Dr. Richardson shows us that this is the same ole same ole tired sermon with a new suit: if “only we are right,” then why have elections at all. And once you tell yourself the other side is “violent” and “vicious” just for existing, you can justify anything you do to silence them.
Then comes the second move: rewrite January 6, call the attackers patriots, call the truth a lie, and dare the nation to accept it. I wrote about this.
And the third move is abroad: talk about “freedom” while threatening Greenland, shaking NATO, and treating Venezuela like an oil field with a flag on it.
But hear me and hear me clearly: power always overreaches when it thinks it owns the country. And it is on us…regular people, stubborn people to keep saying: we vote, we count, we remember. We vote, we count, we remember. www.xplisset.com
We cannot have our country cancel elections as trump has suggested. Again we need to hit the streets the minute this happens. We need to call our representatives and we need to work with all fifty states and their election commissions to ensure voting happens. It is the states not the Federal government that govern our elections. There is zero reason to cancel elections. The push back needs to be overwhelming or we lose our country.
Margaux, you're so right. And to get that overwhelming response in the streets we need to be part of a coordinating organization. For me that's Indivisible, which has worked so tirelessly to get the turnout for No Kings Protests. You can get on their mailing list here: https://indivisible.org
Other newsletters on Substack like Robert Hubbell's and Hopium Chronicles will always be doing the prep for this kind of action. I'd love to hear other recommendations.
Yes, I agree.Marching by the millions, sure,but also boycotting,calls every day all day to our reps and other measures to keep the pressure going. We are not going away.I continue to call my reps every day demanding the release of the Epstein files.Whatever it takes.
Turns out only a fraction of the Epstein files have been released, so there must be more pressure to make sure that happens quickly and in totality before the most damaging parts are redacted.
From what I've read so far, we all agree that this regime is a travesty (putting it nicely). Here in the US laws are ignored and broken daily. Republicans turn their heads and look the other way. NO ONE is going to jail.There is no law governing this regime. Period. International laws are being ignored along with treaties that date back to World War II. Nothing is being done except shaking fingers and telling the US they're being naughty. I am losing more and more faith in the American people's ability to care about what really is right and wrong, so we must continue the fight against misinformation and the self indulgence that has brought us to this point.
Once our foreign allies, these countries need to face the fact that while there are those of us that staunchly support the ousting of this evil regime they need to realize the fact that we may be losing the battle. Those that were once our allies need to immediately put as many sanctions and boycotts as possible. There is psychotic moron in charge of the most powerful military on earth. Foreign leaders must realize this and act accordingly, immediately.
It's unbelievable how misogynist these guys are, openly condemning giving women the right to vote. They sound like disturbed toddlers who when told they have to share throw a temper tantrum. Not only have most of them never matured into adulthood, they reveal every day what terrible jobs their parents did raising them.
How can Republicans in Congress not defend us against Trump's illegal, immoral and disgusting behavior? The past 2 days gave a graphic answer. As Trump announced that the US would steal "between 30 and 50 million barrels of Venezuela's oil" for the United States, the DJIA stock market jumped up by 2.514%. For millionaires invested in the DJIA stocks, this was a profit of $25,140 for each million dollars they have invested. For billionaires, it was a profit of $25,140,000 for each billion they have invested. In just 2 days! With a small fraction of these kind of profits they can lavishly finance the election campaigns for their representatives in Congress.
Meanwhile the majority who do not have significant investments in the stock market experienced only another widening of the wealth gap in this country.
Theil and cronies had a little thing going in Honduras while Hernandez was president. Prospera is a special economic zone ( online nation) founded by Thiel and Andreessen. Balajji Srinivasan created the idea of online nation with its own culture, economy, tax structure. Castro thought that it would be the perfect attraction for bad foreign characters and had them made illegal. isn't there some sort of cyber money that is untraceable? Possibly a reason trump pardoned Hernandez with Thiel being involved.
I agree with everything Heather stated except that “undocumented immigration was less than what it was at the end of the Trump administration.” It clearly wasn’t and issues are often dumbed down to basics, it had gotten out of control and Trump shrewdly used it to convince enough voters to revenge vote. An ugly truth is hard to swallow but it’s there if one opens one’s eyes.
Bill Katz Donald’s Vanity Tantrums and Mo… "I agree with everything Heather stated except..."
I agree that immigration is often oversimplified. Where I disagree is the claim about timing. By the end of the Trump administration, undocumented crossings were already at historic highs, driven by pandemic disruptions, Title 42 expulsions, and pent-up migration pressures that began in 2020. Those dynamics did not suddenly appear afterward.
Trump absolutely used immigration effectively as a political wedge, but that does not make the underlying data disappear. Acknowledging complexity cuts both ways.
Calling it an “ugly truth” does not make it true. Border crossings surged before Trump left office, and the idea that the situation was stable at the end of his term is contradicted by DHS and CBP data.
Trump did not fix immigration. He politicized it. That worked electorally, but it did not change the reality on the ground.
A important piece in most voters' eyes is comparing the number of illegal immigrants who came in during Biden's years to the number coming in now since the start of Trump's second term. Trump has secured and closed down the flood of immigrants coming in through the southern border. People may not like the policy or how it's being done, but that border has been pretty closed down to illegal immigration.
Totally agree. So tired of people thinking congress will stop him, or the courts will stop him. I can’t believe I’m saying this - but our military has to be cleared of trump loyalists, and then be used to arrest and jail every one of them.
Nobody will stop Trump from doing whatever he wants. I hoped the military brass might honor their oath of loyalty to the Constitution, but their acquiescence to Trump’s orders of piracy on the high seas proved that hope to be entirely in vain. Congress won’t stop Trump. The courts can’t stop him. The military has abandoned its obligations. And the majority of white Americans are fine with all of this. If they weren’t, Congress would put a stop to it by removing Trump from office.
We ALL need to stop patronizing the tech and retail companies supporting this regime, cut off their sources of income. They assume they are necessary but their products and convenience really aren’t. Independent media is the only media source to be relied on now.
I smell desperation. We can't stop believing in who we are. We can't stop believing in our Constitution and the freedoms it guarantees us. In the end, We the People will prevail and stop the madness and destruction. This sick and demented man is telling us, and the rest of the world, that his plan is to dominate all of us. We can and will stop him.
we are having protests here on the cape every 2 weeks, but I don't know if it has the same impact as 7 million people all in the same day. But I do know that those huge rally's take a lot of planning and organizing.
Cate, would you push our Gov to create an escrow account for citizens to deposit Fed taxes in as this coward continues his illegal unauthorized destruction of not only OUR White House but of ripping out legislated legally passed bills of $$ to assist people in need as well as to all states esp including those he’s decided he doesn’t want to support because they elected Democratic Govenors. Call Maura Healey. Call our state Attorney General. You sound empowered. Brava!
So right, Mike! But, as pulpits go, his is the noisiest. Making 'fun' of him or his actions is pretty-much just low noise level. He finds what he calls poop and rubs our nose in it. In turn, we catch him with his eyes closed or stubbing his toe boarding AF One - BFD! Until "We" (the people) get some dead-nuts proof of him physically 'violating' some youngster under 12.., we got nuthin! And, if we can't find a way to walk and chew gum at the same time, "We" the people will continue to be tossed into the dustbin by 'Don-bo'. He's actually surrounded by a lot of happy people who eat his baloney.
I’m so tired of “brushing up” up on how to bring down a democracy. Nothing personal, Lin. We need living, breathing men and women to lead and inspire. Jack Smith comes to mind.
lin+, I should have scrolled further to see your mention of Jess Craven. Marc Elias is a wonderful warrior as well! I will need to look into your other suggestion.
I just dont feel working towards elections is the ticket right now....trump is moving at breakneck speed. We have to do something more immediate, like do to him what he did to maduro. There must be people left in the military who still believe in the constitution...no???
I want… let’s face it, I want global nuclear war. I want at least 350 billion humans wiped from earth. The other 350billion May slowly die of radiation. Let’s give the wildlife of the world a chance.
Jess Craven's Chop Wood, Carry Water Substack offers actionable measures to use daily, and what I really appreciate is her weekly list of "good news" in the world. Boy, do I need that!
Indivisible is too slow. We need to demand immediate action from all allies in Congress, law enforcement, the military, and in state houses around the country.
yes, yes, yes...and throw in our allies.. can't France come and help us again? Canada..please come save us! Can't some country do to him what he did to maduro...aren't those the new rules? Surely nato can find some law he broke..
Well, they do have one aircraft carrier. I am not sure about their submarine capability. Perhaps France and Great Britain could conspire and send us our own reverse Guy Fawkes.
Yes, protests spaced by months are not enough. A general strike and determined boycotts of all things Tesla, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, etc., all those aiding Trump and Netanyahu and Putin, are needed.
Don't forget Apple!! (and I say this as an Apple native). Here's what Robert Reich shared today <robertreich@substack.com>:
"Or look at Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, who recently gave Trump a plaque with a 24-karat golden base and then showered him with praise at a convening of Big Tech billionaires at the White House.
Apple followed up by removing an ICE tracking app from its app store at the request of Trump’s Department of Justice."
Prof. Snyder’s Substack yesterday was a perfect stump speech for Dems running in the next election. I agree, however, that elections cannot be our only focus. Things are moving much too fast, and as the current administration sinks they will try to move faster. The urgency grows.
Probably an auto correct but House rep from N. California is Doug La Malfa. His district is one affected by Newsom's Prop 50 so there is a chance of a Democrat taking his place.
After seeing the tragedy in Minneapolis yesterday, a young American citizen and mother of a small child murdered at point-blank range, I think we have to take to the streets now. It could have been anyone's daughter, sister, friend. I also belong to Invisible, great organization. I think we need to get rid of the felon in the White House asap! We cannot wait. He needs to be impeached. He is out of his mind, reckless and his so-called administration is just as fruit-of-the-loom nuts as he is. The bold-faced lies by him and botox-face Noem are beyond human decency. We should be banging down the doors of our representatives and calling non-stop. We need to get this toxic monster out of the White House.
It is no accident that Trump, Miller, Noem, Kegsbreath, Holman and others have gone after cities with mayors that are black and in states that are blue. This MOD has failed miserably and people have fought back with vigor.
Remember to check your voting registration on a regular basis to make sure you are still registered. If you are deregistered for any reason, advertise it to your local media and complain to your citiy officials. This is going to happen where ever they think they can get away with it. Attend local town meetings and make sure there aren't any MAGAs running your local and state government. Many states are electing governors in 2026 and many of those elections will be held before November, some will be coming up in the very near future.
We need to support the Democratic and Independent candidates that are running and to get the word out if there are MAGA candidates getting support that they support the Trump Fascist agenda just by saying they are Republicans. The Republicans will do anything to do nothing.
The primaries for the US House and Senate are going to be as important as the elections themselves. Trump and Co. will be pouring money into many of the races to get the most far-right candidates elected. These elections are as important as the November Federal election.
Vote in your primaries and let the people of your community know that Musk, Leo, the Koch organization and other wealthy donors will support the most Fascist and far right candidates. If they support ANY candidates in your state, let people know that outside money is trying to rig YOUR elections.
Our work starts yesterday and many of you have been active in the fight so thank you all for all you do.
Sadly, my coffers are empty, having donated way too much in the past. I thought my donations would help defeat chump in 2024. Every election is the important one. But the next one may be the last one. If it happens at all. They will likely have it and pull out all the cheating stops. They know well how to buy, cheat, steal.
Thank you for this I can afford postage so far and do what I can. But those begging for $1.00 really irritate me. They need advice on how to solicit without pissing off the troops. They are using the wrong ad men. Chump gives them enough crap to aim at
We need to demand that our Congressmen and Senators have open town hall meetings in the next six months. If they aren't willing to meet with voters, then why should we vote for them?
Don't worry, the last election was the last one. Anyone who thinks Cheetoh Caligula will allow something like the rule of law get in the way of his imperial presidency is more delusional than Trump himself is.
I keep thinking that there is no way in hell, with all the polls and opinions pointing the way they are at a Dem victory, that he is going to allow an election..or at least a fair one.
Tennesseans, the state’s voter registration information has been given over voluntarily to the US Dept of Justice by the governor. You know DOJ wants this information to mess with elections and possible take voters off the rolls. GJ is right that you should check your registration—even make a copy—and encourage everyone you know to vote—Trump wants to make it our last one. For all the reasons Heather sets out above, and more, he needs to go. (Also for anyone who wants to support competitive state elections, join us here: www.bluetennessee.org.
I've attended school board meetings and select board meetings where I am the only guest. I wan't to see if all of the members are in alignment with our values. If not, I'll let the neighbors know.
Good advice GJ! Since we will never know exactly who is watching or listening to us, checking our voters registration is a good idea. Keep going to all your local & state meetings you can.
trump hinted at no more elections during his last campaign. Remember when he told his voters "this will be the last time you have to vote"...his goal is to cancel the midterms. He's scared and what better way to try and keep republicans in power, blame the Democrats for everything.
But it wasn't was it? Democrats have been kicking ass almost everywhere and the Republicans are scared. Republicans are bowing out of their elected positions in record numbers. We can only imagine the quality of Republican candidates that will be running this year and it ain't gonna be pretty.
Yes we have. I couldn't agree more. Democrats have got to continue to fight fire with fire and stop the infighting. That alone is what is what destroys us, and yes republicans are scared. Thus trump's comments about how evil we Democrats are and how we destroyed the country. You are right on point.
Those were small elections. Now that he’s seen their results, he’ll do what he thinks he must to stop the ones that matter to him directly. No doubt he’ll at least try to end them. Don’t kid yourself.
I saw a clip of him saying that the R's had to win the mid-terms because if the Ds were elected as a majority, they were going to impeach him. Again. Can we start with premeditated murder???
It remains to be seen the quality of R candidates that will be running, with so many incumbents leaving. I'm hopeful this year's candidates will be more centrist, less loyalty to Trump. It worries me that if Dems take the House, the R's that lose will be those who are the most moderate and who best serve their districts. And it worries me that the new Dems elected would be the most "progressive" who'll support any new spending program.
In the House among others are Rep. Don Bacon (NE) not running again, David Valadao (CA) redistricted, Jeff Hurd (CO). In Senate Susan Collins (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), among others.
By the way, are you aware obviously not that every time a president has taken office with both houses in same party. In every occasion during the midterm the president has lost one or both houses every single time it’s never happened we’re a president keeps both houses of Congress during the midterm, so why don’t you wake up and do some research
What the hell is wrong with you people? Democracy of spreading all over the world, including in Tehran, where they the protester just named the street after Donald Trump 20 million Venezuelan are now running in the street celebrating and you’re worried about what? Get yourself a strong grip on reality would you?
There should be a trial that should be a jury. There should be a judge should be a verdict.. But people on the left can’t wait just like they couldn’t wait like George Floyd and look how that turned out
What part of it didn’t you incohere Lololol The part about 20 million Venezuelan celebrating the part about there’s a big push and substantial protest with millions of Iranians in the streets protesting the Iatola, and in the process naming one of the streets Donald Trump because they feel he was instrumental and getting them to the point that they’re at right now where the Iatola is actually thinking of fleeing to Russia. ‘
You should be able to in cohere that lmao. Or would you rather have me say you should be able to cohere that?
Tell me what part you’re missing Linda because apparently you’re missing life outside of these threads
I think the Venezuelans may be celebrating too soon. The dust hasn’t even started to settle yet. And isn’t it odd that, while attacking protesters in our country, 47 says he will use our military to protect the protesters in Iran?! Oh yeah. Oil.
Marc Elias is head of the law group that takes trump on and wins 95% of his cases. Truly impressive- I donate regularly. And the wins often have teeth. He's all over election fraud and anticipating trumps moves. If you don't know him, please check him out. He used to be in one of the fancy law firms but left and created his own, not beholden to corporate money. He's livid and outspoken about the big firms that won't challenge trump after bending the knee. The more lawyers that Marc can hire, the happier I am.
How’s it working out so far Susan since Trump’s been elected. That’s the way you want government to work in America by having some lawyer pursue crimes against the winner of election. ? Maybe you should hire one of these great accident Atty lololol.
Why is it the Democrat party refuses to allow the forcing of presenting an official ID in order to vote ? Why do you think that is
As I read this, the ICE sirens are tuning up as the criminals go out to catch anyone they can on the way to work or just to get groceries before full daylight.
Malcolm Nance (former US intelligence) has suggested that there will be a civil war if Trump cancels the elections. How can he cancel them in Blue States when elections are state run?
Which is why I wrote an open letter to our CT governor encouraging him to have our national guard protect our residents and to interact with other governors on topic.
If you go to my blog, billkatz@substack.com and look up my open letter published in our weekly, I explain the historical reasoning of state militia guarding against an oppressive central authority which st the time, was England. Same difference except it’s American. The national guard has the historic authority protect its residents. And I use residents instead of citizens for obvious reasons.
National guard, declare the insurrection act, have Republicans and republucan supporting militias attack counting centers in blue states with bombs and destroy the votes. Tell the military to guard them while they do it. Sure it will be ruled illegal AFTER the fact, but do you expect Republicans or the courts to stop him? He might be impeached, but he won't be convicted, so that's not relevant.
In Grand Rapids, 22-year-old Jessica Plitchta, a preschool teacher, was the only one of 200 protesters arrested for the takeover of Venezuela. The local police were denounced for their action. She was giving an interview to a news station about the importance of free speech and arrested before she could finish.
What was she arrested for their Patricia being stupid? Did you see what the people of Venezuela think like you know more than them you know every time you post you get dumber and more ignorant I would call you illiterate, but you are visually illiterate to the real world.
Chump is right, fight like hell or we will lose our country. But fight his ugly, lying, bullying, greedy, and evil arse. He has not one characteristic to recommend him. We seem mesmerized by the flood of evil. Our MSM needs to follow our substack truth tellers. Write the editors, flood the zone. It works for them, why not for us. They may not print them, but they will count them.
Yes, yes, and yes. Trump always tells us what he will do before he does it. Because he has no shame or no conscience, he feels no guilt about cheating, lying, stealing elections, ending democracy. The time to start fighting for the right to vote is yesterday. This is a fight that should be joined not just by Democrat but maybe even Republicans this time.
Except he didn’t tell anybody this time because he knew it would be linked and now Venezuela is going to be free and this is awesome. And if this persists then Venezuela a year or two from now has their democracy back and Tehran is able to overthrow the Iatola. The Democratic Party will not see a winning candidate in decades.
Work with all fifty states, yes, that's a great goal but think about the hard core right wing states, I'm not sure we can count on them to be as concerned as we are about elections. But, maybe when they can't get food & healthcare & their rural hospitals close necessitating a several hour drive to the nearest emergency room which will already be packed with equally as desperate individuals so they wait some more, maybe then their states will think again about the necessity of free & fair elections, maybe!
Abe did not cancel elections in the middle of the Civil War - there is your historic example. The Felon is planting seeds, testing where the next weak point will be. He will continue to do so because NO ONE has stopped him - a pure bully reaction, and because people are soft, meaning most do not want to suffer, to have to tighten their belts, in order to do the right thing. Too much me, not enough we. The only thing that matters is their personal economy. Many Republicans in Congress for example condemned Jan 6 but within half a year they rallied around Trump (regardless their personal reason for doing so), even though they knew Trump was the catalyst for insurrection. Pogo was right. All that said, I take inspiration from the Jaimie Raskin's and the Senator Kelly's of the world and will continue to resist with every legal (and given bad laws), every moral means possible.
I once again sent my objection to t-rump’s power grab to my congresspeople today. I’m so tired of feeling that my “civic duty “ is like crying into the void. Trump has left the ruse of intercepting drugs behind like lightning. The opposition is left in the dust, whiplashed and flat footed. We need to hit the streets now, winter is no excuse when he is basically saying he will stop elections.
What power grab? You people need to change the channel and get the hell out of here, including your lady below Name named Elizabeth, who is always on the wrong side of the of right and wrong IMO HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED BY HER OPINIONS it takes America two years to run an election two years and wear a democracy so it gonna take a little bit of time to allow the country to re-organize have a primary and then start campaigning a year out like we do here and you guys think it’s gonna happen in an instant because you’ve lost your minds
The president said it himself: “We’re going to run the country” He is ignoring the leader elected by 70% of the people and recognizing Maduro’s VP as President. Don’t think Maduro’s thugs are going to roll over easily. Your lecture about a smooth transition is a fantasy. I
Here’s a little present for you and Nancy Joe Biden 1989
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6386043448112 I don’t dismiss it because it’s Fox News because it has nothing to do with Fox News. It’s Joe Biden in his own words and by the way. This is the same kind of video where he stood up in the middle of Congress, holding up a nickels worth of crack cocaine in his hand and saying this is crack, cocaine, and anybody caught with this in their possession needs to go to prison for five years, no parole…….. except of course I’m sorry to say ..everybody except Hunter Biden
Are you sure you know who you’re talking to? Nancy, are you aware that they took his opponents name off the ballot and then in the primary is the lady got 92% of the vote and was sequestered for the entire time Maduro is in power and was exiled and left the country to win the Nobel peace prize.? And you’re ignoring the best part that you don’t even know two things actually he is the unrecognized president of Venezuela because he in fact did not win in a fair election. And furthermore, here is the headline of the day.
Joe Biden himself in 1989 said we need to get him out of power where he lives not wait for him to come to this country and deliver his drugs. I have the video if you’d like it. And secondly, Joe Biden put a $25 million bounty on his head for his capture. And the best thing I’m gonna see is Joe Biden coming out of retirement and giving Trump $25 million check on public TV. That is gonna be great.
Lastly, I don’t think you are talking to the same person when I said there’d be a smooth transition they were going to I specifically said the opposite here’s what I said. I said that even in America, where there’s a democracy, it takes two years to organize an election there has to be planning there have to be candidates. There have to be debates. There has to be a primary or two and then… AT LEAST a year out the campaigns start … and then there’s election. And don’t you think that the public in Venezuela is going to standstill and allow these thugs to try to put anything back the way it was under Maduro.
And perhaps you missed the precision strike by an incredible military planned incursion to get Madeira where he lives in breeze you don’t think that the people who you call thugs are gonna fear the same penalty and punishment and reparations as Trump delivered to Isis as Trump delivered to Iran and as Trump delivered to Nigeria ain’t gonna happen and I would suggest to you that in two years democracy will be restored. Certainly there will be fighting because they are not a democracy, but the people have spoken. Trump has spoken the opposing president or ex-president or actual president have spoken and are going to commit to be an ally of the United so put away your broken crystal ball dust off that Ouija board in a couple years and get back to me and let me know exactly how it turns out because the world already knows
The pushback needs to be on the Capital steps demanding congress finalize articles of impeachment and demanding that the senate acts!! Anything less, at this time in our history is unacceptable.
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Read the methodology section carefully because the ratings are based on what Heritage promotes as best practices--for instance, requiring a photocopy of your photo ID with your mail-in ballot. You want your state's score to be as high as possible.
Spending just 20 minutes there I've observed that the model legislation is based on their voter fraud database. By their own admission, the database is just a survey eg. not complete. One could say its cherry-picked. Also, from a quick glance through their Election Fraud Database, fraud by voters is lumped in with fraud on voters. I'm guessing that if they didn't include the latter they wouldn't have met their numbers.
Then from reading through their model legislation I conclude the legislation was only designed to prevent 'those' people from registering and not prevent the fraud on voters included overwhelmingly in their database.
Yes. Good catch. I did not look at the fraud database. It takes very little time to find this stuff—Heritage is incredibly transparent. Apparently Democratic leadership doesn’t seem to be noticing. It is driving me crazy! So that means it is up to us. Voting rights is the #1 issue that will make or break our ability to recover democracy. Everything else depends on it.
Heritage is doing the bill crafting for them so all they need is someone to introduce the bill and get it on the legislative schedule. I am trying to find a site that provides links to all of the states legislative schedules so you can see when these bills are scheduled, so contact legislators can still make a difference.
The states where these have already been enacted will need large voter education and get out the vote efforts to follow the letter of the law so everyone’s vote counts until there are veto proof majorities in those states so allow passage of bills that reverse the curtailment.
Thank you, Georgia, for this inside information. I just looked at the model legislation for Election Observers. Heritage calls for cameras in every polling place and observers to be allowed to record with any device during voting.
Because I am an election judge in Minnesota, I know that we do not allow even still photographs in polling places. This comes up when a parent, who is accompanying a child who is voting for the first time, asks to or tries to take a photo. We stop them immediately. Celebratory photos can be taken only outdoors... where the new voter can stand in front of the VOTE HERE signs on the sidewalk.
Minnesota does not allow recording in the polling place. What of other states?
Thanks for sharing first hand experience on this issue!
I am scared by the fact that an election denier acquired Dominion voting, the electonic voting machine company, and also owns a company that provides electronic registration rolls—so they can control both who can vote and the machines they vote on.
Harder to undo than to make sure they fail to pass in the first place unless a lot of legislatures turn blue with veto proof majorities if they have Republican govenors.
I am also concerned with HERITAGE as they were likely providing lists of Democratic voters to the Vigilantes (see the Vigilantes Inc video by gregpalast to see how TRUMP CHEATED to win in 2024).
Dominion Voting Systems, the company that won the defamation suit against Fox, has been bought by a MAGA election denier. He also owns a company that manufacturers the only certified electronic poll book that can be used to verify that you are a legal voter.
Keep the lists that tell you who can vote and provide the machines that count their vote. that is a very scary prospect to me.
Just checked.... interesting how the 'scores' followed pretty closely the political leanings of the state. We need to ask for proof that people who vote Democratic are more likely to vote fraudulently. That's a pretty all-encompassing bit of slander, there.
Tennessee is tied for first? The page telling which laws have passed gives me a page not found error. I find it concerning that heritage would rate my state first in election integrity. Kinda like a mafioso giving your politician the thumbs-up.
Jodie, remember who and what the Heritage Foundation is. Oregon, which is amongst the most secure and least susceptible to fraud, is ranked 48th. For this, up is down and down is up.
Many of these restrictive voter laws have already been on the ballot as citizen initiatives. In Maine, we killed two initiatives a few months ago. If your state legislature or city council tries to restrict voting in any way, go to the hearings and protest if you can. Let your elected officials know that you and others are paying attention to how they are voting. Remember, most of them are elected officials who will shy away from the bad press.
It's a good thing and a bad thing that each state handles things differently. I worked with my State Senator on an IT bill back in the 1990's. We were trying to change 1 word in an existing bill defining what qualifies as software for sales tax purposes. (I know YAWN!).
Anyway Governor Bob Kerrey had defined software so that every spreadsheet created by anyone for a client was subject to sales tax--except that no one charged sales tax on spreadsheets or data bases etc. Long story short -- the definition is still the same 30 years later.
Thanks GJ. That the acronum' MAGA lines up so conveniently with 'maggots' fits things so well. Kinda disgusting.., like bed bugs. Pervasive. Hard to be rid of. Not always easy to spot, these "citizens initiatives". Keep up the good work.
The key law in GOP controlled states is the one that allows ONE person to question ANY NUMBER of registered voters as illegitimate, and that REQUIRES that state officials de-certify the "questionable" voters. ONE GA MAGA removed more than 32,000 voters from GA rolls in 2024 (see the VIGILANTES INC video at gregpalast.com) for her interview. Others VIGILANTES appear in the video and brag about the number they eliminated. Postcards were supposedly sent out to inform them that they had been removed, but they had only a couple of weeks to re-register and it is doubtful that many were able to. THEY WILL DO IT AGAIN IN STATES THAT THEY CONTROL. The list that the GA MAGA sent in was likely provided by the HERITAGE FOUNDATION. No doubt the interest that the DOGE bois had in American's data was, in part, to identify individual political partys to compose their next Vigilante list.
That makes me worry even more that the owner of the only “certified” electronic poll book manufacturer is an election denier.
Should make it easier to target voters since it would be sure to track the method voters used to vote.—lets challenge all registered Democrats who voted by mail for instance
After Venezuela, European defense ministers aren’t asking “will Trump actually attack Greenland?” They’re asking “what do we do when he does?”
Here’s what nobody’s talking about: Europe doesn’t need to beat the US militarily. They just need to kick out 85,000 US troops, cancel $860 billion in defense contracts, and watch America tear itself apart.
US military personnel stationed in Europe to defend NATO allies would face orders to attack one. Congress passed laws preventing troop withdrawal that Trump signed. The contradictions are impossible.
Authoritarian U.S. regime is playing checkers—-threaten Denmark, get Greenland. But Europe’s already playing chess—-building defense independence, preparing contingencies, waiting.
If this goes kinetic, the US doesn’t lose to Europe. The US loses to itself.
Johan, I agree with you. I have been wondering why Europe has not kicked the US out. Then, they would either have to move their personnel to Russia, which I don't think would go over so well, or bring them back to the US, losing their European bases. I hear Jacob Kaarsbo saying Europe does not want to be the first ones to break the NATO alliance treaty.
Also, here are Malcolm Nance(US Intelligence) and Jacob Kaarsbo (Danish former intelligence) talking to Dean Blundell (Canadian) on defending Greenland and what the difficulties will be, and why Trump is interested in taking Greenland being to create a Praxis city for Tech Bross, based on the ideology of Curtis Yarvin, and their discussion of Nato and the US election. https://substack.com/inbox/post/183696749?utm_source=live-stream-redirect&triedRedirect=true
A friend thinks Tech Bros want to build Curtis Yarvin type "freedom cities" in Venezuela as well, like they have in Honduras; Trump wants to build prison camps for US immigrants there too. Nance thinks they want to do this in Greenland. He makes a compelling case on what Europe and Denmark/Greenland and Canada need to do to protect Greenland.
I have to agree. It seems that the long game conservatives have been playing go set on fire with the election of Obama. What was kind of quiet became a firestorm. First with the "birthers" then the healthcare. They also used the bailouts (which got paid back with interest). The letting off the hook of the financial leaders did not help either. Every misstep democrats make is amplified a thousand times while republicans do worse and nothing get made of it. Gingrich was great at demonizing the democrats which doing worse things himself and getting zero flack from his party for his actions.
And, MLM.., just how do you see Americans continuing to step up? With the news continuing to inform us of more drug-boat strikes, more covert activities, more un-advertised action with Israel, more threatening of Iran strikes, Other than the case put together by Prosecutor Jack Smith, what have we got? Der Leader is on a roll.
One way you people in other countries see Americans step up is that those of us who live abroad join in shared initiatives to protect democracy in the countries we are living in. In Indivisible Abroad we are aligning with democratic political parties in the countries in which we live to talk about action. That includes demonstrating together, dialogues, and actions that are visible that get the word out that there are a lot of Americans all over the world who do not support this President and his regime. Americans at home go out and protest and it gets played on the news around the world if the numbers are large, that helps people know that this is not a popular president and we do not back his moves. Unfortunately, I saw Chuck Schumer interviewed on German television as the "opposition" and he was saying crap. Utter nothing. He is not the representation we need in the newsfeeds in other countries, we need passionate, people who know what is going on. Many people in Germany found the election of Mamdani a hopeful sign in the US.
No one thinks Trump has sense to come to. Listen to Jason Kaarsbo repeat that Europe does not want to be the one to break the NATO treaty. As long as NATO exists, they will not push the US out, they will let Trump pull the US out. Since he cannot do that without Congressional approval, he is trying to force the issue.
A Protestor has been shot in her car at 34th & Portland along with CS gas fired at the crowd. The FBI has taken over the crime scene.
The Governor of Minnesota confirm as an ICE shooting of a US citizen through the lower part of a driver's windshield. Self described "right leaning" witness, Brandon Hewitt, heard 3 shots & has video. Kristi Noem left yesterday. Greg Bovino on the scene.
Minnesota prosecutors needs a probable cause warrant now.
Yes. I had heard that the Republicans are down in the House, but will it pass the Senate?
I have been upset about the murder of the Minnesota mom. I have been crying off and on. It takes me back to Chicago in the fall, and the murder of a woman in our city by ICE as well. I feel for their children as well as the children in the building attacked by ICE in Chicago and the children in the Daycare in Chicago that ICE illegally went into. ICE seems like a criminal organization to me. We need to defund ICE! We need to impeach Kristi Noem, and Donald Trump, international war criminal.
Johan, I can't be the smartest man in the room. Yet, I don't understand why NATO member nations don't do what the U.S. does to nations it disagrees with.
Does anyone think that Tim Cook, Mark Zuckerberg, et al would withdraw their allegiance to Trump and start applying pressure to his regime if their products were banned from Europe?
Sanctions seem to be an effective non-military response to unwanted aggression.
You’re asking the right structural question. Europe has enormous latent leverage, but it rarely uses it the way the U.S. does because its strategic culture is built around consensus, legalism, and economic interdependence rather than coercive tools. That creates hesitation even when the leverage is obvious.
And you’re right that market access is one of the few non‑military instruments that actually shifts corporate behavior. If Europe ever aligned its economic weight with a coherent strategic posture, the calculation for major companies would change overnight.
Thank you for pushing the conversation in this direction.
Ha…fair enough. Though I’d argue Europe’s already playing Go whether they realize it or not. Control the territory, wait for your opponent to exhaust themselves.
They don't want to lose access to US defense tech that does not have near-peer equivalents. F-35 jets, B-21 stealth bombers, Virginia class subs, AEGIS missile systems, stealth munitions, and TAK, which is AI technology for joint operations.
Of course, it would be lovely if the US would supply some of this stuff to Ukraine, but why help an ally win a war, and it might make Putin upset enough to go nuclear.
Trump and Hegseth are very possessive about their toys. Like the Trump class destroyer to be designed and built before Trump leaves office. He is very proud to tell us that he designed it himself to be more aesthetically pleasing than other destroyers.
I hear your point, but the idea that Europe is frozen because it “needs” U.S. defense tech doesn’t really hold anymore. The trend lines have already shifted. Most major EU states are moving away from the F‑35 as the default and are pouring money into their own next‑generation systems. A significant part of this is lack of trust in U.S. —- it’s an unstable and now unreliable partner.
The Franco‑German‑Spanish FCAS program, the British‑Italian‑Japanese GCAP project, the expansion of the European Defense Fund, and the rapid scaling of domestic missile, drone, and munitions production all show the same thing. Europe is building its own industrial base because it knows dependency is a strategic liability.
The hesitation isn’t about access to U.S. platforms. It’s about political will, coordination, and decades of strategic outsourcing. The hardware gap is closing. The psychological gap is the real obstacle. Europe has the population, the economy, and now the industrial momentum. What it lacks is alignment, not capability.
That’s why I push back on the tech‑dependency argument. The facts on the ground show Europe is already moving to reduce it. The real challenge is whether it can translate that shift into coherent action.
Yes, Europe has woken up and is ramping up to reducing reliance on US tech and is close. It is a matter of timing in the transition process and what Zelenskyy can’t afford to lose right now—PURL and the oil sanctions. He has to milk them for all they are worth because if/when Vance steps in, that will be shut down.
Trump just took a tanker from Russia’s shadow fleet. Trump is on a power rush, but he is going after leaders who have humiliated him—Maduro for dancing, and Putin for the Ukrainian drone hoax. Putin overplayed that and just got dissed in return in a way that helps Ukraine.
Things are so volatile with Trump right now, Europe has to watch and prepare for Vance, who will be worse than Trump because he is not insane, and will have all that tech bros money behind him.
Publicly confronting Trump by shunning him will only invite him to lash out, and then Putin goes back to being his friend of the moment. The NATO charter doesn’t have a method for kicking a country out anyway. That is why I have been saying for a while now that the 20-point peace plan is actually an undercover way to organize a parallel organization to NATO without the US. Putin would never sign the 20-point plan unless the Russian economy goes belly up. The COTW knows that. They wouldn’t be doing all this work unless there was another reason.
Trump is spiraling, as is the whole US, with the Epstein files, being on the verge of potentially losing the House majority because a Republican died which would lead to impeachment of cabinet members and possibly Trump, looking at another government shutdown in 3 weeks, and dealing with Venezuela…
According to Dean Blundell’s group, Denmark is already repositioning troops to protect Greenland. But signing a Canada + NB-8 Arctic defense treaty with all members sending troops into Greenland with a “Thank you, Sir, for bringing this matter to our attention. Mr. Trump, Sir.” is a better way to handle this without any of the downsides IMHO
I am waiting for Denmark to tell Trump to pack up the base in Greenland and get the hell out. They would be justified and supported by most of the world.
Or rather than kick them out, surprise them, take their weapons, deactivate their transportation, and use them as hostages. Anyone resisting gets a chance to surrender, but if not, is shot.
How do people like you get so demented in your thinking democracy is about to break out all over the world, including Venezuela possibly even a Ron and Cuba
And if you change the channel and see the world as it really is not the bias bullshit you read here you’re gonna find out that there’s gonna be a deal made between Denmark and Trump for him to buy Greenland on behalf of the United States help protect Denmark in the process and they will probably end up working together
But are you one of those George Floyd riders that wasn’t patient enough to wait for a jury to decide the police officers fate and went out and destroyed billions of dollars of American property, burnt cities and injured police and got the verdict that you were going to get anyway. Have some rational thought in that thing that you call your head, which is 3 feet above your ass. At least that’s where it’s supposed to be.
“Democracy breaking out all over the world” after we just bombed a capital and announced “we’re going to run the country” for oil access? That’s not analysis, that’s delusion.
Denmark isn’t selling Greenland. They’re a NATO ally who already gives us everything we need there. Trump wants ownership for map aesthetics and to prove the NSS doctrine scales from Venezuela to allied democracies. There’s no “deal” where sovereign nations surrender territory because an authoritarian threatened them.
Your George Floyd non sequitur confirms you’re not engaging in geopolitical analysis…you’re venting culture war grievances that have zero relevance to international relations. I analyze how state actors respond to demonstrated U.S. doctrine. China’s 440 million Weibo views discussing Taiwan extraction aren’t reacting to your fantasies about freedom spreading. They’re responding to operational precedent.
The November NSS documents sphere-of-influence imperialism. Venezuela proved it works. Whether you like that reality or not doesn’t change that the international order just fundamentally shifted.
But sure, keep waiting for Denmark to sell Greenland while the global system we’ve relied on for 80 years collapses.
Please let us ensure this text is linked early (and therefore prominently) on Dr. Richardson's site every day until the traitorous regime of ecogenocidal Christonazi pervocrats is no more. (I'll do my best to be responsible for this posting, but others need be ready to pick up the torch on days I am absent and after I am no more.)
I have this also, as well as the interview; and yes - it should be front page news! It makes me mad that mainstream news falls for the distractions and reports on distraction stories over and over again. They should keep their focus on the Epstein files and the horrible crimes Trump has committed there!
Gayle, I really do hate to ask but what are the "crimes" being referred to? Where is the proof? It would appear we do know of an incident years back where a "settlement' was made, etc., but that one is over with. What proof, if any, exists for what he is being accused of. And, while we're at it, what un-adulterated evidence do we have, of an un-questionable nature exists in our hands that would enable a lawsuit to be filed that would hold water in a court-of-law? Please don't misunderstand me asking.
Thank you both Gayle and Loren. As you might guess, it is extremely sickening (dis-heartening too) when some clearly guilty party walks free because the prosecution could not prove their case beyond ANY reasonable doubt. I do not want to lock anyone up where guilt is in doubt. Period. Even Der Leader.
The Orange Goblin King has dropped the bomb already, Xplisset: “Cancel the elections”… He’s going to do it, and I don’t know if anybody will stand in his way. The Republucan Senators? Not a chance. The Supreme Court? Wouldn’t count on it. Voting won’t help anymore here.
Mike, I won’t dismiss this outright, I get the fear. But I won’t give him the victory of our surrender in advance. Hell to the no.
He can say “cancel the elections.” Making that real requires a long chain of people to include state officials, judges, local administrators, military leaders choosing to break the law in public.
The pressure point is us: show up locally, support the people who run elections, document everything, and vote like it still counts because it does. Doom is contagious; ok but so is courage.
Ultimately, the key is this: "military leaders choosing to break the law in public."
When I was an undergraduate, lo these many years ago, the Cultural Revolution was underway in China. We Americans thought we were a better country than one whose leader wrote that "political power grows out of the barrel of a gun." And now, in my beloved country, we are finding this phrase has resonance here as well.
Having worked in DoD for 30+ years (until six years ago), I still have confidence in the integrity of our military. It's the civilian leadership that reeks. But I'm worried about the rush to build up a secret police force intended to obstruct the forthcoming election. If the regime sends DHS/ICE goons to block the voters, the current military leadership might order the National Guard or even regular military forces ("so what if it's illegal, sue us!") to assist them. Such orders would be clearly illegal and unconstitutional, and the upper military leadership would have to make a decision whether or not to accept and follow them. But I doubt, even if they refused such orders, that they would oppose the goons. So I seriously doubt that there would be any organized resistance to brute force.
Sadly James, I am not so sure your confidence is supported by the current actions of the military. It seems that the "drug" boat murders are just the beginning along with boots on the ground in the U.S. Hegseth has been going about firing those loyal to the Constitution and with Fox news blaring on all the bases around the ground has been softened for the military to follow orders. The murders on the high seas is just the first step.
RW, I believe Venezuela and the boat murders prove the military has already broken its oath to defend the Constitution, and that the oath-breakers -- Christonazi zealots relentlessly propagandized, as you say, by Fox News -- have given their apocalyptic thermonuclear might over to der neu Führer (whomever he might be) to be used however he wills. Which is precisely why I have said from the beginning that (1)-we are in the same Failed Nation position that made the liberation of Hitler's Germany possible only by invasion-- this despite the fact we have a much larger anti-nazi population; that (2)--despite the size of the anti-MAGAT population, we're neutralized by our inability to achieve disciplined solidarity -- a failing methodically perpetuated by trained professionals in response to the ruling-class terror of genuine revolution. Thus (3)-- even the basic organization necessary for liberation must therefore come from abroad, most effectively by formation of a World-War-II-type alliance of governments-in-exile, probably in London, Paris or Berlin.
Meanwhile, let us quickly take full advantage of the few remaining remnants of our former liberty the Regime has not yet fully suppressed.
(Perhaps as a momentary comic-relief, it comes to me Fox could easily be an acronym for Fatally Overwhelming Xenophobia.)
James .. I believe you hit the nail on the head; If election cancelation become real, the reaction by senior active duty Admirals & Generals will be the true test of democracy or the completion of the back slide to authoritarianism. Agree the civilian side of that equation is completely corrupt. I'm holding out my hope & faith that our senior active duty military leadership defaults back to their Oath of Office; support & defend The Constitution, if not then all is truly lost.
Thanks for your question and I wish I could provide an accurate answer.
Bottom Line Up Front: I don't envy the position that these senior military leaders are in today. They are straddling a very thin line of executing the chain of command and looking out for the welfare of their Soldiers, Sailors, Air & Space Force people and Marines. As GEN Collin Powell wrote in his book on leadership, The commander in the field understands the actual situation better than HQ and will do his/her best to execute & keep their forces safe.
DoD is part of the executive branch of gov't, not the legislative. If the executive says they have the legal right to carry them out strikes and the Judge Advocate Generals (aka military lawyers) agree, operational forces execute. Like it or not, the operational chain of command starts with the Commander & Chief. If the executive is wrong, it up to the legislative branch to challenge. Remember that one of the 1st actions after hegstegh was confirmed as SECDEF was to fired all the head JAG officers.
It's my opinion based on my Naval career, operational commanders are expecting that civilian leadership will fly high cover for their actions should it be proven the orders they were executing are/were illegal. We need a functional legislative branch for that & representatives from the party once called republicans have proven they're not interested in stopping the executive. We've seen the 1st instance were the civilian DoD leadership is willing to throw an active duty leader under the bus.
So my faith in these active duty Admirals & Generals is that when they are ordered to carry out questionable orders on American street & against American citizens to stop elections they call Bull Sh__t. Yes, these Officer could refuse orders, get relieved of command, Courts Martialed, imprisoned in my mind that opens the door to more sycophants to senior leadership decisions.
No no no Sue. Where were you, would be a better question. But, my guess is you did your best to vote for your elected officials who you hoped would prevent this kind of situation from happening. They didn't. The Military is stuck. They just can't walk off the job because they 'feel' like it. You'd know if you'd signed on the line. Our 'civilian leadership' is why we're in this jam. 50,000 names of my friends are on a marble wall - I was lucky.
Hate to say this James, but it's that kind of thinking, meaning your inference that 'the Military' will be the pathway out. It's not. That's throwing "the Military" under the bus. I was 'in' for 22 long years.., "the Military" is not going to tell the citizens of this country how to run things. That's the job of our (civilian) government. We elect people to do that. Unfortunately 'these people, of which we are comprised of, have grown fat and stupid. We need to figure this out. The Military is there in case some outside entity pokes its nose into our business. Let's not ever forget that.
Interesting discussion--perhaps massive civil disobedience might up the odds the military might finally intervene if necessary?
Thoreau refused to pay taxes to the government that supported slavery, waged war against Mexico, because he believed doing so would make him complicit in those crimes against humanity.
Of course, millions of us would have to engage in this act of civil disobedience to have political impact. Blue states account for about 60% of individual taxpayers' federal income tax revenue; so, withholding payment would be a big middle finger to the White Nationalist House and the ass-kissing cowards in Congress--apart from what might be the significant fiscal impact of witholding tax payments (understanding of course, that a good amount of the federal tax due in 2026 has already been prepaid each quarter by us conscientious citizens). The disobedience would not be tax payment refusal but taxes paid,. but held in escrow. Again, for this to work, millions of us would have to be mobilized in a "What Would Thoreau Do" campaign.
Good points all, Alex, especially the last one. My point, such as it was, was that this vile administration is putting our military leadership in an extremely difficult situation. They (once upon a time it was “we”) are trained to respect and follow all lawful orders. Now they are being forced to consider whether the orders they receive are actually lawful. It’s easier just to go along. I agree that military force is not a solution or a way out of our current troubles. We’ll have to do that for ourselves.
I dunno about keeping it a secret, for weeks he said he was willing to use the military, he announced sending a fleet to Venezuelan waters and repeatedly 'warned' Maduro he was coming.
hahahaaa.., yeah Gary. We seem to overlook the fact Der Leader is IN Charge and HE makes "the Law". Do you remember when Thomas Edison said something like "rules...? Who needs rules..? We're trying to accomplish something here". Remember that? Or something to that effect - bbbboinkk!!
I think Venezuela was kept secret because it was primarily a military operation, not one micromanaged by the executive branch. It also had the backing of the "oil-garchs", who were apparently negotiating with the Maduro government re: oil for the past several months. Apparently those negotiations did not go well, so Maduro was removed. As stakes increase, such as planned coups in Columbia, Cuba, Greenland, and Mexico, executive micromanagement will also increase, and so will the failure rate of these operations.
Looks like using the HLS Goon Squad to pick you and I up off the street for "obstructing (something)" or for creating a riotous situation, is all Der Leader needs to squash election turnout. No Military needed. Just ICE.
Who will stand in his way??? All the people who have been marching, and protesting in myriad other ways, including many state judges upholding the Constitution and Rule of Law. People who want a better, affordable life, with educational opportunities and a basic healthcare system. Like exists in other countries. Where people benefit and are happy. Same for a world with organizations like NATO that have proven their worth and why they are so necessary. Like now.
Worse, the fact the draft was ended in 1972 -- the ruling class ended compulsory military service because it realized it was training the revolution -- means only a tiny minority of us have the skills to effectively resist the criminal Regime when it brings its murderous violence home, the implicit threat of which is obviously part of the deadly kidnap-raid on Venezuela and the extermination of the boat people.
Some question my skepticism about the effectiveness of demonstrations. For many in my generation, the uselessness of demonstrations was proven by the Ohio National Guard's disciplined volley of Caliber .30 M2 Ball fired on command at Kent State University students on 4 May 1970 and the ragged volley of mixed rounds fired by Mississippi's Ku Klux Kops at Jackson State College students 10 days later. There were also the so-called hard-hat riots of 8 May 1970: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zkfjjsg/revision/4 (We need to forget the Big Lie that the VietnamWar was ended by public protest [see for example https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334328/vietnam-war-us-public-opinion-mistake/ ]; the war was in fact ended by the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese People's Liberation Army, which with the help of the Soviet Union achieved total victory by re-uniting Vietnam and routing the U.S. military coalition.)
I am of your generation. At 75 I remember all events you mentioned. And, re Vietnam, you're right that war was ended by Viet Cong, etc. But people in U.S. in public protests across the country had a tremendous impact regarding political decisions at that time. That is what I remember. Same with civil rights movement. I will never underestimate the power of the people.
Discussion by itself -- that is, without action (or more typically, as a substitute for action) -- is meaningless. By the time of the murders in Ohio and Mississippi, we of the anti-war movement had been increasingly active for six years; those of us who had been part of the Civil Rights Movement, as was I, had been active for much longer. Not coincidentally, ruling-class forces began killing anti-war protestors just as public opinion began to favor our demand to "get out now." The same pattern is evident in Minneapolis; the population is turning against the Christonazi regime, and the regime responds by murdering an innocent woman, then slandering her memory by lying that she is a terrorist. Look closely at the NYT video of her killer as he strides away, you'll see he is pulling up his mask to hide his smirk.
The Joint Expeditionary Force ought to include Canada and inaugurate Canada's entry with joint exercises in the Labrador Sea or south of Greenland. https://jefnations.org/ 🛑
Can this non-N.A.T.O. force stop the U.S. Navy? No. But what it will do is place this ugly sentiment front and center in the global view and American conscience, making all of us accountable. Most of us sympathize with our many steadfast allies. 🙏
Tragically, we are having trouble bringing sufficient pressure to bear to break the fever and brake the madness of an unhinged leadership never satisfied and ever seeking more power at the expense of everybody else. 😱
Greenland? Heck.., pilgrims, we're already there. Our money is good there. We'll just create more "base housing". We'll build a HUGE tax free Base Exchange. Gasoline will be cheaper. Cigarettes will be cheaper. We'll build a shoe--factory there. We'll even let the Russians shop there (those with money). Only white immigrants from Northern territories need apply for jobs though (Finlanders, Icelanders, Swedenlanders, got it?). And Russians.
This is an discussion by Malcolm Nance(former US Intelligence) and Jacob Kaarsbo (Danish former intelligence) and Dean Blundell (Canadian) on defending Greenland and what the difficulties will be, and why Trump is interested in taking Greenland being to create a Praxis city for Tech Bros, based on the ideology of Curtis Yarvin, and their discussion of Nato and the US election.
I view the current situation as Trump now robbing both us and the Venezuelan people of everything he can. Friends in my political book club last night were saying that they see 2 things besides attempting to extract oil happening in Venezuela. First, it will become a prison destination for US immigrants; Second, it will become a site of these Patchwork cities will grow that Curtis Yarvin, far right creepy, tech bro advocates for. Apparently there are some in Honduras. This from the CBC,
"Próspera is a so-called charter city in Honduras, a private community given the power (by the government of Honduras) to write its own laws, set up its own judiciary, its own immigration policy, to be run by an unelected CEO.
The goal was to create a libertarian utopia for foreign start-ups to set up shop, with limited taxation (one per cent on business revenue). A California-based company offers Montessori education for up to 60 children. There are armed guards at the gates to Próspera. There are also legal fights evolving: some local Hondurans are opposed to the encroachment, and strangers soaking up infrastructure and resources without accountability.....
One big question arises: can a project like Próspera be scaled up to the size of an American nation run by a CEO, or a king or a queen (keeping in mind that one elected president is already acting like a king, with Versailles-style gold accents in the Oval Office and his name on the former Kennedy Center)?"
So they see prison camps and Praxis cities in Venezuela. Will they take over Greenland and deport its citizens to Venezuela, a totally different climate and way of life? One things is certain, the brown people of Venezuela and Greenland do not matter to Trump and his fellow fascists.
As always, Linda, thanks for your insights! I hate to even imagine the Future World that Trump, Putin, Xi Jinping, MBS, & Bibi are creating: spheres of influence (in order) The Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East/Africa. (Modi is probably in there somewhere, too.) I am beginning to see that this Power Structure is what is being created. Yes, a good portion of Russia is in Asia, but I don’t find it impossible to imagine that these guys can’t get out their magic markers and draw lines they can all agree upon.
The biggest problem that these guys are facing is Father Time, and Trump is example #1 in that department.
PPP, Knowledge is power. At least we are aware of these plans and can try to thwart them. Without the US, none of this works. We need to take back Congress in the midterms and put a stop to the madman at the helm of our country. GOTV.
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Also, in the video I posted above, Nance makes a compelling case of how to protect Greenland.
Thank you for posting these essential links. Though I profoundly dislike Nance's comedy-show-style delivery, his information is vital. Likewise Lautman's, though her voice is like nails on chalkboard.
What is going to happen if gang members in Venezuela (with a backing of the pro Moduro faction, wink wink) starts kidnapping Americans and threatening their execution or mutilation unless Moduro is returned? ASAP. Is Trump in charge of managing that catastrophe or is it Rubio,
Maybe the secretary of war, or Lindsey Graham who was on Air Force One yesterday and absolutely giddy to be praising Trump on camera.
The January 6 rioters may have been pardoned for their crimes but the convictions remain a matter of public record as do the evidentiary records. Trump clearly believes that there is no need to order the DoJ to expunge these records since he has already proclaimed them to be false. The separation of powers dictates that Congress may not override a presidential pardon but Trump is trashing that separation. A future Democratic government that controlled Congress could follow suit, pass a bill overriding the pardons and re-arrest every single miscreant pardoned by Trump as a way of wiping the slate clean. As for Trump himself, Jack Smith, the special counsel asked for the two federal cases to be dismissed 'without prejudice' meaning they're both capable of being revived. In my view, that's what the Democrats should go to the people with in 2028 - the restoration of justice as well democracy and the rule of law.
CREW Citizens for Responsible Ethics has an up to date accounting of the Jan6 folks new offenses. They also have in-depth reporting on Leonard Leo. Tom Holman is RC among others. There is a cohort and one would hope that the RC creates a they are anthenma or heretics and excommunicate them.
And bearing in mind Marco Rubio said only yesterday "I don't understand why people still don't believe that when President trump says he will do something, he WILL do it."
He said that as a statement of fact - I took it as more of a warning. I reckon Rubio is secretly shitting himself - he knows he is swimming in deep doo-doo.
An Owner’s Manual for Democracy, as Explained by the Man Who Lost It
There is a special sound a republic makes when it is being explained away. It is the sound of a man who keeps losing elections insisting that the problem is not him, not his ideas, not his record, but the voters themselves. That sound now echoes through the White House, occasionally punctuated by dancing, miming, and the sort of verbal free association usually reserved for late-night cable access television...
A showy diversion, to have extracted Maduro and his wife.
But all else in the Venezuelan status quo remains intact.
And something else remains intact – the naïve, out of touch ways U.S. elites feel entitled to their bubble, one that includes the 1,200 girls whom for years they insouciantly raped, and also includes Donald & crew’s larger cover-up.
Earlier today Timothy Snyder spoke to that bubble – not the part that requires mad Venezuelan chaos, or any other sensational diversions, but the part that goes to the heart of their heartlessness:
“In an instructive article that he wrote in 1990, the American novelist David Foster Wallace said that cynicism is a form of naïveté. When you dismiss everything, you feel like you can do anything but then you don’t believe in some things that are real: like love, or law, or patriotism. For you, such things are just tools of the trade, manipulable handles, just the way to enlarge the grift. That they have some other sense, that they are the building blocks of some other reality – this you do not see. And in that way you are naïve.”
But Timothy Snyder is too kind. He doesn’t factor in Donald’s dementia (or ever his need to be carrying water for Putin) – now threatening all our European allies by his demented bullying regarding Greenland.
Well said. It didn’t take long for the true reason for the “arrest” incursion to reveal its true intentions. I can’t understand why this narcissistic, entitled, delusional, and demented man is being allowed by a Congress that is majority Republican can allow this to continue. Patriotism is a word that has no meaning to Trump; he doesn’t have a shred of patriotic pride in this country. I’m appalled at the attack on Venezuela, because it was an attack. This has been in the planning stage for months. The attack has been rehearsed multiple times in mock-up buildings. It was perfectly executed by a group of military men that probably has no equal. Among other things, it showed what we can do and what Trump hoped would strike fear into the countries threatened. He sure struck fear into the American people.
I keep wondering how badly our total trashing of international relations will be coming back to bite us. And for how long. Some advantages we as a nation enjoyed prior to Trump are likely gone forever.
Exactly. It threatens our security. It threatens the ability of U.S. companies to sell products in foreign markets. It threatens the rank and file of our military. There's no upside for us. It only benefits T and his nutso pals.
Absolutely correct, JL. The American century, if it ever existed at all, is dead. And it’s not coming back. We have squandered the trust that was built up over many decades. Even if we tossed this regime out on its ass tomorrow, that trust isn’t coming back, because what has been exposed to the world is just how deep the rot really is. Unless we have a true reckoning with the original sins that continue to burden this nation, coupled with the rampant venality and greed of those in the preferred class, we will never be trusted again. Nor should we be.
". . . a true reckoning with the original sins that continue to burden this nation."
That, of course, Chris, includes slavery, and white male supremacy.
And then, too, the mercantilism, commercialism, that reduced all life to numbers, units, money.
Anand Giridharadas, Timothy Snyder, Rebecca Solnit, Sarah Kendzior, David Cay Johnston, Heather here and others have ventured into this serpentine legacy. They've all quoted from our best humanities as to finding the humanity out of the dehumanization.
Testing, Chris. America needs housing for the working classes. Universal health care. Gun control. Money out of politics. Free and fair voting registration. Progressive taxation to close the deadly widening wealth gap. But above all, it needs the best teachers in the schools and their freedom to teach by their priorities, not those of the corporate textbook packagers and standardized testers.
Yep it is called consequences. And we can whine and protest the “ l did not vote for him” but he is our president and using our name, our tax dollars and our might to destroy our democracy and the world
Sadly yes. Whether we were complacent, asleep at the wheel, or just plain got sucker punched, it is water under the bridge now. We become part of the solution, or by default we are part of the problem.
Yup. When a country has an electorate as clueless, uniformed, fickle and apathetic as we do, with a cabal of corporations, broligarchs, politicians and SC judges as nefarious and determined to have their way as we have, who can trust us not to create this terrible scenario again in 4 years? We may someday heal and repair our country from this nightmare but our standing in the world has been squandered maybe forever. Not that we were always fair, stood with those on the correct and humane side of history, or didn’t throw our weight around inappropriately at times, but we also has positive influence and did some good.
I think the damage is immeasurable. First (my order may be wrong, so I will quit trying to order the idiotic moves), he cozies up Putin, then blasts him, then gets manipulated back to Putin. A smart narcissist will outwit a dumb one every time. He keeps reversing his position on NATO, Russia, tariffs, etc. He keeps stating the same bogus numbers (11,888 murders. Then we get, “no one has ever done this, it’s unbelievable, nobody could have ever done this before, America is the hottest country in the world, we’re getting rich off the tariffs, etc. I’m wandering. I’m so disgusted with his retribution, taking funding away from blue states, cities and Governors. Constant turmoil to distract from the Epstein files, calling everything he doesn’t like hoaxes, his weave, and the list goes on. I have watched 5 minute clips on the MSN homepage of hearings with Cabinet members. Pam Bondi, Ka$h Patel, and Pete Hegseth talk around answers and show incredible disrespect, Kennedy looks like a deer in the headlights.They are all in over their heads. This is internal damage. Internationally, he’s destroying our image, looked like a buffoon, throne away everyone’s trust in America, and is obviously declining cognitive functioning. Sorry for the rambling comment that looks my own weave. That doesn’t even touch his grifts and corruption. This is my reaction to Venezuela, which was a terrible mistake and following up with threats to Cuba, Columbia, Iran, and threat to take Greenland. It’s out of my system for now.
I like it Laurie ! Shouldn't it be hyphenated though... Like to somewhat 'feminize it' ? "_rump-Stein" files / conspiracy, blank, blank. Feminization would frost his 'acorns' all the more don'cha think ? Viral, absolutely viral it should go. All social media accounts reachable ! MSM, legacy media's social sites. ! War ! It's on..
That’s part of or the major part of the saddest part: “trumpelthinskin” has struck fear into the minds of weak, spineless and some seemingly mindless republicans; as well as stunned many of elected and non-elected democratic officials! Romney said to his autobiographer several years ago that many in his party no longer believe in the Constitution.
As for our democratic officials, it’s as if many of them hadn’t nor still haven’t recovered from the November 2016, election defeat of Hillary Clinton. I’d always preached to my friends and acquaintances back then or anyone who’d asked me; I felt very confident that it should have been a Biden/Clinton ticket! And now Hillary be into the first year of her first term or the first year of her second term as POTUS.
Hardball, learn to play hardball and stop continuing to be “swift boated”! As for meeting the voters where they are: many of our country’s voters are ignorant of current events and surely ignorant of many of America’s political, economic and historical events…but it’s not necessarily their fault alone! One would think — for us who know better — that the Biden administration brought about the inflationary period following the Covid induced shutdown of the global economies: “too many dollars chancing too few goods and services” was being experienced around the globe—but to listen to idiot trump and his despicables, one would think that the Biden/harris administration caused this to happen. Really…no, REALLY?
One last thing to keep this short as I need to sleep: any smart candidate running for office needs to be prepared ahead of time for certain questions that they—she or he—knows is going to be asked! Kamala failed at that on the View and with the very abbreviated campaign period, there was basically no time to correct that mistake. That’s just my few quick cents, but IFsomeone were to ask me, there’s a lot more.
Yes, Biden did well by the country but Trump’s MAGA wishing to ‘believe’ again, combined with Musk et al money & single-issue voters tanked Kamala’s effort.
There are places where Kamala shines, but she is not a strong speaker & she doesn’t have enough gravitas. I still believe she’d have made a good prez, esp compared to the Thing currently infesting the white house!
Even though I voted for her, she was more corporate Democrat than I would have liked. I'll always wish we had elected Bernie Sanders, who addressed many of the problems that still plague us, especially disparities of wealth and income.
Really? Democrats spend too much time blaming themselves! Trump won because he CHEATED! See the VIGILANTES Inc video at gregpalast.com! However, Biden SHOULD HAVE replaced DeJoy, Trump's postmaster general, and I don't think his support for Israel got Kamala any votes.
This just might win the internet, Craig. I may take this phrase and air it out on my MAGAt former work cohort. They are so enmeshed in the propaganda that they cannot see.
Diversion indeed. Lawrence O’Donnell last night (Jan 6) zeroed in on Marco Rubio to highlight Cuba as the actual target, a goal of Republicans since before the failed Bay of Pigs invasion. To believe this administration is serious about Greenland is but a “distraction.”
Never put any stupid move past this bunch of Heritage Foundation morons. They are so far into their delusional world where only they are correct, and everyone else (the majority of the American people) are wrong because we will not fall in line with their insane agenda.
Marc Elias is pointing to the possibility that one of the goals of kidnapping Maduro will be to coerce him into saying there was truth to the conspiracy theory that Venezuela interfered in the 2020 election to aid Biden. Another effort to rewrite history.
I've been reading your columns for years now and I have to say that of them all, this wins the Goldiest of Gold Medals. Your exposition of a range of facts we all need to keep top of mind will be a gift that keeps on giving as our resistance moves forward. With all my heart and soul, I thank you.
I empathize, Sean. And when I feel shaken (like at least twice a week) I do this: remember that the most important thing is to never, never, never give up--on hope or ourselves, and then ask myself if I could go on living without resisting something that engenders murder, rape, torture, theft and the threat of nuclear war. As I can't, I keep on keeping on and set useless worrying aside. Peace, brother.
I have many things in my life that are rich. Numerous loving friends and a beautiful family. Yesterday I kayaked a box canyon with fun rapids and moss covered walls. Backyard run. I am employed and my family is healthy. Multiracial but we are and feel safe. There are so many blessings. Thanks for the reminder. I donate. I have marched. I talk about it, and stay engaged. All this and some days this administration makes my head spin in disbelief… thanks for the good word.
This. I know Peter Thiel's horribleness is lower down on the long, long list of horriblenesses, but that he thinks the last good times in the US were the 1920s (the Great Depression, anyone)!!! and that the country also started going downhill after women had the constitutional right to vote, shows the caliber of "thought," "knowledge," and downright craziness with which we are dealing. SHOOT THEM ALL INTO SPACE.
Thiel probably was referring to the 1920s up to the Great Depression. Is there anyone besides Thiel questioning value of women voting? Any Republican who thinks it was a mistake for women to have the vote is not a genuine R in my opinion. How backward to believe that. I don't think Trump or any of the R's in Congress believe that, but if they've said they want to take their right to vote away, please let us know. There are Republican women in Congress, of course. T. Roosevelt was strong supporter of women's suffrage.
I usually don't like to promote anything generated by AI, but this is a useful summary . Each example can be confirmed from other reliable sources -
AI Overview
While the official platform of the Republican Party does not suggest women should not vote, several individual Republican political figures and candidates have made such suggestions or expressed support for such ideas.
Examples include:
Mark Robinson: In a resurfaced 2020 video, while a candidate for North Carolina lieutenant governor (a position he later won), Robinson explicitly said, "I absolutely want to go back to the America where women couldn't vote". He later provided context for the statement, tying it to an argument about the Republican Party's historical role in social change, but the comment drew significant criticism.
John Gibbs: This former GOP House candidate supported by Donald Trump ran a college "think tank" website in the early 2000s that argued the U.S. had "greatly suffered from women having the right to vote" and that women did not possess the necessary qualities to govern. A campaign spokesperson later stated the website was satire and that Gibbs now supports women's suffrage.
Pete Hegseth: The current Defense Secretary recently reposted a video on X (formerly Twitter) featuring Christian nationalist pastors who advocated for a system where households, not individuals, would cast votes, a system that would effectively disenfranchise women and consolidate voting power with the male head of household.
Paul Ingrassia: Nominated by President Trump to lead the Office of Special Counsel in 2023, Ingrassia responded approvingly to a podcast host who said his wife "literally thinks women should not vote," calling the opinion "very based".
Additionally, some current Republican-backed legislation, such as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, has been criticized by voting rights groups for potentially creating barriers that would disproportionately affect millions of married women who have changed their last names, thereby making it harder for them to vote in practice. Republicans have argued the bill is a necessary measure for election integrity and have dismissed the concerns about disenfranchisement.
For the evangelical fringe theory of voting by the patriarch of a household -
Thanks for this info, but most of these people are fringe figures. Hegseth is Secretary of Defense but I think his influence is limited to that area. The motive for the SAVE Act is not to disenfranchise women. I remember Lynn Cheney saying about 10 yrs ago that Nancy Pelosi particularly wanted to defeat Republican women candidates. Probably on the theory that having Republican women in Congress mainstreams the idea that it is OK for women to be Republican. In any case, a lot of Republican women have been elected. Some people on this platform may believe that the Trump Administration will try to cancel the 2026 election, but the Admin is not going to try to target women by taking away their right to vote. I think the 2026 elections will be held.
Gotta disagree with you, Robert, unless you think the Trump administration isn't truely R. The minister of Pete Hegseth's church, for example, preaches about how women shouldn't vote. See also this op-ed --https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/dec/04/women-right-to-vote-disenfranchisement. As for Teddy, one of my favorite Presidents, he'd be called a RHINO today for promoting women's suffrage and the Food and Drug Act.
I read the article, thanks. I still don't think disenfranchising women is a mainstream idea in the Republican Party. Within some parts of right-wingers' circles, maybe, and the article gives some examples. I've never seen it, and (nearly) any R elected official around the country who supported disenfranchisement would be booted out, by the Party and the voters. But it's worth looking out for. You're probably right about Teddy R. And is the Trump Administration truly R? Not on a lot of things.
We’ve had dumb presidents before. We’ve had corrupt presidents before. We’ve had dishonest presidents before. But we’ve never before had such a repulsive, demented whiney little bitch in the Oval Office before.
Please spare us all the use of sexist terms like “bitch”. It’s bad enough that this fool and his party are destroying our democracy and world standing. If you must use pejorative terms, try one that is consistent w his body parts.
Well we know who to thank for this mess. I for one will never forgive MAGAs for inflicting this on the US and the world. There is just NO excuse for being that stupid or selfish.
Craig in a post slightly chronologically before yours coined a phrase that seems to fit today's RepubliKan party: "Trumperotic patriotism" which I think is about as descriptive of what I am seeing from that party and those who follow him as anything I have conjured up on my own (mostly profane words and challenging the intellect of his followers); this phrase captures what my mushbrain thinks. It's like a porn addiction.
Like you said in one of your live videos earlier today (yesterday for many reading this) - We have to speak up right now. So, everyone, let Congress hear you! Be extremely loud!
Use/share this spreadsheet (bit.ly/Nokings) as a resource to contact members of Congress, the Cabinet and news organizations. Call. Write. Email. Protest. Unrelentingly.
Reach out (beyond your own) to as many in the Senate and House as you can. All of this is bigger than “I only represent my constituents” issues.
Add a comment to help keep this bumped ✊ New eyes seeing this means new ripples for change! 🤞
Thank you Megan -- I have a day at home baking and cooking and while things are rising or simmering I will be making calls using the information from your spread sheet!
Megan want to thank you for compiling this remarkable document.
Over the weekend a number of us composed a letter of 14 questions posed to every Republican member of Congress about the illegal activities that occurred in Venezuela printed them and mailed them out to all 273 Republican representatives in DC. cost us $212.94 in postage. It’s nice to have an owner of a printing shop in your group. Yesterday we printed and sent the same letter to all 273 to their offices in their home states. We couldn’t have done it without all your hard work in giving us the information for each of these representatives.
Hope, resolve, patience and a love of this country are just a few powerful things that move people to do not so extraordinary things but what’s right. Maybe it’s what Franklin replied when asked what kind of government they had created. - "A republic, if you can keep it" Resolved to keep it…
Among other things, the regime has made using the USPS as distasteful as possible. Rates are way up, and two things I mailed recently—a condolence card and a package of tea—were opened and emptied. No cash inside. When I mailed the package, the tape seemed a little off, and the clerk told me that she couldn't add more; I'd have to buy a roll. Then she relented and added a little Scotch tape, which didn't stop the vandalism. Clearly, things are designed to fall apart before there's any possibility of voting by mail.
Yes we knew that the letter would take probably a week or two to get to any of these members of Congress. So we all used Megan’s information and broke it down among 15 of us and made calls to all 273 of these complicit members. Called DC and their local offices. We selected a few of the 14 questions compiled and left messages. On it today to have all of them get this message, because voice mails weren’t for some operational… Patience, resolve is something that retired people have and a sense of humor. As my mom always says, never piss off an older person they’ve lived longer and have a lot to say when poked…
Please be aware of the changes that have been made to when mail gets an official postmark. It will not be postmarked until it reaches a regional sorting facility, which can be days away depending on your location. Anything that relies on a postmark as proof (including mail in ballots) can be affected.
Morning! I think that depends on what you want to do. I use the calendar on one of the tabs (at the bottom of the sheet) and reach out to as many Republicans in the states listed as possible each day. I might call after hours (and my kids go to bed) and leave a short message (sometimes using a script from 5calls, indivisible, Jess Craven, others, or just my own), or I send an email through the contact me links and I use an in state office address to bypass the not a constituent block (then at the end of my email I write that I might not be a constituent but ___ committee they’re on needs to do ____ like my message has said).
I usually look at it on my computer, soooo tiny on my phone! I can zoom in but I don’t want to risk clicking anything and changing something without realizing.
I have PDFs I can email you if you want it printed. My email is listed on it 💜
The framers had a lot on their plate, but we are witnessing effects of the failure to make voting rights iron clad. Clearly, to be sustainable the Constitution need that. Take away the right to vote and meaningful liberty and justice falls with it.
I agree. Heritage over the years has focused on the states to implement their plans because voters are not well informed about state legislation since local newspapers have died and local news websites are being run by right-leaning corporations.
Restack if you can. Primaries start in March and I think this is a 5-alarm emergency.
Kari—the higher the score, the LESS ballot access has been curtailed. Remember who is doing the scoring: Heritage Foundation. It believes there is election “integrity” only when the greatest restrictions are on ballot access. Categories such as voter ID requirement at the polls, permanent lists for those needing an absentee ballot work towards getting more voter’s votes accepted earn a high score since HF frames the category in a negative light. Hope that helps.
Heritage is definitely scoring these. I believe the higher the score the more difficult it is to vote in that state and the more restrictions have been placed on access to voting.
Check the difference between the Red and Blue states.
Kari—Heritage most likely intended to confuse a reader of this chart by using a Red -Yellow-Green scheme. Green is what they like—more restrictions on voting, not fewer. The lower the number, the harder it is to vote there and the more heritage likes it. Blue states like NY and CA are “red” due to their high score and more open ballot access. Hope this helps.
Thank you for producing this vast and important document that makes contacting our reps so much easier. Thune and Johnson, Senate and House leaders should be representing ALL of us. Getting elected may involve politics, but once elected the Legislative branch represents all citizens.
Every day it gets worse, and every day your exhortation to protest unrelentingly is more important; thank you for persisting with the spreadsheet, Megan. And as always, thanks to Dr. Richardson for her persistence in contextualizing this mess.
The best refutation of the careening scheiße of today's trumper tantrums. As Rep. Raskin later observed, Mrs Hemphill was one of the few convicted insurrectionists who merits a pardon from her assuming responsibility for her actions, making proper amends, and showing contrition. She refused to accept the pardon.😯 https://youtu.be/jnk8UClnRyc 🙏🏾 The 4½ minute vid. is perfect for people who have five minutes only not the half a day required to read Special Counsel Smith's damning deposition or to watch today's hearing among House Democrats about 06jan21, of which this woman's statement was a part.⚖️
I recall seeing Mrs Hemphill nearly crushed to death LIVE during the insurrection 5 years ago when she was pinned up against wall by the surge of trampling traitors on that nightmare day.
She was saved by policemen doing their duty -- saving her life.🙏
You make a good point Bryan. Fox News was given all of the tape from 1/6/21 and they threatened to release it. Why didn't they?
We need to urge the MSM to air January 6th footage and whenever Trump talks about the 2020 election being stolen. No one wants to see his ugly mug rambling on so give them something to look at.
Or video of ICE beating and kicking someone on the ground or throwing tear gas at elderly protesters. A picture tells a thousand words.
I was not aware of the protests. I did watch much of the hearing by the Democrats, from which the clip of Mrs Hemphill is drawn. The protest seems to be on big baby-tantrum.
And she struck me as sincere. People were wary of her at first, but soon they warmed up to her. Every M.A.G.A. pardoned into becoming spontaneous storm-trumpers -- thank you, Jimmy Kimmel -- should watch this clip and talk about it.
I just found out from a really fine book on how Latin America fits into the international system that Greenland is under the protection of the Rio Treaty (of 1948) though neither it nor Denmark are signatories to that founding document of the Organization of American States. 😯
So, go after Greenland and Trump triggers Article-5 of the N.A.T.O. and Article-3 of the O.A.S. *treaties, notwithstanding the United States being a rogue ally. Jeez, three continents arrayed against the U.S. That spells isolation. Maybe not a military response.🖕
But a full blown embargo and banning U.S. citizens from travelling to sixty-four countries, some in which Americans own properties. That would teach us. both of these short essays are compelling to a conservative like me; but the second one is especially relevant. 😱
He is insane and needs to be removed from office. The pil companies don't even want the oil because it would drop the market price and they would therefore lose money. This has gone from him doing crazy things to make heaps of cash for his friends to him doing crazy things that break the world. Congress needs to act.
Thanks Bambi, vetting with Gemini says your statement is accurate: Venezuela's oil is characterized as "heavy" and "sour," meaning it's dense with high sulfur content, requiring specialized, complex refineries with advanced units (like hydrotreaters and coking units) for processing, unlike lighter, sweeter crudes. This makes it costlier and more challenging to extract and refine, leading to higher carbon emissions during processing and requiring specific technologies like steam injection, with China and India often being major buyers due to their advanced facilities for such crudes.
But big tech needs the heavier oil to run their AI systems. I copied the following from another Substack site (but lost the source) re: AI plants need the heavier deisel oil in Venezuela. " An important point about Venezuelan oil is (1) that it is heavy (versus the sweet, light crude of the U.S. and Gulf) and contains much more diesel; (2) the Gulf Coast refineries (belonging to Big Oil) are better at refining heavy (Venezuelan) oil than domestic; (3) AI plants need diesel-fueled industrial generators as backup in case of electric blackouts, to ensure the necessary continuous operation. MORE IN DEPTH REPORTING ON THIS would be an important adjunct to all stories concerning the takeover of Venezuela. Follow the money! And Big Oil x AI."
If the fossil fuel corporations gave Donald the billion dollars he wanted from them, he'll arrange for us, the bottom 99%, to subsidize anything they may spend to float whatever corrupt Venezuelan regime may bow to Donald and his corrupt.
Ordinarily the customer, but the stuff can be turned into diesel and we have refineries that can do it. Trump recently suggested the the bottomless public purse of taxpayers could be tapped to pay oil companies to extract Venezuelan oil.
The other consideration that oil companies need to keep in mind is that it's going to take years before an investment in Venezuela now will see a profit. But, once Trump is no longer holding a gun to their head, Venezuela is likely to reseize control over their oil fields and rip up any contracts they were forced to sign.
Precisely. Of course we should not expect Trump to understand when something is a bad business decision because that's all he knows how to make, since he is a failed businessman, bailed out every single time by bankruptcies and daddy's money.
Heather has given us another laudable, extensive documentation of Donald Trump’s psychopathology. Some might find the interview of George Conway, a prominent lawyer who argued cases at SCOTUS, by Molly Jong Fast today as informative. (George Conway on How Congress Prevents Another Trump - YouTube
The problem is that we are living in a different world than Donald Trump. We appear to assume that he is sane and lives in the same world and plays by the same rules that we do. But he does not. He lives in the world of his malignant narcissistic personality disorder and plays a game that has different rules than what we assume. He doesn’t behave by our rules any more than someone with schizophrenia would. He is mentally ill and is motivated only by the drive to gain power, control, money, self-aggrandizement, praise, glorification, etc.. He manipulates using his power to intimidate, his appeal to emotion rather than facts and reason, etc.. He is a compulsive liar and projects his own motives and behaviors onto his perceived enemies as a defense since he is incapable of ever admitting to any error. He has no empathy for others and presents himself as a victim of his perceived enemies
The diagnosis of malignant narcissistic personality disorder is based on verified behavioral history and subjective judgement. These are defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (DSM). There are no diagnostic physical tests other than psychological testing such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventories (MMPI). Good luck getting Trump or any other politician to take it. Trump clearly has a documented history of fulfilling the criteria in the DSM. I had training in psychiatry in medical school including elective courses.
Although most psychiatrists and clinical psychologists especially in the US refrain from commenting on the likely diagnoses of public figures, some have spoken out: Dr. John Gartner is a licensed and 35 year practicing, Ph.D. clinical psychologist, former professor at John’s Hopkins Medical School, founder of “Duty to Warn”, collector of 41,000 signatures of psychiatrists and mental health providers on a letter warning of Trump’s mental unfitness that was sent to Congress and contributor to the World Mental Health Coalition publication: “The More Dangerous Case Of Donald Trump, 40 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Warn Anew”, edited by Bandy Lee, MD, MDIV, 2024, ISBN 979-8-9900533-7-3, etc.. It is also worth noting that George Conway, a prominent Republican lawyer wrote an article 6 years ago describing how Trump “checks all the boxes” for the diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder: “Unfit for Office. Donald Trump’s narcissism makes it impossible for him to carry out the duties of the presidency in the way the Constitution requires” by George T. Conway III, The Atlantic, October 3, 2019 and more recently: George Conway on How Congress Prevents Another Trump - YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFoMY55vnJ0
If you are unfamiliar with the symptoms and behavior of a narcissistic personality disorder, you can listen to very short YouTube videos by Dr. Les Carter, a popular (non- political), Ph.D., licensed, clinical psychologist with decades of practice who clearly explains in layman’s terms the characteristics of narcissistic personality disorder,You can view him on YouTube and decide for yourself if you think this explains much if not all of Trump’s behavior:
It is past the time for media, politicians and public figures to stop throwing up their hands as seemingly mystified by Trump’s behavior when it is clear that he is certifiably mentally ill and should never have been placed in a position of so much power over humanity and the world. It is a crucial job to point this out to the public and not just engaging in distraught hand-wringing.
I have no affiliation with Les Carter, John Gartner or George Conway. I am an MD and graduate degree biochemist.
Conway is now running for Congress in NY12 as a Democrat. Throw some coin into his campaign. I’ve read, watched and listened to him on various Bulwark vehicles, especially “George Conway Explains It All to Sarah Longwell”, and he is the real deal. Smart, uncompromising, and genuine.
Fred W. Cox, While I have no disagreement with your assessment of the Donold, I fear you miss the powerful threat behind the Donold, the entire establishment of "might makes right" Republicans/MAGA/financial broligarchy (eg. Peter Thiele, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, etc.). THESE are the ones which carry forward the notion that “we know best” and therefore needn’t be restricted by the laws meant for the common folk. It is the notion of impunity which accompanies great power which resides in a great military and staggering wealth. This “might makes right" is the province of barbarians who aim to upset the world order of the past 80 years, the world order of a civilized society in a nuclear age in which we are already so "powerful" that we are changing the planet’s very climate.
While the whole of Heather's chat from last evening - January 6, 2025 - is worth watching, imbedded in it is her assertion that the idea that though Trump thinks he has captured a prize by being able to control Venezuela's oil, oil is a 19th and 20th Century technology; whereas, if China feels free to go after Taiwan, Taiwan has 60% of the world's semiconductors, a technology of the 21st Century. That assertion starts at about minute 27:40.
YES Lynell, and THAT is exactly what we need to fear the most about the barbarity of this entire administration and its sense of impunity: their actions invite other hegemons to ignore the world order of the past 80 years which has kept us out of nuclear war. The Republicans/MAGAs are actively unleashing the forces of barbarism while running roughshod over the laws and rules of civilization which have kept us from mutual annihilation these past 80 years. Might DOES NOT make right!
Thank you, Heather. If there’s anybody here, which I doubt, who’s buying Trump’s lie that he, as President, will rake control of oil revenues “for the benefit of the Venezuela and American people”, I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn for sale, cheap.
One silly irony in Trump’s “reasoning” about needing Greenland for our national security: Greenland is on the shortest path between Russia and the US. Yeah, THAT Russia — the country he is trying to hand Ukraine’s land to. Another silly idea: he pretends that Maduro is a greater threat to us than Putin.
The US has no troops on the ground in Venezuela, and very little leverage other than threats to further its illegal goals. Like Trump's attempts to rewrite Jan 6 history, threaten Greenland and NATO, "reform" healthcare, improve the US economy and security, etc., it is all a sham. A bunch of bullshit and hot air, much like the farts that Baby Donald Smallhands evidently emits on regular occasion. I really hope the Congress shows some backbone this week in some critical votes and stops this insane, very dangerous sham.
I'm thinking though that those doing the work can aptly defend themselves. It's past time for a fight 'in kind' - no holds barred; Let a higher power of some kind, sort them out. Past time for powerful statements and actions JL - long past time !!! Taxation without representation is a cause worth reinstating towards the congress, senate, and supine court jesters. I've had it !!! I should not have to pay people to sit on their thumbs - I least of all of you, can't and won't afford it.
I hope we're familiar enough to assure you that I hate broad strokes too; Only barns and a few other items require painting with broad strokes. Perhaps some general qualifications should / could be added to such a petition. Ask Joyce Vance or other "solicitor" regarding legal wording. But the moments have come to light fires ( I'll bring the torches and matches), under branches that aren't exercising their oaths of office my friend ! They play with no holds barred; Shouldn't we as well, to fight 'in kind'?
“ The House GOP leadership expects a procedural vote on Wednesday and a final passage vote on Thursday on legislation to extend the enhanced Obamacare premium subsidies for three years. Passage of the legislation — forced onto the floor after a revolt by GOP moderates — is an early-year defeat for Speaker Mike Johnson. This will put pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune to find a path to extend the expiring tax credits.”
I expect Trump's mad actions and programs make the wealthy in the U.S. feel secure. The poor and toiling working classes prevent people like Peter Thiel from being free, and policies that help them threaten him. But what greater freedoms and opportunities for enrichment could Thiel want than he has had so far? How much more of the toiling poor's money does he need? If he extinguishes the lower classes altogether, he might find the source of his wealth gone with them.
As Dylan recently said in front of a large group of billionaires, including Musk and Bezos -- when he accepted an award in Manhattan recently: “If you can spend billions building rockets and metaverses, you can spend millions feeding children.
If you call yourself a visionary, prove it — not with money, but with mercy.” If you don't use your money for good, what's the point?
"the liberty of wealthy men to act without restraint. Free them, the logic goes, and they will Make America Great Again."
As usual, Dr. Richardson finds the essence and states it clearly and succinctly. I would add that this philosophy applies to white males only (Christianity doesn't apply here. That's only for ornament).
It’s about oil in Greenland too. Greenland has banned all exploration and exploitation of its oil reserves for environmental reasons. In the mind of the US president, that’s an act of aggression against the USA.
True, they could do that now, negotiate with Denmark. But remember, that’s not what Drumpf wants. Those resources must first belong to Drumpf. All the negotiations must first pass through the Drumpf grift wall. It’s not farfetched to imagine that by then he will have renamed the area Drumpfland.
Dr. Richardson shows us that this is the same ole same ole tired sermon with a new suit: if “only we are right,” then why have elections at all. And once you tell yourself the other side is “violent” and “vicious” just for existing, you can justify anything you do to silence them.
Then comes the second move: rewrite January 6, call the attackers patriots, call the truth a lie, and dare the nation to accept it. I wrote about this.
https://open.substack.com/pub/xplisset/p/the-washington-post-predicted-january?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
And the third move is abroad: talk about “freedom” while threatening Greenland, shaking NATO, and treating Venezuela like an oil field with a flag on it.
But hear me and hear me clearly: power always overreaches when it thinks it owns the country. And it is on us…regular people, stubborn people to keep saying: we vote, we count, we remember. We vote, we count, we remember. www.xplisset.com
We cannot have our country cancel elections as trump has suggested. Again we need to hit the streets the minute this happens. We need to call our representatives and we need to work with all fifty states and their election commissions to ensure voting happens. It is the states not the Federal government that govern our elections. There is zero reason to cancel elections. The push back needs to be overwhelming or we lose our country.
Margaux, you're so right. And to get that overwhelming response in the streets we need to be part of a coordinating organization. For me that's Indivisible, which has worked so tirelessly to get the turnout for No Kings Protests. You can get on their mailing list here: https://indivisible.org
Other newsletters on Substack like Robert Hubbell's and Hopium Chronicles will always be doing the prep for this kind of action. I'd love to hear other recommendations.
We can not take to the streets once every few months, they are not getting the message. It must be a sustained effort.
He continues to say the quiet part out loud. If you vote this time you will never have to vote again. They should cancel the elections.
Wake up people, we can’t wait three years. The country we know and love will be gone way before then.
He IS getting the message and he doesn’t like it. After the last No Kings rally he tore down the East Wing in a fit rage.
At the same time, we should also additional forms of protest and keep the pressure on in every way possible.
Yes, I agree.Marching by the millions, sure,but also boycotting,calls every day all day to our reps and other measures to keep the pressure going. We are not going away.I continue to call my reps every day demanding the release of the Epstein files.Whatever it takes.
Turns out only a fraction of the Epstein files have been released, so there must be more pressure to make sure that happens quickly and in totality before the most damaging parts are redacted.
"Because there are no truly free places left in our world,” he wrote, Thiel called for escaping into cyberspace, outer space, or seasteading."
And yet Peter Thiel and his techbro buddies are free to leave this country.
Most of us will be happy to see you go! Bye, boys.
From what I've read so far, we all agree that this regime is a travesty (putting it nicely). Here in the US laws are ignored and broken daily. Republicans turn their heads and look the other way. NO ONE is going to jail.There is no law governing this regime. Period. International laws are being ignored along with treaties that date back to World War II. Nothing is being done except shaking fingers and telling the US they're being naughty. I am losing more and more faith in the American people's ability to care about what really is right and wrong, so we must continue the fight against misinformation and the self indulgence that has brought us to this point.
Once our foreign allies, these countries need to face the fact that while there are those of us that staunchly support the ousting of this evil regime they need to realize the fact that we may be losing the battle. Those that were once our allies need to immediately put as many sanctions and boycotts as possible. There is psychotic moron in charge of the most powerful military on earth. Foreign leaders must realize this and act accordingly, immediately.
Like it or not the world IS at war!
It's unbelievable how misogynist these guys are, openly condemning giving women the right to vote. They sound like disturbed toddlers who when told they have to share throw a temper tantrum. Not only have most of them never matured into adulthood, they reveal every day what terrible jobs their parents did raising them.
How can Republicans in Congress not defend us against Trump's illegal, immoral and disgusting behavior? The past 2 days gave a graphic answer. As Trump announced that the US would steal "between 30 and 50 million barrels of Venezuela's oil" for the United States, the DJIA stock market jumped up by 2.514%. For millionaires invested in the DJIA stocks, this was a profit of $25,140 for each million dollars they have invested. For billionaires, it was a profit of $25,140,000 for each billion they have invested. In just 2 days! With a small fraction of these kind of profits they can lavishly finance the election campaigns for their representatives in Congress.
Meanwhile the majority who do not have significant investments in the stock market experienced only another widening of the wealth gap in this country.
Theil and cronies had a little thing going in Honduras while Hernandez was president. Prospera is a special economic zone ( online nation) founded by Thiel and Andreessen. Balajji Srinivasan created the idea of online nation with its own culture, economy, tax structure. Castro thought that it would be the perfect attraction for bad foreign characters and had them made illegal. isn't there some sort of cyber money that is untraceable? Possibly a reason trump pardoned Hernandez with Thiel being involved.
I am still wracking my brains to figure out how 'freedom' and 'democracy' could be incompatible. Does anyone have any idea what he meant?
I haven't used my PayPal account in a long time, but in the middle of reading Dr. Richardson's post, I closed my account. Good riddance.
General strike works in the UK, France, and Italy
I agree with everything Heather stated except that “undocumented immigration was less than what it was at the end of the Trump administration.” It clearly wasn’t and issues are often dumbed down to basics, it had gotten out of control and Trump shrewdly used it to convince enough voters to revenge vote. An ugly truth is hard to swallow but it’s there if one opens one’s eyes.
You can express your opinions, but I doubt that the good professor would write anything like this without the receipts to prove it.
Bill Katz Donald’s Vanity Tantrums and Mo… "I agree with everything Heather stated except..."
I agree that immigration is often oversimplified. Where I disagree is the claim about timing. By the end of the Trump administration, undocumented crossings were already at historic highs, driven by pandemic disruptions, Title 42 expulsions, and pent-up migration pressures that began in 2020. Those dynamics did not suddenly appear afterward.
Trump absolutely used immigration effectively as a political wedge, but that does not make the underlying data disappear. Acknowledging complexity cuts both ways.
Calling it an “ugly truth” does not make it true. Border crossings surged before Trump left office, and the idea that the situation was stable at the end of his term is contradicted by DHS and CBP data.
Trump did not fix immigration. He politicized it. That worked electorally, but it did not change the reality on the ground.
A important piece in most voters' eyes is comparing the number of illegal immigrants who came in during Biden's years to the number coming in now since the start of Trump's second term. Trump has secured and closed down the flood of immigrants coming in through the southern border. People may not like the policy or how it's being done, but that border has been pretty closed down to illegal immigration.
https://www.newsweek.com/southern-border-illegal-crossings-trump-biden-compared-chart-2019770
Ooh that would be a connection worth documenting for the record. Lashing out at the first lady's office space, how Thiely.
He, also, probably covered the wall in the DR with ketchup! Pouter.
Totally agree. So tired of people thinking congress will stop him, or the courts will stop him. I can’t believe I’m saying this - but our military has to be cleared of trump loyalists, and then be used to arrest and jail every one of them.
I agree.
Nobody will stop Trump from doing whatever he wants. I hoped the military brass might honor their oath of loyalty to the Constitution, but their acquiescence to Trump’s orders of piracy on the high seas proved that hope to be entirely in vain. Congress won’t stop Trump. The courts can’t stop him. The military has abandoned its obligations. And the majority of white Americans are fine with all of this. If they weren’t, Congress would put a stop to it by removing Trump from office.
Rex, I wonder what T has in mind if another country hijacks an oil tanker from Venez. Or, hits one of our many military rigs in the area??
We ALL need to stop patronizing the tech and retail companies supporting this regime, cut off their sources of income. They assume they are necessary but their products and convenience really aren’t. Independent media is the only media source to be relied on now.
Cornered animals are always the most scary looking and the most dangerous. It’s going to be a rough ride. We all need to buckle up and get to work.
Call, write, email every day if you have to. give to worthy democratic candidates likely to flip districts or states.
I gave to Fetterman and Sinema! Look how that turned out!!!
I smell desperation. We can't stop believing in who we are. We can't stop believing in our Constitution and the freedoms it guarantees us. In the end, We the People will prevail and stop the madness and destruction. This sick and demented man is telling us, and the rest of the world, that his plan is to dominate all of us. We can and will stop him.
We better get on it because we are running out of time.
You are right Mike, the time is NOW. Each of us needs to find a way, and do it.
we are having protests here on the cape every 2 weeks, but I don't know if it has the same impact as 7 million people all in the same day. But I do know that those huge rally's take a lot of planning and organizing.
Cate, would you push our Gov to create an escrow account for citizens to deposit Fed taxes in as this coward continues his illegal unauthorized destruction of not only OUR White House but of ripping out legislated legally passed bills of $$ to assist people in need as well as to all states esp including those he’s decided he doesn’t want to support because they elected Democratic Govenors. Call Maura Healey. Call our state Attorney General. You sound empowered. Brava!
Agree, Mike! He means it. More scare tactics will be used to “grease the skids”, like arresting protesters.
So right, Mike! But, as pulpits go, his is the noisiest. Making 'fun' of him or his actions is pretty-much just low noise level. He finds what he calls poop and rubs our nose in it. In turn, we catch him with his eyes closed or stubbing his toe boarding AF One - BFD! Until "We" (the people) get some dead-nuts proof of him physically 'violating' some youngster under 12.., we got nuthin! And, if we can't find a way to walk and chew gum at the same time, "We" the people will continue to be tossed into the dustbin by 'Don-bo'. He's actually surrounded by a lot of happy people who eat his baloney.
It's not his baloney they're eating. It's the stuff that soils his Depends.
"I'd love to hear other recommendations."
Marc Elias' Democracy Docket
Steve Brodner's The Greater Quiet
Jessica Craven's Chop Wood, Carry Water
Judd Legum - Popular Information
I’m so tired of “brushing up” up on how to bring down a democracy. Nothing personal, Lin. We need living, breathing men and women to lead and inspire. Jack Smith comes to mind.
Jay Kuo and The Big Picture
lin+, I should have scrolled further to see your mention of Jess Craven. Marc Elias is a wonderful warrior as well! I will need to look into your other suggestion.
https://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/a-practical-guide-to-chris-hedges-prescription-for-change/
Indivisible has done and is doing so much great work!
I just dont feel working towards elections is the ticket right now....trump is moving at breakneck speed. We have to do something more immediate, like do to him what he did to maduro. There must be people left in the military who still believe in the constitution...no???
I've been praying for Scotty to beam him up!
Amy, I think Scotty would 'lose' him before he gets to the Mother ship!
I want… let’s face it, I want global nuclear war. I want at least 350 billion humans wiped from earth. The other 350billion May slowly die of radiation. Let’s give the wildlife of the world a chance.
Yeah, good one Bill, this will get tons of likes.
Jess Craven's Chop Wood, Carry Water Substack offers actionable measures to use daily, and what I really appreciate is her weekly list of "good news" in the world. Boy, do I need that!
Indivisible is too slow. We need to demand immediate action from all allies in Congress, law enforcement, the military, and in state houses around the country.
yes, yes, yes...and throw in our allies.. can't France come and help us again? Canada..please come save us! Can't some country do to him what he did to maduro...aren't those the new rules? Surely nato can find some law he broke..
Well, they do have one aircraft carrier. I am not sure about their submarine capability. Perhaps France and Great Britain could conspire and send us our own reverse Guy Fawkes.
Do you mean because 2 big protests are not enough? This is my feeling.
Yes, protests spaced by months are not enough. A general strike and determined boycotts of all things Tesla, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, etc., all those aiding Trump and Netanyahu and Putin, are needed.
Don't forget Apple!! (and I say this as an Apple native). Here's what Robert Reich shared today <robertreich@substack.com>:
"Or look at Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, who recently gave Trump a plaque with a 24-karat golden base and then showered him with praise at a convening of Big Tech billionaires at the White House.
Apple followed up by removing an ICE tracking app from its app store at the request of Trump’s Department of Justice."
Check out these: Robert Reich, Tim Snyder -Thinking About, Jessica Craven - Chop Wood, Carry Water, Marc Elias - Democracy Docket, Meidas Touch
Prof. Snyder’s Substack yesterday was a perfect stump speech for Dems running in the next election. I agree, however, that elections cannot be our only focus. Things are moving much too fast, and as the current administration sinks they will try to move faster. The urgency grows.
yes, we are all reading all this stuff..reading, reading, reading...
Thom Hartmann also
I have found Dave Troy’s America 2.0 to be excellent at fleshing out the backstory to the current moment, especially in regards to Venezuela. He outlines fully the years-in-the-making of this oil grab: https://america2.news/the-russian-roots-of-trumps-venezuela-and-greenland-operations/
That’s an excellent article. Highly recommended.
POLITICO Headline: "House GOP Confronts a Shocking Loss".
California R House Rep DOUG LAMONTA died last night.
That brings the TOTAL number of R House Reps down to 218.
The discharge dictated vote on Health Care Subsidies is tomorrow 1/8/26.
Four (4) R's supported the discharge position vote.
***************************************************
UPDATE: R House Rep, JIM BAIRD of Indians, was "badly hurt in a car crash"
Probably an auto correct but House rep from N. California is Doug La Malfa. His district is one affected by Newsom's Prop 50 so there is a chance of a Democrat taking his place.
After seeing the tragedy in Minneapolis yesterday, a young American citizen and mother of a small child murdered at point-blank range, I think we have to take to the streets now. It could have been anyone's daughter, sister, friend. I also belong to Invisible, great organization. I think we need to get rid of the felon in the White House asap! We cannot wait. He needs to be impeached. He is out of his mind, reckless and his so-called administration is just as fruit-of-the-loom nuts as he is. The bold-faced lies by him and botox-face Noem are beyond human decency. We should be banging down the doors of our representatives and calling non-stop. We need to get this toxic monster out of the White House.
It is no accident that Trump, Miller, Noem, Kegsbreath, Holman and others have gone after cities with mayors that are black and in states that are blue. This MOD has failed miserably and people have fought back with vigor.
Remember to check your voting registration on a regular basis to make sure you are still registered. If you are deregistered for any reason, advertise it to your local media and complain to your citiy officials. This is going to happen where ever they think they can get away with it. Attend local town meetings and make sure there aren't any MAGAs running your local and state government. Many states are electing governors in 2026 and many of those elections will be held before November, some will be coming up in the very near future.
We need to support the Democratic and Independent candidates that are running and to get the word out if there are MAGA candidates getting support that they support the Trump Fascist agenda just by saying they are Republicans. The Republicans will do anything to do nothing.
The primaries for the US House and Senate are going to be as important as the elections themselves. Trump and Co. will be pouring money into many of the races to get the most far-right candidates elected. These elections are as important as the November Federal election.
Vote in your primaries and let the people of your community know that Musk, Leo, the Koch organization and other wealthy donors will support the most Fascist and far right candidates. If they support ANY candidates in your state, let people know that outside money is trying to rig YOUR elections.
Our work starts yesterday and many of you have been active in the fight so thank you all for all you do.
Sadly, my coffers are empty, having donated way too much in the past. I thought my donations would help defeat chump in 2024. Every election is the important one. But the next one may be the last one. If it happens at all. They will likely have it and pull out all the cheating stops. They know well how to buy, cheat, steal.
I understand. I'm guessing you are being bombarded with funding requests as are most of us. As soon as we stop one three more pop up.
But, we can still be vigilant and call our elected officials.
Vote Forward offers kits to write letters (including postage!) to those who have the time but not the means to do so. VoteFwd.org
Sometimes they post that info right up front, other times you have to search for it.
Thank you for this I can afford postage so far and do what I can. But those begging for $1.00 really irritate me. They need advice on how to solicit without pissing off the troops. They are using the wrong ad men. Chump gives them enough crap to aim at
Stalin said one death is a tragedy, a million is a statistic. I say one begging email is a possibility, a flood of them is an impossibility…
We need to demand that our Congressmen and Senators have open town hall meetings in the next six months. If they aren't willing to meet with voters, then why should we vote for them?
You don't need money for this, you need you active mind. You are eloquent, and brave. Be there, and bring others.
Don't worry, the last election was the last one. Anyone who thinks Cheetoh Caligula will allow something like the rule of law get in the way of his imperial presidency is more delusional than Trump himself is.
I don’t want to believe -yet - that it was the last one. Still, I agree, we’re heading in that direction. And pretty quickly.
I keep thinking that there is no way in hell, with all the polls and opinions pointing the way they are at a Dem victory, that he is going to allow an election..or at least a fair one.
It'll be fine, just look how that worked out for Neville Chamberlain!
Way to fight!
You are so right, he is running amok and winning the crazy contest
Donate your time. We can always use more help with running an election!
Tennesseans, the state’s voter registration information has been given over voluntarily to the US Dept of Justice by the governor. You know DOJ wants this information to mess with elections and possible take voters off the rolls. GJ is right that you should check your registration—even make a copy—and encourage everyone you know to vote—Trump wants to make it our last one. For all the reasons Heather sets out above, and more, he needs to go. (Also for anyone who wants to support competitive state elections, join us here: www.bluetennessee.org.
Excellent recommendations. Thank you!
I've attended school board meetings and select board meetings where I am the only guest. I wan't to see if all of the members are in alignment with our values. If not, I'll let the neighbors know.
Pathetic isn't it GJ? And my mantra: If you didn't vote, you lose your right to complain!
Good advice GJ! Since we will never know exactly who is watching or listening to us, checking our voters registration is a good idea. Keep going to all your local & state meetings you can.
trump hinted at no more elections during his last campaign. Remember when he told his voters "this will be the last time you have to vote"...his goal is to cancel the midterms. He's scared and what better way to try and keep republicans in power, blame the Democrats for everything.
But it wasn't was it? Democrats have been kicking ass almost everywhere and the Republicans are scared. Republicans are bowing out of their elected positions in record numbers. We can only imagine the quality of Republican candidates that will be running this year and it ain't gonna be pretty.
Yes we have. I couldn't agree more. Democrats have got to continue to fight fire with fire and stop the infighting. That alone is what is what destroys us, and yes republicans are scared. Thus trump's comments about how evil we Democrats are and how we destroyed the country. You are right on point.
Those were small elections. Now that he’s seen their results, he’ll do what he thinks he must to stop the ones that matter to him directly. No doubt he’ll at least try to end them. Don’t kid yourself.
Hoping more republicans will suddenly develop a reason for early retirement??
I saw a clip of him saying that the R's had to win the mid-terms because if the Ds were elected as a majority, they were going to impeach him. Again. Can we start with premeditated murder???
Amy, please curb your enthusiasm. Violence is not the answer. You are providing an excuse for the bad boys.
It remains to be seen the quality of R candidates that will be running, with so many incumbents leaving. I'm hopeful this year's candidates will be more centrist, less loyalty to Trump. It worries me that if Dems take the House, the R's that lose will be those who are the most moderate and who best serve their districts. And it worries me that the new Dems elected would be the most "progressive" who'll support any new spending program.
'
The moderate republicans are already gone. Any remnants that remain will soon be gone too
In the House among others are Rep. Don Bacon (NE) not running again, David Valadao (CA) redistricted, Jeff Hurd (CO). In Senate Susan Collins (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), among others.
Yes Robert, I hope the democrats don't burn down the house by acting the same way the republicans have been.
By the way, are you aware obviously not that every time a president has taken office with both houses in same party. In every occasion during the midterm the president has lost one or both houses every single time it’s never happened we’re a president keeps both houses of Congress during the midterm, so why don’t you wake up and do some research
https://youtube.com/shorts/ka-TnMKRSHM?si=7L6AhR38wvV0bCI0
The fact that Maduro’s VP is already becoming oppressive shows that she’s been bought and paid for; the regime will continue albeit in debt to trump.
What the hell is wrong with you people? Democracy of spreading all over the world, including in Tehran, where they the protester just named the street after Donald Trump 20 million Venezuelan are now running in the street celebrating and you’re worried about what? Get yourself a strong grip on reality would you?
That comment is incoherent. Try again.
Try this, Linda. It’s a slow motion video of the incident that happened today in Minneapolis.
https://x.com/iAnonPatriot/status/2008985515832561768?s=20
There should be a trial that should be a jury. There should be a judge should be a verdict.. But people on the left can’t wait just like they couldn’t wait like George Floyd and look how that turned out
What part of it didn’t you incohere Lololol The part about 20 million Venezuelan celebrating the part about there’s a big push and substantial protest with millions of Iranians in the streets protesting the Iatola, and in the process naming one of the streets Donald Trump because they feel he was instrumental and getting them to the point that they’re at right now where the Iatola is actually thinking of fleeing to Russia. ‘
You should be able to in cohere that lmao. Or would you rather have me say you should be able to cohere that?
Tell me what part you’re missing Linda because apparently you’re missing life outside of these threads
I think the Venezuelans may be celebrating too soon. The dust hasn’t even started to settle yet. And isn’t it odd that, while attacking protesters in our country, 47 says he will use our military to protect the protesters in Iran?! Oh yeah. Oil.
BEFORE. IT HAPPENS!
Marc Elias is head of the law group that takes trump on and wins 95% of his cases. Truly impressive- I donate regularly. And the wins often have teeth. He's all over election fraud and anticipating trumps moves. If you don't know him, please check him out. He used to be in one of the fancy law firms but left and created his own, not beholden to corporate money. He's livid and outspoken about the big firms that won't challenge trump after bending the knee. The more lawyers that Marc can hire, the happier I am.
How’s it working out so far Susan since Trump’s been elected. That’s the way you want government to work in America by having some lawyer pursue crimes against the winner of election. ? Maybe you should hire one of these great accident Atty lololol.
Why is it the Democrat party refuses to allow the forcing of presenting an official ID in order to vote ? Why do you think that is
BEFORE IT HAPPENS. AFTER IS TOO LATE
Yes. Twice armed is he who fights for what is just.
Thrice armed is he who gets his fist in first‼️🇺🇸
As I read this, the ICE sirens are tuning up as the criminals go out to catch anyone they can on the way to work or just to get groceries before full daylight.
(Chicago)
Malcolm Nance (former US intelligence) has suggested that there will be a civil war if Trump cancels the elections. How can he cancel them in Blue States when elections are state run?
https://youtu.be/izt6RvyItL0?si=HMGa4bH5y5CXDQij
Which is why I wrote an open letter to our CT governor encouraging him to have our national guard protect our residents and to interact with other governors on topic.
Thanks Bill. Great idea. I will do the same with my IL governor Pritzker.
If you go to my blog, billkatz@substack.com and look up my open letter published in our weekly, I explain the historical reasoning of state militia guarding against an oppressive central authority which st the time, was England. Same difference except it’s American. The national guard has the historic authority protect its residents. And I use residents instead of citizens for obvious reasons.
This seems to be an email and not a blog.
National guard, declare the insurrection act, have Republicans and republucan supporting militias attack counting centers in blue states with bombs and destroy the votes. Tell the military to guard them while they do it. Sure it will be ruled illegal AFTER the fact, but do you expect Republicans or the courts to stop him? He might be impeached, but he won't be convicted, so that's not relevant.
I totally agree Linda. If even one election is halted we ALL need to scream bloody murder.
In Grand Rapids, 22-year-old Jessica Plitchta, a preschool teacher, was the only one of 200 protesters arrested for the takeover of Venezuela. The local police were denounced for their action. She was giving an interview to a news station about the importance of free speech and arrested before she could finish.
Not good!
What was she arrested for their Patricia being stupid? Did you see what the people of Venezuela think like you know more than them you know every time you post you get dumber and more ignorant I would call you illiterate, but you are visually illiterate to the real world.
Chump is right, fight like hell or we will lose our country. But fight his ugly, lying, bullying, greedy, and evil arse. He has not one characteristic to recommend him. We seem mesmerized by the flood of evil. Our MSM needs to follow our substack truth tellers. Write the editors, flood the zone. It works for them, why not for us. They may not print them, but they will count them.
We need to call our reps en masse and often.
Yes, yes, and yes. Trump always tells us what he will do before he does it. Because he has no shame or no conscience, he feels no guilt about cheating, lying, stealing elections, ending democracy. The time to start fighting for the right to vote is yesterday. This is a fight that should be joined not just by Democrat but maybe even Republicans this time.
Except he didn’t tell anybody this time because he knew it would be linked and now Venezuela is going to be free and this is awesome. And if this persists then Venezuela a year or two from now has their democracy back and Tehran is able to overthrow the Iatola. The Democratic Party will not see a winning candidate in decades.
Work with all fifty states, yes, that's a great goal but think about the hard core right wing states, I'm not sure we can count on them to be as concerned as we are about elections. But, maybe when they can't get food & healthcare & their rural hospitals close necessitating a several hour drive to the nearest emergency room which will already be packed with equally as desperate individuals so they wait some more, maybe then their states will think again about the necessity of free & fair elections, maybe!
Abe did not cancel elections in the middle of the Civil War - there is your historic example. The Felon is planting seeds, testing where the next weak point will be. He will continue to do so because NO ONE has stopped him - a pure bully reaction, and because people are soft, meaning most do not want to suffer, to have to tighten their belts, in order to do the right thing. Too much me, not enough we. The only thing that matters is their personal economy. Many Republicans in Congress for example condemned Jan 6 but within half a year they rallied around Trump (regardless their personal reason for doing so), even though they knew Trump was the catalyst for insurrection. Pogo was right. All that said, I take inspiration from the Jaimie Raskin's and the Senator Kelly's of the world and will continue to resist with every legal (and given bad laws), every moral means possible.
I once again sent my objection to t-rump’s power grab to my congresspeople today. I’m so tired of feeling that my “civic duty “ is like crying into the void. Trump has left the ruse of intercepting drugs behind like lightning. The opposition is left in the dust, whiplashed and flat footed. We need to hit the streets now, winter is no excuse when he is basically saying he will stop elections.
What power grab? You people need to change the channel and get the hell out of here, including your lady below Name named Elizabeth, who is always on the wrong side of the of right and wrong IMO HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED BY HER OPINIONS it takes America two years to run an election two years and wear a democracy so it gonna take a little bit of time to allow the country to re-organize have a primary and then start campaigning a year out like we do here and you guys think it’s gonna happen in an instant because you’ve lost your minds
The president said it himself: “We’re going to run the country” He is ignoring the leader elected by 70% of the people and recognizing Maduro’s VP as President. Don’t think Maduro’s thugs are going to roll over easily. Your lecture about a smooth transition is a fantasy. I
Here’s a little present for you and Nancy Joe Biden 1989
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6386043448112 I don’t dismiss it because it’s Fox News because it has nothing to do with Fox News. It’s Joe Biden in his own words and by the way. This is the same kind of video where he stood up in the middle of Congress, holding up a nickels worth of crack cocaine in his hand and saying this is crack, cocaine, and anybody caught with this in their possession needs to go to prison for five years, no parole…….. except of course I’m sorry to say ..everybody except Hunter Biden
Are you sure you know who you’re talking to? Nancy, are you aware that they took his opponents name off the ballot and then in the primary is the lady got 92% of the vote and was sequestered for the entire time Maduro is in power and was exiled and left the country to win the Nobel peace prize.? And you’re ignoring the best part that you don’t even know two things actually he is the unrecognized president of Venezuela because he in fact did not win in a fair election. And furthermore, here is the headline of the day.
Joe Biden himself in 1989 said we need to get him out of power where he lives not wait for him to come to this country and deliver his drugs. I have the video if you’d like it. And secondly, Joe Biden put a $25 million bounty on his head for his capture. And the best thing I’m gonna see is Joe Biden coming out of retirement and giving Trump $25 million check on public TV. That is gonna be great.
Lastly, I don’t think you are talking to the same person when I said there’d be a smooth transition they were going to I specifically said the opposite here’s what I said. I said that even in America, where there’s a democracy, it takes two years to organize an election there has to be planning there have to be candidates. There have to be debates. There has to be a primary or two and then… AT LEAST a year out the campaigns start … and then there’s election. And don’t you think that the public in Venezuela is going to standstill and allow these thugs to try to put anything back the way it was under Maduro.
And perhaps you missed the precision strike by an incredible military planned incursion to get Madeira where he lives in breeze you don’t think that the people who you call thugs are gonna fear the same penalty and punishment and reparations as Trump delivered to Isis as Trump delivered to Iran and as Trump delivered to Nigeria ain’t gonna happen and I would suggest to you that in two years democracy will be restored. Certainly there will be fighting because they are not a democracy, but the people have spoken. Trump has spoken the opposing president or ex-president or actual president have spoken and are going to commit to be an ally of the United so put away your broken crystal ball dust off that Ouija board in a couple years and get back to me and let me know exactly how it turns out because the world already knows
We need to hit the streets NOW!!! We also need to call our representatives unceasingly!!! This is a 5 alarm fire, people!!!
The pushback needs to be on the Capital steps demanding congress finalize articles of impeachment and demanding that the senate acts!! Anything less, at this time in our history is unacceptable.
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It seems funny to me that it is always the losers who claim rig elections, bad calls on the playing field, and so forth
Well, Karen, unfortunately for you there have been thousands and thousands of people that think that Trump stole this past election
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/pages/legislation
The Heritage Foundation has written model legislation for the states and has published how they plan to curtail voting rights.
Understand that the attack on voting rights is already underway.
If you are in a Republican state, you need to check if these laws have passed and if so, call for repeals.
If they have not been enacted in your state, organize to prevent it from happening and call your state senators and assemblymen.
If you live in a Democratic state donate to organizations that are fighting for voting rights.
Check your state here.
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/pages/state-scorecards
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/pages/all-state-scores
Read the methodology section carefully because the ratings are based on what Heritage promotes as best practices--for instance, requiring a photocopy of your photo ID with your mail-in ballot. You want your state's score to be as high as possible.
Spending just 20 minutes there I've observed that the model legislation is based on their voter fraud database. By their own admission, the database is just a survey eg. not complete. One could say its cherry-picked. Also, from a quick glance through their Election Fraud Database, fraud by voters is lumped in with fraud on voters. I'm guessing that if they didn't include the latter they wouldn't have met their numbers.
Then from reading through their model legislation I conclude the legislation was only designed to prevent 'those' people from registering and not prevent the fraud on voters included overwhelmingly in their database.
Yes. Good catch. I did not look at the fraud database. It takes very little time to find this stuff—Heritage is incredibly transparent. Apparently Democratic leadership doesn’t seem to be noticing. It is driving me crazy! So that means it is up to us. Voting rights is the #1 issue that will make or break our ability to recover democracy. Everything else depends on it.
Heritage is doing the bill crafting for them so all they need is someone to introduce the bill and get it on the legislative schedule. I am trying to find a site that provides links to all of the states legislative schedules so you can see when these bills are scheduled, so contact legislators can still make a difference.
The states where these have already been enacted will need large voter education and get out the vote efforts to follow the letter of the law so everyone’s vote counts until there are veto proof majorities in those states so allow passage of bills that reverse the curtailment.
Another approach is to discredit Heritage for the frauds they are. Like ALEC. Nothing about them is in service to the country.....all is Fraud.
https://alec.org/about/
Thanks for the tip. I did not know about them.
Funded by Big Pharma, Big oil and Koch.
Metastasizing and specializing. Frightening.
Thank you, Georgia, for this inside information. I just looked at the model legislation for Election Observers. Heritage calls for cameras in every polling place and observers to be allowed to record with any device during voting.
Because I am an election judge in Minnesota, I know that we do not allow even still photographs in polling places. This comes up when a parent, who is accompanying a child who is voting for the first time, asks to or tries to take a photo. We stop them immediately. Celebratory photos can be taken only outdoors... where the new voter can stand in front of the VOTE HERE signs on the sidewalk.
Minnesota does not allow recording in the polling place. What of other states?
Thanks for sharing first hand experience on this issue!
I am scared by the fact that an election denier acquired Dominion voting, the electonic voting machine company, and also owns a company that provides electronic registration rolls—so they can control both who can vote and the machines they vote on.
https://georgiafisanick.substack.com/p/controlling-the-midterm-election
We are going to need new voting laws in states that will pass them. Thank you for all the warnings.
Harder to undo than to make sure they fail to pass in the first place unless a lot of legislatures turn blue with veto proof majorities if they have Republican govenors.
I am also concerned with HERITAGE as they were likely providing lists of Democratic voters to the Vigilantes (see the Vigilantes Inc video by gregpalast to see how TRUMP CHEATED to win in 2024).
Dominion Voting Systems, the company that won the defamation suit against Fox, has been bought by a MAGA election denier. He also owns a company that manufacturers the only certified electronic poll book that can be used to verify that you are a legal voter.
Keep the lists that tell you who can vote and provide the machines that count their vote. that is a very scary prospect to me.
Wow, what a good question Melinda. I will call WA voter info to find the answer for us here in the great PNW.
Also, blue states get low scores, red states get high scores . . . Of course
I saw that too! What a scam! Arkansas nunber 1 with a score of 91. Integrity, my you know what, especially with a governor like Sarah Huckabee.
Just checked.... interesting how the 'scores' followed pretty closely the political leanings of the state. We need to ask for proof that people who vote Democratic are more likely to vote fraudulently. That's a pretty all-encompassing bit of slander, there.
Enough for a class action suit?
Tennessee is tied for first? The page telling which laws have passed gives me a page not found error. I find it concerning that heritage would rate my state first in election integrity. Kinda like a mafioso giving your politician the thumbs-up.
Jodie, remember who and what the Heritage Foundation is. Oregon, which is amongst the most secure and least susceptible to fraud, is ranked 48th. For this, up is down and down is up.
Many of these restrictive voter laws have already been on the ballot as citizen initiatives. In Maine, we killed two initiatives a few months ago. If your state legislature or city council tries to restrict voting in any way, go to the hearings and protest if you can. Let your elected officials know that you and others are paying attention to how they are voting. Remember, most of them are elected officials who will shy away from the bad press.
Do you know of a single resource where you can see what legislation is coming up for votes in any of the states?
I’m a member of Blue Tennessee and I used a database called LegisScan (maybe only one s) to follow TN’s legislation. You can choose any state/
https://legiscan.com/NJ
One s! Thanks!!!! Ask and you shall be answered!!!
It's perfect!!!!!
I often wonder why in these threads we don't ask for help to find reliable information sources more often.
I wish Substack had a better way to deal with longer-term, more productive discussions that cross over the original posts.
It's a good thing and a bad thing that each state handles things differently. I worked with my State Senator on an IT bill back in the 1990's. We were trying to change 1 word in an existing bill defining what qualifies as software for sales tax purposes. (I know YAWN!).
Anyway Governor Bob Kerrey had defined software so that every spreadsheet created by anyone for a client was subject to sales tax--except that no one charged sales tax on spreadsheets or data bases etc. Long story short -- the definition is still the same 30 years later.
Thanks GJ. That the acronum' MAGA lines up so conveniently with 'maggots' fits things so well. Kinda disgusting.., like bed bugs. Pervasive. Hard to be rid of. Not always easy to spot, these "citizens initiatives". Keep up the good work.
The key law in GOP controlled states is the one that allows ONE person to question ANY NUMBER of registered voters as illegitimate, and that REQUIRES that state officials de-certify the "questionable" voters. ONE GA MAGA removed more than 32,000 voters from GA rolls in 2024 (see the VIGILANTES INC video at gregpalast.com) for her interview. Others VIGILANTES appear in the video and brag about the number they eliminated. Postcards were supposedly sent out to inform them that they had been removed, but they had only a couple of weeks to re-register and it is doubtful that many were able to. THEY WILL DO IT AGAIN IN STATES THAT THEY CONTROL. The list that the GA MAGA sent in was likely provided by the HERITAGE FOUNDATION. No doubt the interest that the DOGE bois had in American's data was, in part, to identify individual political partys to compose their next Vigilante list.
Thanks for the reminder about that!
That makes me worry even more that the owner of the only “certified” electronic poll book manufacturer is an election denier.
Should make it easier to target voters since it would be sure to track the method voters used to vote.—lets challenge all registered Democrats who voted by mail for instance
So, the unthinkable is now thinkable.
After Venezuela, European defense ministers aren’t asking “will Trump actually attack Greenland?” They’re asking “what do we do when he does?”
Here’s what nobody’s talking about: Europe doesn’t need to beat the US militarily. They just need to kick out 85,000 US troops, cancel $860 billion in defense contracts, and watch America tear itself apart.
US military personnel stationed in Europe to defend NATO allies would face orders to attack one. Congress passed laws preventing troop withdrawal that Trump signed. The contradictions are impossible.
Authoritarian U.S. regime is playing checkers—-threaten Denmark, get Greenland. But Europe’s already playing chess—-building defense independence, preparing contingencies, waiting.
If this goes kinetic, the US doesn’t lose to Europe. The US loses to itself.
I’m trying to game this out as a full analysis.
And…It’s worse than you think.
—Johan
Johan, I agree with you. I have been wondering why Europe has not kicked the US out. Then, they would either have to move their personnel to Russia, which I don't think would go over so well, or bring them back to the US, losing their European bases. I hear Jacob Kaarsbo saying Europe does not want to be the first ones to break the NATO alliance treaty.
Also, here are Malcolm Nance(US Intelligence) and Jacob Kaarsbo (Danish former intelligence) talking to Dean Blundell (Canadian) on defending Greenland and what the difficulties will be, and why Trump is interested in taking Greenland being to create a Praxis city for Tech Bross, based on the ideology of Curtis Yarvin, and their discussion of Nato and the US election. https://substack.com/inbox/post/183696749?utm_source=live-stream-redirect&triedRedirect=true
A friend thinks Tech Bros want to build Curtis Yarvin type "freedom cities" in Venezuela as well, like they have in Honduras; Trump wants to build prison camps for US immigrants there too. Nance thinks they want to do this in Greenland. He makes a compelling case on what Europe and Denmark/Greenland and Canada need to do to protect Greenland.
The problem with the US is that we are so information siloed that Democrats don't look at what MAGA and the tech bros actually believe.
It's out there in plain sight.
The concept of "know your enemy" has been lost.
So Democrats are always "shocked, shocked I say!" when the outrageous rears its ugly head, so they are always reactive.
I have to agree. It seems that the long game conservatives have been playing go set on fire with the election of Obama. What was kind of quiet became a firestorm. First with the "birthers" then the healthcare. They also used the bailouts (which got paid back with interest). The letting off the hook of the financial leaders did not help either. Every misstep democrats make is amplified a thousand times while republicans do worse and nothing get made of it. Gingrich was great at demonizing the democrats which doing worse things himself and getting zero flack from his party for his actions.
Maybe the European leaders are hoping we come to our senses...
I’m hoping if they see Americans continuing to step up they will be patient as we try to get rid of this loon.
And, MLM.., just how do you see Americans continuing to step up? With the news continuing to inform us of more drug-boat strikes, more covert activities, more un-advertised action with Israel, more threatening of Iran strikes, Other than the case put together by Prosecutor Jack Smith, what have we got? Der Leader is on a roll.
One way you people in other countries see Americans step up is that those of us who live abroad join in shared initiatives to protect democracy in the countries we are living in. In Indivisible Abroad we are aligning with democratic political parties in the countries in which we live to talk about action. That includes demonstrating together, dialogues, and actions that are visible that get the word out that there are a lot of Americans all over the world who do not support this President and his regime. Americans at home go out and protest and it gets played on the news around the world if the numbers are large, that helps people know that this is not a popular president and we do not back his moves. Unfortunately, I saw Chuck Schumer interviewed on German television as the "opposition" and he was saying crap. Utter nothing. He is not the representation we need in the newsfeeds in other countries, we need passionate, people who know what is going on. Many people in Germany found the election of Mamdani a hopeful sign in the US.
So the. We should just throw up our hands, hunker down and hope everything works out?
No one thinks Trump has sense to come to. Listen to Jason Kaarsbo repeat that Europe does not want to be the one to break the NATO treaty. As long as NATO exists, they will not push the US out, they will let Trump pull the US out. Since he cannot do that without Congressional approval, he is trying to force the issue.
Malcolm Nance(former US Intelligence), Jacob Kaarsbo (Danish former intelligence) and Dean Blundell (Canadian) on defending Greenland and what the difficulties will be. Their discussion includes how Denmark can prepare itself, and Nato and the US election. https://substack.com/inbox/post/183696749?utm_source=live-stream-redirect&triedRedirect=true
Thanks, Linda. Make ffpotu's actions be the key.
Linda, the Republican majority in the Hose of Representatives is down to only 218.
POLITICO Headline: "House GOP Confronts a Shocking Loss".
California R House Rep DOUG LAMONTA died last night.
That brings the TOTAL number of R House Reps down to 218.
The discharge dictated vote on Health Care Subsidies is tomorrow 1/8/26.
Four (4) R's supported the discharge position vote.
UPDATE: R House Rep, JIM BAIRD of Indians, was "badly hurt in a car crash".
****************************************************************************
BREAKING in Minneapolis:
A Protestor has been shot in her car at 34th & Portland along with CS gas fired at the crowd. The FBI has taken over the crime scene.
The Governor of Minnesota confirm as an ICE shooting of a US citizen through the lower part of a driver's windshield. Self described "right leaning" witness, Brandon Hewitt, heard 3 shots & has video. Kristi Noem left yesterday. Greg Bovino on the scene.
Minnesota prosecutors needs a probable cause warrant now.
Yes. I had heard that the Republicans are down in the House, but will it pass the Senate?
I have been upset about the murder of the Minnesota mom. I have been crying off and on. It takes me back to Chicago in the fall, and the murder of a woman in our city by ICE as well. I feel for their children as well as the children in the building attacked by ICE in Chicago and the children in the Daycare in Chicago that ICE illegally went into. ICE seems like a criminal organization to me. We need to defund ICE! We need to impeach Kristi Noem, and Donald Trump, international war criminal.
Johan, I can't be the smartest man in the room. Yet, I don't understand why NATO member nations don't do what the U.S. does to nations it disagrees with.
Does anyone think that Tim Cook, Mark Zuckerberg, et al would withdraw their allegiance to Trump and start applying pressure to his regime if their products were banned from Europe?
Sanctions seem to be an effective non-military response to unwanted aggression.
You’re asking the right structural question. Europe has enormous latent leverage, but it rarely uses it the way the U.S. does because its strategic culture is built around consensus, legalism, and economic interdependence rather than coercive tools. That creates hesitation even when the leverage is obvious.
And you’re right that market access is one of the few non‑military instruments that actually shifts corporate behavior. If Europe ever aligned its economic weight with a coherent strategic posture, the calculation for major companies would change overnight.
Thank you for pushing the conversation in this direction.
Between well matched opponents, chess is essentially a game of attrition. Perhaps the European NATO members should learn to play Go.
Ha…fair enough. Though I’d argue Europe’s already playing Go whether they realize it or not. Control the territory, wait for your opponent to exhaust themselves.
But point taken. Full breakdown coming
or Risk?
nice analysis
They don't want to lose access to US defense tech that does not have near-peer equivalents. F-35 jets, B-21 stealth bombers, Virginia class subs, AEGIS missile systems, stealth munitions, and TAK, which is AI technology for joint operations.
Of course, it would be lovely if the US would supply some of this stuff to Ukraine, but why help an ally win a war, and it might make Putin upset enough to go nuclear.
Trump and Hegseth are very possessive about their toys. Like the Trump class destroyer to be designed and built before Trump leaves office. He is very proud to tell us that he designed it himself to be more aesthetically pleasing than other destroyers.
I hear your point, but the idea that Europe is frozen because it “needs” U.S. defense tech doesn’t really hold anymore. The trend lines have already shifted. Most major EU states are moving away from the F‑35 as the default and are pouring money into their own next‑generation systems. A significant part of this is lack of trust in U.S. —- it’s an unstable and now unreliable partner.
The Franco‑German‑Spanish FCAS program, the British‑Italian‑Japanese GCAP project, the expansion of the European Defense Fund, and the rapid scaling of domestic missile, drone, and munitions production all show the same thing. Europe is building its own industrial base because it knows dependency is a strategic liability.
The hesitation isn’t about access to U.S. platforms. It’s about political will, coordination, and decades of strategic outsourcing. The hardware gap is closing. The psychological gap is the real obstacle. Europe has the population, the economy, and now the industrial momentum. What it lacks is alignment, not capability.
That’s why I push back on the tech‑dependency argument. The facts on the ground show Europe is already moving to reduce it. The real challenge is whether it can translate that shift into coherent action.
Yes, Europe has woken up and is ramping up to reducing reliance on US tech and is close. It is a matter of timing in the transition process and what Zelenskyy can’t afford to lose right now—PURL and the oil sanctions. He has to milk them for all they are worth because if/when Vance steps in, that will be shut down.
Trump just took a tanker from Russia’s shadow fleet. Trump is on a power rush, but he is going after leaders who have humiliated him—Maduro for dancing, and Putin for the Ukrainian drone hoax. Putin overplayed that and just got dissed in return in a way that helps Ukraine.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/us-russia-trump-putin-oil-tanker-marinera-venezuela-b2896247.html
Things are so volatile with Trump right now, Europe has to watch and prepare for Vance, who will be worse than Trump because he is not insane, and will have all that tech bros money behind him.
Publicly confronting Trump by shunning him will only invite him to lash out, and then Putin goes back to being his friend of the moment. The NATO charter doesn’t have a method for kicking a country out anyway. That is why I have been saying for a while now that the 20-point peace plan is actually an undercover way to organize a parallel organization to NATO without the US. Putin would never sign the 20-point plan unless the Russian economy goes belly up. The COTW knows that. They wouldn’t be doing all this work unless there was another reason.
Trump is spiraling, as is the whole US, with the Epstein files, being on the verge of potentially losing the House majority because a Republican died which would lead to impeachment of cabinet members and possibly Trump, looking at another government shutdown in 3 weeks, and dealing with Venezuela…
According to Dean Blundell’s group, Denmark is already repositioning troops to protect Greenland. But signing a Canada + NB-8 Arctic defense treaty with all members sending troops into Greenland with a “Thank you, Sir, for bringing this matter to our attention. Mr. Trump, Sir.” is a better way to handle this without any of the downsides IMHO
I am waiting for Denmark to tell Trump to pack up the base in Greenland and get the hell out. They would be justified and supported by most of the world.
Or rather than kick them out, surprise them, take their weapons, deactivate their transportation, and use them as hostages. Anyone resisting gets a chance to surrender, but if not, is shot.
How do people like you get so demented in your thinking democracy is about to break out all over the world, including Venezuela possibly even a Ron and Cuba
And if you change the channel and see the world as it really is not the bias bullshit you read here you’re gonna find out that there’s gonna be a deal made between Denmark and Trump for him to buy Greenland on behalf of the United States help protect Denmark in the process and they will probably end up working together
But are you one of those George Floyd riders that wasn’t patient enough to wait for a jury to decide the police officers fate and went out and destroyed billions of dollars of American property, burnt cities and injured police and got the verdict that you were going to get anyway. Have some rational thought in that thing that you call your head, which is 3 feet above your ass. At least that’s where it’s supposed to be.
“Democracy breaking out all over the world” after we just bombed a capital and announced “we’re going to run the country” for oil access? That’s not analysis, that’s delusion.
Denmark isn’t selling Greenland. They’re a NATO ally who already gives us everything we need there. Trump wants ownership for map aesthetics and to prove the NSS doctrine scales from Venezuela to allied democracies. There’s no “deal” where sovereign nations surrender territory because an authoritarian threatened them.
Your George Floyd non sequitur confirms you’re not engaging in geopolitical analysis…you’re venting culture war grievances that have zero relevance to international relations. I analyze how state actors respond to demonstrated U.S. doctrine. China’s 440 million Weibo views discussing Taiwan extraction aren’t reacting to your fantasies about freedom spreading. They’re responding to operational precedent.
The November NSS documents sphere-of-influence imperialism. Venezuela proved it works. Whether you like that reality or not doesn’t change that the international order just fundamentally shifted.
But sure, keep waiting for Denmark to sell Greenland while the global system we’ve relied on for 80 years collapses.
You’re the smart one here…
And we prosecute.
This is the full text of the Jane Doe lawsuit against Trump and Epstein -- later withdrawn in response to death threats against the plaintiff: https://cdn.factcheck.org/UploadedFiles/Johnson_TrumpEpstein_Lawsuit.pdf
Please let us ensure this text is linked early (and therefore prominently) on Dr. Richardson's site every day until the traitorous regime of ecogenocidal Christonazi pervocrats is no more. (I'll do my best to be responsible for this posting, but others need be ready to pick up the torch on days I am absent and after I am no more.)
I have this also, as well as the interview; and yes - it should be front page news! It makes me mad that mainstream news falls for the distractions and reports on distraction stories over and over again. They should keep their focus on the Epstein files and the horrible crimes Trump has committed there!
Gayle, I really do hate to ask but what are the "crimes" being referred to? Where is the proof? It would appear we do know of an incident years back where a "settlement' was made, etc., but that one is over with. What proof, if any, exists for what he is being accused of. And, while we're at it, what un-adulterated evidence do we have, of an un-questionable nature exists in our hands that would enable a lawsuit to be filed that would hold water in a court-of-law? Please don't misunderstand me asking.
Read the complaint, Alex. A formal complaint is rarely filed without some kind of proof.
Thank you both Gayle and Loren. As you might guess, it is extremely sickening (dis-heartening too) when some clearly guilty party walks free because the prosecution could not prove their case beyond ANY reasonable doubt. I do not want to lock anyone up where guilt is in doubt. Period. Even Der Leader.
This should be front page news.
Plus, where's Bubba?
The Orange Goblin King has dropped the bomb already, Xplisset: “Cancel the elections”… He’s going to do it, and I don’t know if anybody will stand in his way. The Republucan Senators? Not a chance. The Supreme Court? Wouldn’t count on it. Voting won’t help anymore here.
Mike, I won’t dismiss this outright, I get the fear. But I won’t give him the victory of our surrender in advance. Hell to the no.
He can say “cancel the elections.” Making that real requires a long chain of people to include state officials, judges, local administrators, military leaders choosing to break the law in public.
The pressure point is us: show up locally, support the people who run elections, document everything, and vote like it still counts because it does. Doom is contagious; ok but so is courage.
"Doom is contagious; ok but so is courage." and history says so.
yes. never capitulate in advance
Ultimately, the key is this: "military leaders choosing to break the law in public."
When I was an undergraduate, lo these many years ago, the Cultural Revolution was underway in China. We Americans thought we were a better country than one whose leader wrote that "political power grows out of the barrel of a gun." And now, in my beloved country, we are finding this phrase has resonance here as well.
Having worked in DoD for 30+ years (until six years ago), I still have confidence in the integrity of our military. It's the civilian leadership that reeks. But I'm worried about the rush to build up a secret police force intended to obstruct the forthcoming election. If the regime sends DHS/ICE goons to block the voters, the current military leadership might order the National Guard or even regular military forces ("so what if it's illegal, sue us!") to assist them. Such orders would be clearly illegal and unconstitutional, and the upper military leadership would have to make a decision whether or not to accept and follow them. But I doubt, even if they refused such orders, that they would oppose the goons. So I seriously doubt that there would be any organized resistance to brute force.
Sadly James, I am not so sure your confidence is supported by the current actions of the military. It seems that the "drug" boat murders are just the beginning along with boots on the ground in the U.S. Hegseth has been going about firing those loyal to the Constitution and with Fox news blaring on all the bases around the ground has been softened for the military to follow orders. The murders on the high seas is just the first step.
RW, I believe Venezuela and the boat murders prove the military has already broken its oath to defend the Constitution, and that the oath-breakers -- Christonazi zealots relentlessly propagandized, as you say, by Fox News -- have given their apocalyptic thermonuclear might over to der neu Führer (whomever he might be) to be used however he wills. Which is precisely why I have said from the beginning that (1)-we are in the same Failed Nation position that made the liberation of Hitler's Germany possible only by invasion-- this despite the fact we have a much larger anti-nazi population; that (2)--despite the size of the anti-MAGAT population, we're neutralized by our inability to achieve disciplined solidarity -- a failing methodically perpetuated by trained professionals in response to the ruling-class terror of genuine revolution. Thus (3)-- even the basic organization necessary for liberation must therefore come from abroad, most effectively by formation of a World-War-II-type alliance of governments-in-exile, probably in London, Paris or Berlin.
Meanwhile, let us quickly take full advantage of the few remaining remnants of our former liberty the Regime has not yet fully suppressed.
(Perhaps as a momentary comic-relief, it comes to me Fox could easily be an acronym for Fatally Overwhelming Xenophobia.)
James .. I believe you hit the nail on the head; If election cancelation become real, the reaction by senior active duty Admirals & Generals will be the true test of democracy or the completion of the back slide to authoritarianism. Agree the civilian side of that equation is completely corrupt. I'm holding out my hope & faith that our senior active duty military leadership defaults back to their Oath of Office; support & defend The Constitution, if not then all is truly lost.
And where were those senior admirals and generals while this Venezuelan illegal action was planned and executed?
Thanks for your question and I wish I could provide an accurate answer.
Bottom Line Up Front: I don't envy the position that these senior military leaders are in today. They are straddling a very thin line of executing the chain of command and looking out for the welfare of their Soldiers, Sailors, Air & Space Force people and Marines. As GEN Collin Powell wrote in his book on leadership, The commander in the field understands the actual situation better than HQ and will do his/her best to execute & keep their forces safe.
DoD is part of the executive branch of gov't, not the legislative. If the executive says they have the legal right to carry them out strikes and the Judge Advocate Generals (aka military lawyers) agree, operational forces execute. Like it or not, the operational chain of command starts with the Commander & Chief. If the executive is wrong, it up to the legislative branch to challenge. Remember that one of the 1st actions after hegstegh was confirmed as SECDEF was to fired all the head JAG officers.
It's my opinion based on my Naval career, operational commanders are expecting that civilian leadership will fly high cover for their actions should it be proven the orders they were executing are/were illegal. We need a functional legislative branch for that & representatives from the party once called republicans have proven they're not interested in stopping the executive. We've seen the 1st instance were the civilian DoD leadership is willing to throw an active duty leader under the bus.
So my faith in these active duty Admirals & Generals is that when they are ordered to carry out questionable orders on American street & against American citizens to stop elections they call Bull Sh__t. Yes, these Officer could refuse orders, get relieved of command, Courts Martialed, imprisoned in my mind that opens the door to more sycophants to senior leadership decisions.
v/r ... tjb CAPT, USN (Ret)
No no no Sue. Where were you, would be a better question. But, my guess is you did your best to vote for your elected officials who you hoped would prevent this kind of situation from happening. They didn't. The Military is stuck. They just can't walk off the job because they 'feel' like it. You'd know if you'd signed on the line. Our 'civilian leadership' is why we're in this jam. 50,000 names of my friends are on a marble wall - I was lucky.
Individual states can call up the National Guard to protect Voters access to polls, no?
Hate to say this James, but it's that kind of thinking, meaning your inference that 'the Military' will be the pathway out. It's not. That's throwing "the Military" under the bus. I was 'in' for 22 long years.., "the Military" is not going to tell the citizens of this country how to run things. That's the job of our (civilian) government. We elect people to do that. Unfortunately 'these people, of which we are comprised of, have grown fat and stupid. We need to figure this out. The Military is there in case some outside entity pokes its nose into our business. Let's not ever forget that.
Interesting discussion--perhaps massive civil disobedience might up the odds the military might finally intervene if necessary?
Thoreau refused to pay taxes to the government that supported slavery, waged war against Mexico, because he believed doing so would make him complicit in those crimes against humanity.
Of course, millions of us would have to engage in this act of civil disobedience to have political impact. Blue states account for about 60% of individual taxpayers' federal income tax revenue; so, withholding payment would be a big middle finger to the White Nationalist House and the ass-kissing cowards in Congress--apart from what might be the significant fiscal impact of witholding tax payments (understanding of course, that a good amount of the federal tax due in 2026 has already been prepaid each quarter by us conscientious citizens). The disobedience would not be tax payment refusal but taxes paid,. but held in escrow. Again, for this to work, millions of us would have to be mobilized in a "What Would Thoreau Do" campaign.
Good points all, Alex, especially the last one. My point, such as it was, was that this vile administration is putting our military leadership in an extremely difficult situation. They (once upon a time it was “we”) are trained to respect and follow all lawful orders. Now they are being forced to consider whether the orders they receive are actually lawful. It’s easier just to go along. I agree that military force is not a solution or a way out of our current troubles. We’ll have to do that for ourselves.
Yes, but you should never underestimate your opponent, or, in this case, the sheer embodied malice and evil that took the form of Donald J. Trump.
He WILL cancel the elections.
He WILL declare martial law in the Blue cities.
He WILL send in the military.
He WILL order "traitors" to be shot.
He WILL NOT give up. Never, ever.
You have to be ready for this.
He managed to keep the invasion of Venezuela off the radar. You think he can't do the same with the planning to stop the elections?
I dunno about keeping it a secret, for weeks he said he was willing to use the military, he announced sending a fleet to Venezuelan waters and repeatedly 'warned' Maduro he was coming.
Was it a secret or were we not listening?
Our congress at its finest... not paying attention, or going along with it because they have money to make.
hahahaaa.., yeah Gary. We seem to overlook the fact Der Leader is IN Charge and HE makes "the Law". Do you remember when Thomas Edison said something like "rules...? Who needs rules..? We're trying to accomplish something here". Remember that? Or something to that effect - bbbboinkk!!
"Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something." ~Thomas A. Edison
From Brainy Quote
I think Venezuela was kept secret because it was primarily a military operation, not one micromanaged by the executive branch. It also had the backing of the "oil-garchs", who were apparently negotiating with the Maduro government re: oil for the past several months. Apparently those negotiations did not go well, so Maduro was removed. As stakes increase, such as planned coups in Columbia, Cuba, Greenland, and Mexico, executive micromanagement will also increase, and so will the failure rate of these operations.
Not to mention the impact on Canada, Steve. hohohohhhooo. Who's gonna buy their sludge? Putin? GMAB
Looks like using the HLS Goon Squad to pick you and I up off the street for "obstructing (something)" or for creating a riotous situation, is all Der Leader needs to squash election turnout. No Military needed. Just ICE.
not sure it was "off" the radar. Pretty obvious what he was doing.
Who will stand in his way??? All the people who have been marching, and protesting in myriad other ways, including many state judges upholding the Constitution and Rule of Law. People who want a better, affordable life, with educational opportunities and a basic healthcare system. Like exists in other countries. Where people benefit and are happy. Same for a world with organizations like NATO that have proven their worth and why they are so necessary. Like now.
It always comes down to ordinary people. The ones who have the judicial power to stop Trump won't do it.
Who indeed? That, AM, is the ultimate question. I have no doubt the Regime will soon be nullifying our protests with disciplined volleys of 5.56mm M855A1 Ball, which will end any notion of the effectiveness of protest. Clearly our situation's already fast approaching what's described in "The Last Article" ( https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5rMljbFiemoMWIxZjJkNjctOGJmMS00Njg1LTg4YzMtODRjNGQwM2JlZWEz/view?resourcekey=0-DqeA4bJmsRifVCIOA1WksQ )
Worse, the fact the draft was ended in 1972 -- the ruling class ended compulsory military service because it realized it was training the revolution -- means only a tiny minority of us have the skills to effectively resist the criminal Regime when it brings its murderous violence home, the implicit threat of which is obviously part of the deadly kidnap-raid on Venezuela and the extermination of the boat people.
Some question my skepticism about the effectiveness of demonstrations. For many in my generation, the uselessness of demonstrations was proven by the Ohio National Guard's disciplined volley of Caliber .30 M2 Ball fired on command at Kent State University students on 4 May 1970 and the ragged volley of mixed rounds fired by Mississippi's Ku Klux Kops at Jackson State College students 10 days later. There were also the so-called hard-hat riots of 8 May 1970: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zkfjjsg/revision/4 (We need to forget the Big Lie that the VietnamWar was ended by public protest [see for example https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334328/vietnam-war-us-public-opinion-mistake/ ]; the war was in fact ended by the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese People's Liberation Army, which with the help of the Soviet Union achieved total victory by re-uniting Vietnam and routing the U.S. military coalition.)
I am of your generation. At 75 I remember all events you mentioned. And, re Vietnam, you're right that war was ended by Viet Cong, etc. But people in U.S. in public protests across the country had a tremendous impact regarding political decisions at that time. That is what I remember. Same with civil rights movement. I will never underestimate the power of the people.
Discussion by itself -- that is, without action (or more typically, as a substitute for action) -- is meaningless. By the time of the murders in Ohio and Mississippi, we of the anti-war movement had been increasingly active for six years; those of us who had been part of the Civil Rights Movement, as was I, had been active for much longer. Not coincidentally, ruling-class forces began killing anti-war protestors just as public opinion began to favor our demand to "get out now." The same pattern is evident in Minneapolis; the population is turning against the Christonazi regime, and the regime responds by murdering an innocent woman, then slandering her memory by lying that she is a terrorist. Look closely at the NYT video of her killer as he strides away, you'll see he is pulling up his mask to hide his smirk.
I agree with you. People protested and some died. Same now. Horrific then. Horrific now. What point are you trying to make?
The Joint Expeditionary Force ought to include Canada and inaugurate Canada's entry with joint exercises in the Labrador Sea or south of Greenland. https://jefnations.org/ 🛑
Can this non-N.A.T.O. force stop the U.S. Navy? No. But what it will do is place this ugly sentiment front and center in the global view and American conscience, making all of us accountable. Most of us sympathize with our many steadfast allies. 🙏
Tragically, we are having trouble bringing sufficient pressure to bear to break the fever and brake the madness of an unhinged leadership never satisfied and ever seeking more power at the expense of everybody else. 😱
Greenland? Heck.., pilgrims, we're already there. Our money is good there. We'll just create more "base housing". We'll build a HUGE tax free Base Exchange. Gasoline will be cheaper. Cigarettes will be cheaper. We'll build a shoe--factory there. We'll even let the Russians shop there (those with money). Only white immigrants from Northern territories need apply for jobs though (Finlanders, Icelanders, Swedenlanders, got it?). And Russians.
Love the satire. Alex. Thank you. Worst thing is that it is we, the normal people, who end up wondering if we are losing our minds.
"And it is on us…regular people, stubborn people to keep saying: we vote, we count, we remember. We vote, we count, we remember."
You left out We Unite. Specifically by voting for Democratic candidates. Without that - all the rest is literally powerless.
This is an discussion by Malcolm Nance(former US Intelligence) and Jacob Kaarsbo (Danish former intelligence) and Dean Blundell (Canadian) on defending Greenland and what the difficulties will be, and why Trump is interested in taking Greenland being to create a Praxis city for Tech Bros, based on the ideology of Curtis Yarvin, and their discussion of Nato and the US election.
https://substack.com/inbox/post/183696749?utm_source=live-stream-redirect&triedRedirect=true
Then Olga Lautman (Ukrainan-American political analyst) and Zev Shalev (former CBS news producer living in Canada) are discussing Greenland and how it pits Europe against the US and is a way for Trump to get the US out of NATO without Congressional approval. https://open.substack.com/pub/narativ/p/trumps-greenland-invasion-and-the?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
I view the current situation as Trump now robbing both us and the Venezuelan people of everything he can. Friends in my political book club last night were saying that they see 2 things besides attempting to extract oil happening in Venezuela. First, it will become a prison destination for US immigrants; Second, it will become a site of these Patchwork cities will grow that Curtis Yarvin, far right creepy, tech bro advocates for. Apparently there are some in Honduras. This from the CBC,
"Próspera is a so-called charter city in Honduras, a private community given the power (by the government of Honduras) to write its own laws, set up its own judiciary, its own immigration policy, to be run by an unelected CEO.
The goal was to create a libertarian utopia for foreign start-ups to set up shop, with limited taxation (one per cent on business revenue). A California-based company offers Montessori education for up to 60 children. There are armed guards at the gates to Próspera. There are also legal fights evolving: some local Hondurans are opposed to the encroachment, and strangers soaking up infrastructure and resources without accountability.....
One big question arises: can a project like Próspera be scaled up to the size of an American nation run by a CEO, or a king or a queen (keeping in mind that one elected president is already acting like a king, with Versailles-style gold accents in the Oval Office and his name on the former Kennedy Center)?"
So they see prison camps and Praxis cities in Venezuela. Will they take over Greenland and deport its citizens to Venezuela, a totally different climate and way of life? One things is certain, the brown people of Venezuela and Greenland do not matter to Trump and his fellow fascists.
As always, Linda, thanks for your insights! I hate to even imagine the Future World that Trump, Putin, Xi Jinping, MBS, & Bibi are creating: spheres of influence (in order) The Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East/Africa. (Modi is probably in there somewhere, too.) I am beginning to see that this Power Structure is what is being created. Yes, a good portion of Russia is in Asia, but I don’t find it impossible to imagine that these guys can’t get out their magic markers and draw lines they can all agree upon.
The biggest problem that these guys are facing is Father Time, and Trump is example #1 in that department.
The age info:
Trump - 79
Putin - 73
Xi - 72
MBS - 40
Bibi - 76
Modi - 75
WOW - MBS is of Trump’s age!
PPP, Knowledge is power. At least we are aware of these plans and can try to thwart them. Without the US, none of this works. We need to take back Congress in the midterms and put a stop to the madman at the helm of our country. GOTV.
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Also, in the video I posted above, Nance makes a compelling case of how to protect Greenland.
Thank you for posting these essential links. Though I profoundly dislike Nance's comedy-show-style delivery, his information is vital. Likewise Lautman's, though her voice is like nails on chalkboard.
So I’m wondering about this:
What is going to happen if gang members in Venezuela (with a backing of the pro Moduro faction, wink wink) starts kidnapping Americans and threatening their execution or mutilation unless Moduro is returned? ASAP. Is Trump in charge of managing that catastrophe or is it Rubio,
Maybe the secretary of war, or Lindsey Graham who was on Air Force One yesterday and absolutely giddy to be praising Trump on camera.
What a disgusting display of ass-kissing Graham put on. I thought he was going to engage in man love right then and there.
The January 6 rioters may have been pardoned for their crimes but the convictions remain a matter of public record as do the evidentiary records. Trump clearly believes that there is no need to order the DoJ to expunge these records since he has already proclaimed them to be false. The separation of powers dictates that Congress may not override a presidential pardon but Trump is trashing that separation. A future Democratic government that controlled Congress could follow suit, pass a bill overriding the pardons and re-arrest every single miscreant pardoned by Trump as a way of wiping the slate clean. As for Trump himself, Jack Smith, the special counsel asked for the two federal cases to be dismissed 'without prejudice' meaning they're both capable of being revived. In my view, that's what the Democrats should go to the people with in 2028 - the restoration of justice as well democracy and the rule of law.
CREW Citizens for Responsible Ethics has an up to date accounting of the Jan6 folks new offenses. They also have in-depth reporting on Leonard Leo. Tom Holman is RC among others. There is a cohort and one would hope that the RC creates a they are anthenma or heretics and excommunicate them.
So thank you (not) Republicans in the House and Senate.
Thank you xplisset! We vote, we count, we remember! This should be written on every protest sign and carried through every street!
"We vote"
Yes.
But only if we have elections.
Yes, it is disturbing to hear people assume we will have a free and fair election this fall. They have been broadcasting the opposite.
And bearing in mind Marco Rubio said only yesterday "I don't understand why people still don't believe that when President trump says he will do something, he WILL do it."
He said that as a statement of fact - I took it as more of a warning. I reckon Rubio is secretly shitting himself - he knows he is swimming in deep doo-doo.
Thank you. Hear. Hear!
Thank you, Xplisset. Don't give up the ship.
Satire
"The People Are Wrong Again"
An Owner’s Manual for Democracy, as Explained by the Man Who Lost It
There is a special sound a republic makes when it is being explained away. It is the sound of a man who keeps losing elections insisting that the problem is not him, not his ideas, not his record, but the voters themselves. That sound now echoes through the White House, occasionally punctuated by dancing, miming, and the sort of verbal free association usually reserved for late-night cable access television...
https://essayx.substack.com/p/the-people-are-wrong-again
A showy diversion, to have extracted Maduro and his wife.
But all else in the Venezuelan status quo remains intact.
And something else remains intact – the naïve, out of touch ways U.S. elites feel entitled to their bubble, one that includes the 1,200 girls whom for years they insouciantly raped, and also includes Donald & crew’s larger cover-up.
Earlier today Timothy Snyder spoke to that bubble – not the part that requires mad Venezuelan chaos, or any other sensational diversions, but the part that goes to the heart of their heartlessness:
“In an instructive article that he wrote in 1990, the American novelist David Foster Wallace said that cynicism is a form of naïveté. When you dismiss everything, you feel like you can do anything but then you don’t believe in some things that are real: like love, or law, or patriotism. For you, such things are just tools of the trade, manipulable handles, just the way to enlarge the grift. That they have some other sense, that they are the building blocks of some other reality – this you do not see. And in that way you are naïve.”
But Timothy Snyder is too kind. He doesn’t factor in Donald’s dementia (or ever his need to be carrying water for Putin) – now threatening all our European allies by his demented bullying regarding Greenland.
Well said. It didn’t take long for the true reason for the “arrest” incursion to reveal its true intentions. I can’t understand why this narcissistic, entitled, delusional, and demented man is being allowed by a Congress that is majority Republican can allow this to continue. Patriotism is a word that has no meaning to Trump; he doesn’t have a shred of patriotic pride in this country. I’m appalled at the attack on Venezuela, because it was an attack. This has been in the planning stage for months. The attack has been rehearsed multiple times in mock-up buildings. It was perfectly executed by a group of military men that probably has no equal. Among other things, it showed what we can do and what Trump hoped would strike fear into the countries threatened. He sure struck fear into the American people.
I keep wondering how badly our total trashing of international relations will be coming back to bite us. And for how long. Some advantages we as a nation enjoyed prior to Trump are likely gone forever.
Exactly. It threatens our security. It threatens the ability of U.S. companies to sell products in foreign markets. It threatens the rank and file of our military. There's no upside for us. It only benefits T and his nutso pals.
Absolutely correct, JL. The American century, if it ever existed at all, is dead. And it’s not coming back. We have squandered the trust that was built up over many decades. Even if we tossed this regime out on its ass tomorrow, that trust isn’t coming back, because what has been exposed to the world is just how deep the rot really is. Unless we have a true reckoning with the original sins that continue to burden this nation, coupled with the rampant venality and greed of those in the preferred class, we will never be trusted again. Nor should we be.
". . . a true reckoning with the original sins that continue to burden this nation."
That, of course, Chris, includes slavery, and white male supremacy.
And then, too, the mercantilism, commercialism, that reduced all life to numbers, units, money.
Anand Giridharadas, Timothy Snyder, Rebecca Solnit, Sarah Kendzior, David Cay Johnston, Heather here and others have ventured into this serpentine legacy. They've all quoted from our best humanities as to finding the humanity out of the dehumanization.
Testing, Chris. America needs housing for the working classes. Universal health care. Gun control. Money out of politics. Free and fair voting registration. Progressive taxation to close the deadly widening wealth gap. But above all, it needs the best teachers in the schools and their freedom to teach by their priorities, not those of the corporate textbook packagers and standardized testers.
Yep it is called consequences. And we can whine and protest the “ l did not vote for him” but he is our president and using our name, our tax dollars and our might to destroy our democracy and the world
Sadly yes. Whether we were complacent, asleep at the wheel, or just plain got sucker punched, it is water under the bridge now. We become part of the solution, or by default we are part of the problem.
Yup. When a country has an electorate as clueless, uniformed, fickle and apathetic as we do, with a cabal of corporations, broligarchs, politicians and SC judges as nefarious and determined to have their way as we have, who can trust us not to create this terrible scenario again in 4 years? We may someday heal and repair our country from this nightmare but our standing in the world has been squandered maybe forever. Not that we were always fair, stood with those on the correct and humane side of history, or didn’t throw our weight around inappropriately at times, but we also has positive influence and did some good.
we're done for a while...
I think the damage is immeasurable. First (my order may be wrong, so I will quit trying to order the idiotic moves), he cozies up Putin, then blasts him, then gets manipulated back to Putin. A smart narcissist will outwit a dumb one every time. He keeps reversing his position on NATO, Russia, tariffs, etc. He keeps stating the same bogus numbers (11,888 murders. Then we get, “no one has ever done this, it’s unbelievable, nobody could have ever done this before, America is the hottest country in the world, we’re getting rich off the tariffs, etc. I’m wandering. I’m so disgusted with his retribution, taking funding away from blue states, cities and Governors. Constant turmoil to distract from the Epstein files, calling everything he doesn’t like hoaxes, his weave, and the list goes on. I have watched 5 minute clips on the MSN homepage of hearings with Cabinet members. Pam Bondi, Ka$h Patel, and Pete Hegseth talk around answers and show incredible disrespect, Kennedy looks like a deer in the headlights.They are all in over their heads. This is internal damage. Internationally, he’s destroying our image, looked like a buffoon, throne away everyone’s trust in America, and is obviously declining cognitive functioning. Sorry for the rambling comment that looks my own weave. That doesn’t even touch his grifts and corruption. This is my reaction to Venezuela, which was a terrible mistake and following up with threats to Cuba, Columbia, Iran, and threat to take Greenland. It’s out of my system for now.
... And, the trump/Epstein files.
aka the Trumpstein Files
I like it Laurie ! Shouldn't it be hyphenated though... Like to somewhat 'feminize it' ? "_rump-Stein" files / conspiracy, blank, blank. Feminization would frost his 'acorns' all the more don'cha think ? Viral, absolutely viral it should go. All social media accounts reachable ! MSM, legacy media's social sites. ! War ! It's on..
That’s part of or the major part of the saddest part: “trumpelthinskin” has struck fear into the minds of weak, spineless and some seemingly mindless republicans; as well as stunned many of elected and non-elected democratic officials! Romney said to his autobiographer several years ago that many in his party no longer believe in the Constitution.
As for our democratic officials, it’s as if many of them hadn’t nor still haven’t recovered from the November 2016, election defeat of Hillary Clinton. I’d always preached to my friends and acquaintances back then or anyone who’d asked me; I felt very confident that it should have been a Biden/Clinton ticket! And now Hillary be into the first year of her first term or the first year of her second term as POTUS.
Hardball, learn to play hardball and stop continuing to be “swift boated”! As for meeting the voters where they are: many of our country’s voters are ignorant of current events and surely ignorant of many of America’s political, economic and historical events…but it’s not necessarily their fault alone! One would think — for us who know better — that the Biden administration brought about the inflationary period following the Covid induced shutdown of the global economies: “too many dollars chancing too few goods and services” was being experienced around the globe—but to listen to idiot trump and his despicables, one would think that the Biden/harris administration caused this to happen. Really…no, REALLY?
One last thing to keep this short as I need to sleep: any smart candidate running for office needs to be prepared ahead of time for certain questions that they—she or he—knows is going to be asked! Kamala failed at that on the View and with the very abbreviated campaign period, there was basically no time to correct that mistake. That’s just my few quick cents, but IFsomeone were to ask me, there’s a lot more.
Yes, Biden did well by the country but Trump’s MAGA wishing to ‘believe’ again, combined with Musk et al money & single-issue voters tanked Kamala’s effort.
There are places where Kamala shines, but she is not a strong speaker & she doesn’t have enough gravitas. I still believe she’d have made a good prez, esp compared to the Thing currently infesting the white house!
I felt the same way about Hilary -- she would have made a much better President than she was a campaigner
Even though I voted for her, she was more corporate Democrat than I would have liked. I'll always wish we had elected Bernie Sanders, who addressed many of the problems that still plague us, especially disparities of wealth and income.
Really? Democrats spend too much time blaming themselves! Trump won because he CHEATED! See the VIGILANTES Inc video at gregpalast.com! However, Biden SHOULD HAVE replaced DeJoy, Trump's postmaster general, and I don't think his support for Israel got Kamala any votes.
Trumperotic patriotism?
This just might win the internet, Craig. I may take this phrase and air it out on my MAGAt former work cohort. They are so enmeshed in the propaganda that they cannot see.
Diversion indeed. Lawrence O’Donnell last night (Jan 6) zeroed in on Marco Rubio to highlight Cuba as the actual target, a goal of Republicans since before the failed Bay of Pigs invasion. To believe this administration is serious about Greenland is but a “distraction.”
Never put any stupid move past this bunch of Heritage Foundation morons. They are so far into their delusional world where only they are correct, and everyone else (the majority of the American people) are wrong because we will not fall in line with their insane agenda.
We can only wish.
Marc Elias is pointing to the possibility that one of the goals of kidnapping Maduro will be to coerce him into saying there was truth to the conspiracy theory that Venezuela interfered in the 2020 election to aid Biden. Another effort to rewrite history.
I've been reading your columns for years now and I have to say that of them all, this wins the Goldiest of Gold Medals. Your exposition of a range of facts we all need to keep top of mind will be a gift that keeps on giving as our resistance moves forward. With all my heart and soul, I thank you.
Plus yesterday’s review posting.
Great article, but hard to hold. Leaves me feeling shaken.
I empathize, Sean. And when I feel shaken (like at least twice a week) I do this: remember that the most important thing is to never, never, never give up--on hope or ourselves, and then ask myself if I could go on living without resisting something that engenders murder, rape, torture, theft and the threat of nuclear war. As I can't, I keep on keeping on and set useless worrying aside. Peace, brother.
I have many things in my life that are rich. Numerous loving friends and a beautiful family. Yesterday I kayaked a box canyon with fun rapids and moss covered walls. Backyard run. I am employed and my family is healthy. Multiracial but we are and feel safe. There are so many blessings. Thanks for the reminder. I donate. I have marched. I talk about it, and stay engaged. All this and some days this administration makes my head spin in disbelief… thanks for the good word.
I feel the same way … shaken …
He was especially demented today. Listening to the Republicans laughing along at his stupid - or obscene gestures was disgusting.
I encourage them all to join Thiel in his “escape” to outer space.
Maybe they all will begin their space adventures by boarding an exploding Space X rocket.
Sounds good as long as it’s one way
This. I know Peter Thiel's horribleness is lower down on the long, long list of horriblenesses, but that he thinks the last good times in the US were the 1920s (the Great Depression, anyone)!!! and that the country also started going downhill after women had the constitutional right to vote, shows the caliber of "thought," "knowledge," and downright craziness with which we are dealing. SHOOT THEM ALL INTO SPACE.
In their effed up world “robber barons” are their heroes and you and I are only good for breeding.
What I really really really don’t understand are women who can bring themselves to vote for these neanderthals.
A felon and admitted abuser of women is their best choice???
Thiel probably was referring to the 1920s up to the Great Depression. Is there anyone besides Thiel questioning value of women voting? Any Republican who thinks it was a mistake for women to have the vote is not a genuine R in my opinion. How backward to believe that. I don't think Trump or any of the R's in Congress believe that, but if they've said they want to take their right to vote away, please let us know. There are Republican women in Congress, of course. T. Roosevelt was strong supporter of women's suffrage.
I usually don't like to promote anything generated by AI, but this is a useful summary . Each example can be confirmed from other reliable sources -
AI Overview
While the official platform of the Republican Party does not suggest women should not vote, several individual Republican political figures and candidates have made such suggestions or expressed support for such ideas.
Examples include:
Mark Robinson: In a resurfaced 2020 video, while a candidate for North Carolina lieutenant governor (a position he later won), Robinson explicitly said, "I absolutely want to go back to the America where women couldn't vote". He later provided context for the statement, tying it to an argument about the Republican Party's historical role in social change, but the comment drew significant criticism.
John Gibbs: This former GOP House candidate supported by Donald Trump ran a college "think tank" website in the early 2000s that argued the U.S. had "greatly suffered from women having the right to vote" and that women did not possess the necessary qualities to govern. A campaign spokesperson later stated the website was satire and that Gibbs now supports women's suffrage.
Pete Hegseth: The current Defense Secretary recently reposted a video on X (formerly Twitter) featuring Christian nationalist pastors who advocated for a system where households, not individuals, would cast votes, a system that would effectively disenfranchise women and consolidate voting power with the male head of household.
Paul Ingrassia: Nominated by President Trump to lead the Office of Special Counsel in 2023, Ingrassia responded approvingly to a podcast host who said his wife "literally thinks women should not vote," calling the opinion "very based".
Additionally, some current Republican-backed legislation, such as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, has been criticized by voting rights groups for potentially creating barriers that would disproportionately affect millions of married women who have changed their last names, thereby making it harder for them to vote in practice. Republicans have argued the bill is a necessary measure for election integrity and have dismissed the concerns about disenfranchisement.
For the evangelical fringe theory of voting by the patriarch of a household -
https://19thnews.org/2025/08/pete-hegseth-doug-wilson-women-voting/
Thanks for this info, but most of these people are fringe figures. Hegseth is Secretary of Defense but I think his influence is limited to that area. The motive for the SAVE Act is not to disenfranchise women. I remember Lynn Cheney saying about 10 yrs ago that Nancy Pelosi particularly wanted to defeat Republican women candidates. Probably on the theory that having Republican women in Congress mainstreams the idea that it is OK for women to be Republican. In any case, a lot of Republican women have been elected. Some people on this platform may believe that the Trump Administration will try to cancel the 2026 election, but the Admin is not going to try to target women by taking away their right to vote. I think the 2026 elections will be held.
Gotta disagree with you, Robert, unless you think the Trump administration isn't truely R. The minister of Pete Hegseth's church, for example, preaches about how women shouldn't vote. See also this op-ed --https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/dec/04/women-right-to-vote-disenfranchisement. As for Teddy, one of my favorite Presidents, he'd be called a RHINO today for promoting women's suffrage and the Food and Drug Act.
I read the article, thanks. I still don't think disenfranchising women is a mainstream idea in the Republican Party. Within some parts of right-wingers' circles, maybe, and the article gives some examples. I've never seen it, and (nearly) any R elected official around the country who supported disenfranchisement would be booted out, by the Party and the voters. But it's worth looking out for. You're probably right about Teddy R. And is the Trump Administration truly R? Not on a lot of things.
'Set the controls for the heart of the sun', as the Pink Floyd song suggests.
Deport them to a distant galaxy. Call us when you get there.
We’ve had dumb presidents before. We’ve had corrupt presidents before. We’ve had dishonest presidents before. But we’ve never before had such a repulsive, demented whiney little bitch in the Oval Office before.
Please spare us all the use of sexist terms like “bitch”. It’s bad enough that this fool and his party are destroying our democracy and world standing. If you must use pejorative terms, try one that is consistent w his body parts.
Yep - richard cranium for sure
Yup, you got that right!!
He is definitely a whiny little bitch.
Well we know who to thank for this mess. I for one will never forgive MAGAs for inflicting this on the US and the world. There is just NO excuse for being that stupid or selfish.
No kidding. Creepy.
Craig in a post slightly chronologically before yours coined a phrase that seems to fit today's RepubliKan party: "Trumperotic patriotism" which I think is about as descriptive of what I am seeing from that party and those who follow him as anything I have conjured up on my own (mostly profane words and challenging the intellect of his followers); this phrase captures what my mushbrain thinks. It's like a porn addiction.
I was completely flabbergasted at what I saw… unfucking believeable!
Like you said in one of your live videos earlier today (yesterday for many reading this) - We have to speak up right now. So, everyone, let Congress hear you! Be extremely loud!
Use/share this spreadsheet (bit.ly/Nokings) as a resource to contact members of Congress, the Cabinet and news organizations. Call. Write. Email. Protest. Unrelentingly.
Reach out (beyond your own) to as many in the Senate and House as you can. All of this is bigger than “I only represent my constituents” issues.
Add a comment to help keep this bumped ✊ New eyes seeing this means new ripples for change! 🤞
Direct longer link for those who feel better clicking a Google link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit?usp=drivesdk
Thank you Megan -- I have a day at home baking and cooking and while things are rising or simmering I will be making calls using the information from your spread sheet!
Megan want to thank you for compiling this remarkable document.
Over the weekend a number of us composed a letter of 14 questions posed to every Republican member of Congress about the illegal activities that occurred in Venezuela printed them and mailed them out to all 273 Republican representatives in DC. cost us $212.94 in postage. It’s nice to have an owner of a printing shop in your group. Yesterday we printed and sent the same letter to all 273 to their offices in their home states. We couldn’t have done it without all your hard work in giving us the information for each of these representatives.
Hope, resolve, patience and a love of this country are just a few powerful things that move people to do not so extraordinary things but what’s right. Maybe it’s what Franklin replied when asked what kind of government they had created. - "A republic, if you can keep it" Resolved to keep it…
Thank you
Among other things, the regime has made using the USPS as distasteful as possible. Rates are way up, and two things I mailed recently—a condolence card and a package of tea—were opened and emptied. No cash inside. When I mailed the package, the tape seemed a little off, and the clerk told me that she couldn't add more; I'd have to buy a roll. Then she relented and added a little Scotch tape, which didn't stop the vandalism. Clearly, things are designed to fall apart before there's any possibility of voting by mail.
Yes we knew that the letter would take probably a week or two to get to any of these members of Congress. So we all used Megan’s information and broke it down among 15 of us and made calls to all 273 of these complicit members. Called DC and their local offices. We selected a few of the 14 questions compiled and left messages. On it today to have all of them get this message, because voice mails weren’t for some operational… Patience, resolve is something that retired people have and a sense of humor. As my mom always says, never piss off an older person they’ve lived longer and have a lot to say when poked…
Please be aware of the changes that have been made to when mail gets an official postmark. It will not be postmarked until it reaches a regional sorting facility, which can be days away depending on your location. Anything that relies on a postmark as proof (including mail in ballots) can be affected.
https://www.courierpostonline.com/story/news/2026/01/03/postmark-rules-changed-usps-avoid-delays-to-bill-payments-tax-penalties/87994140007/
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/how-this-new-mail-rule-could-affect-your-ballot-your-tax-return-and-more
Please post your text, so we can replicate it.
Jane. Here’s the letter and the social media posts we placed in with the correspondence. If this is what you are asking for.
https://open.substack.com/pub/tamwarn/p/republican-congressional-members?r=viplr&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=post-publish
Thanks for this!
Megan, could you give us some tips for access to your document please? What is the easiest way to use it? How to print a hard copy? Thank you!!
Morning! I think that depends on what you want to do. I use the calendar on one of the tabs (at the bottom of the sheet) and reach out to as many Republicans in the states listed as possible each day. I might call after hours (and my kids go to bed) and leave a short message (sometimes using a script from 5calls, indivisible, Jess Craven, others, or just my own), or I send an email through the contact me links and I use an in state office address to bypass the not a constituent block (then at the end of my email I write that I might not be a constituent but ___ committee they’re on needs to do ____ like my message has said).
Do you print parts of it out or work totally electronically? Do you have Apple or android? Thanks!
I usually look at it on my computer, soooo tiny on my phone! I can zoom in but I don’t want to risk clicking anything and changing something without realizing.
I have PDFs I can email you if you want it printed. My email is listed on it 💜
The individual states hold the power to curtail voting rights.
That is where the battle is being waged right now.
The Heritage Foundation is pushing model legislation in the states to do just that with 11 pre-written bills that curtail voting rights
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/pages/legislation
Check out where your state stands on the map below.
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/pages/state-scorecards
The framers had a lot on their plate, but we are witnessing effects of the failure to make voting rights iron clad. Clearly, to be sustainable the Constitution need that. Take away the right to vote and meaningful liberty and justice falls with it.
I agree. Heritage over the years has focused on the states to implement their plans because voters are not well informed about state legislation since local newspapers have died and local news websites are being run by right-leaning corporations.
Restack if you can. Primaries start in March and I think this is a 5-alarm emergency.
Thanks Georgia, seems like the higher your state’s score, the more your voting rights have been curtailed.
This Heritage Foundation project is a key action leading to the decimation of our free and fair elections.
Exactly. They are going by their definition of "election integrity," which is to reduce the number of people who are eligible to vote.
Kari—the higher the score, the LESS ballot access has been curtailed. Remember who is doing the scoring: Heritage Foundation. It believes there is election “integrity” only when the greatest restrictions are on ballot access. Categories such as voter ID requirement at the polls, permanent lists for those needing an absentee ballot work towards getting more voter’s votes accepted earn a high score since HF frames the category in a negative light. Hope that helps.
Hi Lynn,
Heritage is definitely scoring these. I believe the higher the score the more difficult it is to vote in that state and the more restrictions have been placed on access to voting.
Check the difference between the Red and Blue states.
What do you think?
Kari—Heritage most likely intended to confuse a reader of this chart by using a Red -Yellow-Green scheme. Green is what they like—more restrictions on voting, not fewer. The lower the number, the harder it is to vote there and the more heritage likes it. Blue states like NY and CA are “red” due to their high score and more open ballot access. Hope this helps.
Selected several states on the election scorecard. A "404 Page not found" message opened for each state.
https://electionscorecard.heritage.org/
worked fine for me just now
copied the link I used above
if you still have trouble see if they have tech support-- maybe an adblocker setting?
Thank you for producing this vast and important document that makes contacting our reps so much easier. Thune and Johnson, Senate and House leaders should be representing ALL of us. Getting elected may involve politics, but once elected the Legislative branch represents all citizens.
By rights, anyway.
Thank you, Megan. ✊✊✊🖖
Thank you, Megan!
Every day it gets worse, and every day your exhortation to protest unrelentingly is more important; thank you for persisting with the spreadsheet, Megan. And as always, thanks to Dr. Richardson for her persistence in contextualizing this mess.
Thank you, Megan.
The best refutation of the careening scheiße of today's trumper tantrums. As Rep. Raskin later observed, Mrs Hemphill was one of the few convicted insurrectionists who merits a pardon from her assuming responsibility for her actions, making proper amends, and showing contrition. She refused to accept the pardon.😯 https://youtu.be/jnk8UClnRyc 🙏🏾 The 4½ minute vid. is perfect for people who have five minutes only not the half a day required to read Special Counsel Smith's damning deposition or to watch today's hearing among House Democrats about 06jan21, of which this woman's statement was a part.⚖️
I recall seeing Mrs Hemphill nearly crushed to death LIVE during the insurrection 5 years ago when she was pinned up against wall by the surge of trampling traitors on that nightmare day.
She was saved by policemen doing their duty -- saving her life.🙏
You make a good point Bryan. Fox News was given all of the tape from 1/6/21 and they threatened to release it. Why didn't they?
We need to urge the MSM to air January 6th footage and whenever Trump talks about the 2020 election being stolen. No one wants to see his ugly mug rambling on so give them something to look at.
Or video of ICE beating and kicking someone on the ground or throwing tear gas at elderly protesters. A picture tells a thousand words.
Those vids on the news will begin to draw an association between Trump and the consequences of his mad dash toward dictatorship.
But there they were on the Mall yesterday complaining about their mistreatment, even after the pardons.
I was not aware of the protests. I did watch much of the hearing by the Democrats, from which the clip of Mrs Hemphill is drawn. The protest seems to be on big baby-tantrum.
I saw it on the news later, and they were beyond audacious. Seems that they want restitution for the inconvenience of being held accountable.
And she struck me as sincere. People were wary of her at first, but soon they warmed up to her. Every M.A.G.A. pardoned into becoming spontaneous storm-trumpers -- thank you, Jimmy Kimmel -- should watch this clip and talk about it.
I just found out from a really fine book on how Latin America fits into the international system that Greenland is under the protection of the Rio Treaty (of 1948) though neither it nor Denmark are signatories to that founding document of the Organization of American States. 😯
So, go after Greenland and Trump triggers Article-5 of the N.A.T.O. and Article-3 of the O.A.S. *treaties, notwithstanding the United States being a rogue ally. Jeez, three continents arrayed against the U.S. That spells isolation. Maybe not a military response.🖕
But a full blown embargo and banning U.S. citizens from travelling to sixty-four countries, some in which Americans own properties. That would teach us. both of these short essays are compelling to a conservative like me; but the second one is especially relevant. 😱
EDIT P.S., the forgotten link. https://www.thebulwark.com/p/january-6th-and-the-never-ending-coup-trump-election-venezuela-stephen-miller-greenland
Yes!
He is insane and needs to be removed from office. The pil companies don't even want the oil because it would drop the market price and they would therefore lose money. This has gone from him doing crazy things to make heaps of cash for his friends to him doing crazy things that break the world. Congress needs to act.
Plus this is "dirty" oil with a high sulphur content, and it requires additional processing. Who pays for that?
Thanks Bambi, vetting with Gemini says your statement is accurate: Venezuela's oil is characterized as "heavy" and "sour," meaning it's dense with high sulfur content, requiring specialized, complex refineries with advanced units (like hydrotreaters and coking units) for processing, unlike lighter, sweeter crudes. This makes it costlier and more challenging to extract and refine, leading to higher carbon emissions during processing and requiring specific technologies like steam injection, with China and India often being major buyers due to their advanced facilities for such crudes.
But big tech needs the heavier oil to run their AI systems. I copied the following from another Substack site (but lost the source) re: AI plants need the heavier deisel oil in Venezuela. " An important point about Venezuelan oil is (1) that it is heavy (versus the sweet, light crude of the U.S. and Gulf) and contains much more diesel; (2) the Gulf Coast refineries (belonging to Big Oil) are better at refining heavy (Venezuelan) oil than domestic; (3) AI plants need diesel-fueled industrial generators as backup in case of electric blackouts, to ensure the necessary continuous operation. MORE IN DEPTH REPORTING ON THIS would be an important adjunct to all stories concerning the takeover of Venezuela. Follow the money! And Big Oil x AI."
Paul Singer, a strong TACO supporter, bought Citgo at a bargain. He has 4 of those refineries on the gulf coast. https://open.substack.com/pub/popularinformation/p/venezuela-raid-enriches-maga-billionaire?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
Yup, the carbon emissions problem is not gone away. Far from it.
Trump suggested it should be we, the taxpayers, who pay. WTAF.
Depends, Bambi.
If the fossil fuel corporations gave Donald the billion dollars he wanted from them, he'll arrange for us, the bottom 99%, to subsidize anything they may spend to float whatever corrupt Venezuelan regime may bow to Donald and his corrupt.
Ordinarily the customer, but the stuff can be turned into diesel and we have refineries that can do it. Trump recently suggested the the bottomless public purse of taxpayers could be tapped to pay oil companies to extract Venezuelan oil.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/06/trump-us-taxpayers-oil-firms-venezuela-investment
The other consideration that oil companies need to keep in mind is that it's going to take years before an investment in Venezuela now will see a profit. But, once Trump is no longer holding a gun to their head, Venezuela is likely to reseize control over their oil fields and rip up any contracts they were forced to sign.
Precisely. Of course we should not expect Trump to understand when something is a bad business decision because that's all he knows how to make, since he is a failed businessman, bailed out every single time by bankruptcies and daddy's money.
Heather has given us another laudable, extensive documentation of Donald Trump’s psychopathology. Some might find the interview of George Conway, a prominent lawyer who argued cases at SCOTUS, by Molly Jong Fast today as informative. (George Conway on How Congress Prevents Another Trump - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFoMY55vnJ0 )
The problem is that we are living in a different world than Donald Trump. We appear to assume that he is sane and lives in the same world and plays by the same rules that we do. But he does not. He lives in the world of his malignant narcissistic personality disorder and plays a game that has different rules than what we assume. He doesn’t behave by our rules any more than someone with schizophrenia would. He is mentally ill and is motivated only by the drive to gain power, control, money, self-aggrandizement, praise, glorification, etc.. He manipulates using his power to intimidate, his appeal to emotion rather than facts and reason, etc.. He is a compulsive liar and projects his own motives and behaviors onto his perceived enemies as a defense since he is incapable of ever admitting to any error. He has no empathy for others and presents himself as a victim of his perceived enemies
The diagnosis of malignant narcissistic personality disorder is based on verified behavioral history and subjective judgement. These are defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association (DSM). There are no diagnostic physical tests other than psychological testing such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventories (MMPI). Good luck getting Trump or any other politician to take it. Trump clearly has a documented history of fulfilling the criteria in the DSM. I had training in psychiatry in medical school including elective courses.
Although most psychiatrists and clinical psychologists especially in the US refrain from commenting on the likely diagnoses of public figures, some have spoken out: Dr. John Gartner is a licensed and 35 year practicing, Ph.D. clinical psychologist, former professor at John’s Hopkins Medical School, founder of “Duty to Warn”, collector of 41,000 signatures of psychiatrists and mental health providers on a letter warning of Trump’s mental unfitness that was sent to Congress and contributor to the World Mental Health Coalition publication: “The More Dangerous Case Of Donald Trump, 40 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Warn Anew”, edited by Bandy Lee, MD, MDIV, 2024, ISBN 979-8-9900533-7-3, etc.. It is also worth noting that George Conway, a prominent Republican lawyer wrote an article 6 years ago describing how Trump “checks all the boxes” for the diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder: “Unfit for Office. Donald Trump’s narcissism makes it impossible for him to carry out the duties of the presidency in the way the Constitution requires” by George T. Conway III, The Atlantic, October 3, 2019 and more recently: George Conway on How Congress Prevents Another Trump - YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFoMY55vnJ0
If you are unfamiliar with the symptoms and behavior of a narcissistic personality disorder, you can listen to very short YouTube videos by Dr. Les Carter, a popular (non- political), Ph.D., licensed, clinical psychologist with decades of practice who clearly explains in layman’s terms the characteristics of narcissistic personality disorder,You can view him on YouTube and decide for yourself if you think this explains much if not all of Trump’s behavior:
“Things that define narcissism”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4gc8VNAbMc
“7 Signs Of Narcissists Worsening As They Age - YouTube”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8K8iyiN-HQ
It is past the time for media, politicians and public figures to stop throwing up their hands as seemingly mystified by Trump’s behavior when it is clear that he is certifiably mentally ill and should never have been placed in a position of so much power over humanity and the world. It is a crucial job to point this out to the public and not just engaging in distraught hand-wringing.
I have no affiliation with Les Carter, John Gartner or George Conway. I am an MD and graduate degree biochemist.
Conway is now running for Congress in NY12 as a Democrat. Throw some coin into his campaign. I’ve read, watched and listened to him on various Bulwark vehicles, especially “George Conway Explains It All to Sarah Longwell”, and he is the real deal. Smart, uncompromising, and genuine.
Fred W. Cox, While I have no disagreement with your assessment of the Donold, I fear you miss the powerful threat behind the Donold, the entire establishment of "might makes right" Republicans/MAGA/financial broligarchy (eg. Peter Thiele, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, etc.). THESE are the ones which carry forward the notion that “we know best” and therefore needn’t be restricted by the laws meant for the common folk. It is the notion of impunity which accompanies great power which resides in a great military and staggering wealth. This “might makes right" is the province of barbarians who aim to upset the world order of the past 80 years, the world order of a civilized society in a nuclear age in which we are already so "powerful" that we are changing the planet’s very climate.
While the whole of Heather's chat from last evening - January 6, 2025 - is worth watching, imbedded in it is her assertion that the idea that though Trump thinks he has captured a prize by being able to control Venezuela's oil, oil is a 19th and 20th Century technology; whereas, if China feels free to go after Taiwan, Taiwan has 60% of the world's semiconductors, a technology of the 21st Century. That assertion starts at about minute 27:40.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=notif&v=1861494644501353¬if_id=1767740641832333¬if_t=live_video_explicit
Thanks, Lynell.
YES Lynell, and THAT is exactly what we need to fear the most about the barbarity of this entire administration and its sense of impunity: their actions invite other hegemons to ignore the world order of the past 80 years which has kept us out of nuclear war. The Republicans/MAGAs are actively unleashing the forces of barbarism while running roughshod over the laws and rules of civilization which have kept us from mutual annihilation these past 80 years. Might DOES NOT make right!
Thanks, Lynell. I need to watch that today. I was up to my elbows in projects yesterday.
Thank you, Heather. If there’s anybody here, which I doubt, who’s buying Trump’s lie that he, as President, will rake control of oil revenues “for the benefit of the Venezuela and American people”, I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn for sale, cheap.
There's one in Sydney, too!
Let’s not lose our focus on the Epstein-Trump files.
One silly irony in Trump’s “reasoning” about needing Greenland for our national security: Greenland is on the shortest path between Russia and the US. Yeah, THAT Russia — the country he is trying to hand Ukraine’s land to. Another silly idea: he pretends that Maduro is a greater threat to us than Putin.
The US has no troops on the ground in Venezuela, and very little leverage other than threats to further its illegal goals. Like Trump's attempts to rewrite Jan 6 history, threaten Greenland and NATO, "reform" healthcare, improve the US economy and security, etc., it is all a sham. A bunch of bullshit and hot air, much like the farts that Baby Donald Smallhands evidently emits on regular occasion. I really hope the Congress shows some backbone this week in some critical votes and stops this insane, very dangerous sham.
I am waiting for Congress to make some headway in renewing the ACA healthcare premiums. What is Congress doing nowadays?
Nothing; They should all be furloughed w/o pay or benefits.
Some are really there to do the people's business but are outnumbered.
I'm thinking though that those doing the work can aptly defend themselves. It's past time for a fight 'in kind' - no holds barred; Let a higher power of some kind, sort them out. Past time for powerful statements and actions JL - long past time !!! Taxation without representation is a cause worth reinstating towards the congress, senate, and supine court jesters. I've had it !!! I should not have to pay people to sit on their thumbs - I least of all of you, can't and won't afford it.
I hope we're familiar enough to assure you that I hate broad strokes too; Only barns and a few other items require painting with broad strokes. Perhaps some general qualifications should / could be added to such a petition. Ask Joyce Vance or other "solicitor" regarding legal wording. But the moments have come to light fires ( I'll bring the torches and matches), under branches that aren't exercising their oaths of office my friend ! They play with no holds barred; Shouldn't we as well, to fight 'in kind'?
Good question.
“ The House GOP leadership expects a procedural vote on Wednesday and a final passage vote on Thursday on legislation to extend the enhanced Obamacare premium subsidies for three years. Passage of the legislation — forced onto the floor after a revolt by GOP moderates — is an early-year defeat for Speaker Mike Johnson. This will put pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune to find a path to extend the expiring tax credits.”
From https://punchbowl.news/article/house/congress-swamped/
I beg your pardon for my foul expressions; You are a lady.
'Eff that "leadership" ! They need to hear from us !
I expect Trump's mad actions and programs make the wealthy in the U.S. feel secure. The poor and toiling working classes prevent people like Peter Thiel from being free, and policies that help them threaten him. But what greater freedoms and opportunities for enrichment could Thiel want than he has had so far? How much more of the toiling poor's money does he need? If he extinguishes the lower classes altogether, he might find the source of his wealth gone with them.
As Dylan recently said in front of a large group of billionaires, including Musk and Bezos -- when he accepted an award in Manhattan recently: “If you can spend billions building rockets and metaverses, you can spend millions feeding children.
If you call yourself a visionary, prove it — not with money, but with mercy.” If you don't use your money for good, what's the point?
"the liberty of wealthy men to act without restraint. Free them, the logic goes, and they will Make America Great Again."
As usual, Dr. Richardson finds the essence and states it clearly and succinctly. I would add that this philosophy applies to white males only (Christianity doesn't apply here. That's only for ornament).
Lets go back to feuding warlords.
It’s about oil in Greenland too. Greenland has banned all exploration and exploitation of its oil reserves for environmental reasons. In the mind of the US president, that’s an act of aggression against the USA.
Don’t overlook the rare earth metals.
I don’t, but afaik, no law against exploiting those, which means that US companies can easily negotiate rights with the PM of Greenland.
True, they could do that now, negotiate with Denmark. But remember, that’s not what Drumpf wants. Those resources must first belong to Drumpf. All the negotiations must first pass through the Drumpf grift wall. It’s not farfetched to imagine that by then he will have renamed the area Drumpfland.
And his oily patrons.