republicans.( Also, “immunity “ implies that his actions are indeed crimes.)
Another question: trump has committed plenty of crimes that have nothing to do to do with his “presidency “. In not bringing him to justice, he is essentially above the law. What is the reason behind that?
The Roberts Court is completely illegitimate. We must stop calling it “supreme “, we must not refer to them as “justices” . And Thomas and his wife are criminals.
It seems to me that tRUMP cannot control himself. He is a pathological liar, as you said, so he will not be able to be reformed or even shamed. The evildoers around him do have control of their desires and actions - and we can see what they want and intend to do. It's their good luck to have a pathological liar to be the front man. I think Vance is more dangerous because he does not appear to be a pathological liar - just a plain ole liar.
Yes! Newsom is Awesome!! Fight! Stand up, For Heaven’s (and Our) Sake!
GIVE US NUMBERS OF Seats at stake:
“If they do this in All Red States and We do this in all Blue States we WILL Win By (???) Seats— BUT ONLY IFYOU ALL VOTE!! Thousands are already Marching in the streets of America. Let’s Go!”
There unfortunately are quite a few more red states than blue states, so your math just may not work with that plan.
The blue voters are a majority. Red states are red because of all the cheating they have done and continue to do.
Professor, THIS. CAN. WORK. #ProjectCarrot provides the path to a #BlueHouse absolutely shredding the Trump administration for their #OverreachRampage BY THIS SEPTEMBER!
The escape hatch from Trump’s dumpster fire can be triggered through the simple choice by DNC Chair Martin to vow not to support or fund a Dem against a House Republican who declares him or herself an independent, caucusing with Dems. He’ll instruct the state chairs to do the same.
If Trump’s cruel overreach dooms their seat anyway, urge them to #FlipTheHouseNOWandBeHeroesForever
This is the first stage of what I call #ProjectCarrot. Read the link to discover the whole extended plan, from this and other DNC inducements to switch, through the first phases of a #BlueHouse, and on to #PresidentialCensure. This last phase is a way to get Trump to roll back many of his travesties, with greed as his personal carrot: if he’s impeached and removed, he can’t keep his $400M jet.
https://open.substack.com/pub/toddtelford/p/forget-the-gerrymandering-wars-take?r=13imj&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
If just the first phase of Project Carrot above is confirmed, then Indivisible and other groups can join in the online and curbside messaging. Ask these potential defectors to become #ConstitutionalConservatives, adopting a label that disgruntled Republicans can get behind.
These CC members can be #PolarOppositePatriots, working alongside Dems to stop Trump despite massive philosophical differences.
This is the fastest way out, folks.
Professor, you know and have the ear of Rep Ro Khanna. He and Rep Thomas Massie are co-sponsors of a bill demanding the release of the full Epstein files (with victim identities redacted of course).
Massie, a House Republican, has said that he won’t run for reelection because of the direction that his party is careening towards.
So here’s the play, Robert, that can make your decades of advocacy for the working man pay off by literally starting the steamroller that will crush #RepublicFascism and save our democracy by this fall:
Talk to Ken Martin about his role in #ProjectCarrot above. With his thumbs up, ask Khanna to put the full idea in front of Massie, including the notion of labeling himself as a #ConstitutionalConservative throwing his hat back into the ring to run as an independent. Martin will protect Massie’s seat in 2026 and welcome him as a #PolarOppositePatriot with the singular focus of saving, then building back, American’s benevolent government.
That would be one down, two to go in #FlippingTheHouseThisSummer. Massie can be the first big crack, with the might of 200 million Americans behind him forcing a wider breach.
And when that mission is accomplished, the full potential of the House will deliver a #TopDownSmackDown on Trump‘s #SquanderingOfAmericasGreatness.
So who’s with me on this? The professor was a little squeamish about telling us that his book is now the No. 1 best seller. If his movie, “The Last Class” gets a Best Documentary Oscar, that will put an even bigger lump in his throat.
Maybe if we get him to save democracy, and by extension our planet, perhaps we can finally encourage him to take a bow…
Trump is interested in aggrandizement and money. Others on his team want cultural revolution and power.
What we are seeing was planned in advance. Sequence is tactical and connected to current events. I think they are doing their best to succeed.
I think they realize they are behind the curve they wanted to be on. Intimidation is a Trump staple. So they go with normalizing fascist behavior.
He said he wants people to join in rather than call him a dictator. That was revealing. He wants approval and a population that supports him. In the end this is going to get uglier as time passes. They will not give up but must be driven out. If numbers opposing the plans prevail and teamTrump keeps losing battles, the end will work out. But that is a long uncertain haul. Burning us out is a key strategy. Trump does not relent though he caves in frequently.
Robert Important: Must See—Vigilantes Inc Free Movie…
Greg Palast, Investigative Journalist, has the evidence… And a Warning for 2026
Trump Lost. Vote Suppression Won.
Here are the numbers...
* by Greg Palastfor the Hartmann ReportJune 16, 2025
Trump lost. That is, if all legal voters were allowed to vote, if all legal ballots were counted, Trump would have lost the states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia. Vice-President Kamala Harris would have won the Presidency with 286 electoral votes.
GREG PALAST: --- "For two decades, I was a forensic economist for government agencies including the US Justice Department; taught statistics at Indiana University; provided expert calculations of vote suppression for the ACLU, NAACP, and RainbowPUSH and won the Global Editors Award for my data journalism on vote suppression measurements for reports done for Al Jazeera, BBC, Rolling Stone and The Guardian.
Vigilantes, Inc. Movie—
https://www.gregpalast.com/vigilantes-inc-the-movie/
And: Trump Lost. Vote Suppression Won.
Here are the numbers...
by Greg Palastfor the Hartmann ReportJune 16, 2025
https://www.gregpalast.com/trump-lost-vote-suppression-won/