The front page of yesterday’s New York Times featured some of the 440,000 Americans from Arizona alone who have lost Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since the Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act made the deepest cuts to SNAP in its history, expanded work rules, and shifted costs to the states even as cuts to federal grant programs have forced Arizona to lay off a third of its caseworkers.
Every government eventually answers the same question: What do we owe one another?
The answer isn’t found in speeches. It’s found in budgets, policies, and priorities. They reveal whether we see one another as burdens to manage or neighbors to support.
The future isn’t shaped by what governments say they value. It’s shaped by who they’re willing to invest in.
Some things are only provided by mutual participation. The Bill of Rights is meaningless unless the preponderance of our citizens commit to honoring and protecting the rights of one another. It's fundamental and goes way back. "... we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."
Last month dozens of Democratic Senators and one Republican contacted the NSF urging them to stop dismantling the OOI deep-sea sensors dictated by Project 2025, then Congress passed a bipartisan bill to stop them, and the NSF started redeploying what it had removed [see our monthly post for July 2026 on OneClick2BetterWorld.substack.com "Climate Change and Our Oceans"]. We need to work together for the upcoming midterms against the Authoritarian movement in America.
But we can ONLY do that if Democrats and Independents control the Senate and the House. This Congress has the honor of being the least productive in history. Their crowning legislation was the OBBBA which took away health care and food from millions of Americans, especially the most vulnerable among us.
Check your voter registration regularly especially if you live in a red state like Texas or Florida. They are more than happy to purge the voter roles even if it is illegal. And vote early. I know many people prefer to vote on Election Day, but remember, the Fascists are in control and they don't give a damn about laws, norms or regulations.
No, THIS Congress has the dishonor of being THE most anti-American in our short history. It is stunning they are not being treated similarly as to the French Revolution. Stay tuned.
Honor and integrity are the main ingredients missing from today's administration and its enablers. I don't think either concept has meaning for them, and dishonorable people in an administration can be fatal to a country as history teaches us over and over. But who's reading history?
Per The Hill, "[T]he Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said it reviewed California’s claims for certain in-home care programs and other claims that officials said require more documentation."
CMS has a built-in appellate system to deal with the attacks on Minnesota & California. We have been here before. Both Minnesota & California can deal with the
not-so "Great & Wonderful Mehmet Oz" .
IMO the attacks against Minnesota. & CA are subject to first temporary & then permanent injunctions. Recommend Rule 11 sections in Federal Court against the bad-faith male actors.
Add it to the list of about 70 active lawsuits against these assholes for fraud, deceit, violation of codes of conduct, due process, and the Constitution itself.
Back to the question I raised some time ago JL; Why did we agree and pledge to a government *in the first place, that a majority could support. The proposition being foisted upon us is no more than a return to jungle law - dog eat dog. Worse, it's apparent to me anyway that this is corporatocracy, led by an unfit unitary executive branch, the face of which is no more than a belligerent adolescent.
All the more reason for there to be an opposition shadow cabinet that hammers out a platform that makes it clear what the budgetary priorities will be to provide opportunities for all Americans, and stop supporting the transfer of wealth to the uber-rich.
Absolutely. Right now, programs developed by Democrats appear to be random. Someone gets an idea, he/she gets a few fellow travelers to sign on and there it is. A shadow cabinet would come up with a proposal and then flesh it out so it can be presented to the American people and then, to the Congress as a viable program.
"programs developed by Democrats appear to be random".
Yes, that's been my impression. I think that there needs to be more of a sense of what Democrats are reaching for. A new direction, not just repairs. Biden was departing from the "Reaganomics" script that that derailed progress almost half a century ago, most of my lifetime, but lacked a compelling narrative to go with it.
Think of many ways in which liberty and justice for all lost momentum, including climate abuse. Even Tricky Dick was amenable to environmental protection, and that's no small thing. Even Ike warned not to mess with major social programs. Without enough eyes on the prize, we could see government of, by, and for the people perish from the earth.
The Dems should present a program as developed policy. "This is what we want to do, and this is how we'll do it". I think the American voter would warm to that. "Well, yeah. That could work. And it's better than what the other side is offering".
Project 2025. They presented it to the world in 2024 and few people thought it was possible. And here we are, with much of it already being implemented. It was long, it was boring, it was scary. I waded through about 20% of it and most Americans just blew it off.
The Democrats have proposed dozens of bills that go to die like increasing the Federal minimum wage, increasing the tax rate, etc. And they just die. For years, McConnell just let them die even when they were passed by the House. They called him the 'grim reaper.' And Thune and Johnson are just as bad or maybe even worse.
Hello Georgia... From HCR Today: "While administration officials are slashing government programs that protect ordinary Americans, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine appeared on Capitol Hill today before the Senate Appropriations Committee to explain why the Pentagon is urgently in need of an injection of $67 billion to tide it over until the end of the fiscal year on September 30." | | | When Asked about the current state of the Idiotic Iranian War, Bezalel Smotrich, the Far-Right, Israeli Finance Minister, Smotrich replied that he liked where things are now... The USA is running out of Interceptors which is why American Casualties are mounting... Indeed, when Israel is attacked by Iranian Drones, and Missiles, the Israelis conserve their Interceptors, and let the USA provide the bulk of the Defense... Netanyahu wanted this War, and Netanyahu is letting the USA fight most of it... Feeling 'Had' Yet?...
Most definitely feeling “had”. Netanyahu is getting to use the US attention on Iran to distract from the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, his forays killing thousands of civilians in Lebanon, and the lawless settlers in the West Bank. Netanyahu needs to keep his far-right coalition intact while the Iran war covers his corruption and hold on power, just like it does for Trump’s vulnerabilities in the Epstein files.
Netanyahu and Putin know how to play Trump like a fiddle. And Netanyahu is encouraging more and more illegal settlements and does not deal with settler violence against Palestinians.
Hello Georgia... Indeed, now the Israelis are building an Earthen Wall in the south third portion of Gaza to essentially trap over 2-million Gazans into a Prison Ghetto... The Israelis Kill anybody who tries to escape... Is Israel a Compassionate, Just Country?....
I agree with many American Jews and Israelis who believe that Netanyahu is despicable and corrupt and is destroying Israel. Just like here. Netanyahu has had two decades of intermittent rule to whittle away at Israel’s norms and stifle any pluralistic impulses, as opposed to Trump’s one decade. Netanyahu’s cruelty is fully on display and a feature of his administration. Trump is still somewhat shy about revealing the full horror of the detention camps on US soil. Otherwise, they seem pretty much cut from the same cloth. They both use events to their advantage to try to strengthen their hold on power.
PS. Just wondering what MBS gave Trump in return for the ability to enrich uranium without inspections in the new Saudi nuclear energy deal.
Hello Georgia... In the portion that the Israelis control, they are destroying the Buildings, and Infrastructure so that the Gazans will have a difficult time returning, if ever... This is a War-Crime... As Regards Netanyahu, The Israelis Keep On Re-Electing Him...
Undoubtedly, that would be Bibi’s plan—taking maximum advantage of every turn of events. It is hard work to keep up with how quickly the truly corrupt are able to respond to a shifting landscape. The only way I think anyone can, is by continually asking “How could this event be used to Trump’s (actually the Trump regime’s) advantage?”
Republicans’ and the oligarch-engineered slide towards authoritarianism has been shaped for decades by purpose-driven objectives. Meanwhile, Democrats and a new, broader-based opposition are still being stymied by a failure of imagination into reactive rather than proactive responses. Looking forward to reading “The Day After”
Accountability has to be the theme after the midterms unless there is a veto-proof majority in both houses, because Trump will veto everything that he can. It is in the regime’s best interest to have an inflicted “do-nothing” opposition Congress. Besides, he will need something to use as a weapon of retribution.
The legislative reform platform has to be in place now, though, so the electorate understands what can change and, just as importantly, how it can be funded. Things have to be teed up for a trifecta in 2028.
Hey, Georgia. What are the mechanics for Dems to form an opposition shadow cabinet? I'd like to be able to propose that in my contacts with my 3 reps so we can hit the ground running after midterms and through to 2028.
Get someone like Obama to invite a group of young opposition stars from across the big tent, along with mid-career folk like Raskin, and some grey heads like Whitehouse, Warren, Sanders ,Pelosi and Schiff to a zoom call and tell them to each suggest one expert in the area they think needs the most immediate attention in order to right the ship of state and stop the authoritarian slide. Then divvy them up by interest and expertise, and get them to come up with workable compromises that all can get behind. Mentor the new stars like Kim, Buttigieg, Ossoff, AOC, and Mamdani, and give them opportunities to serve as standard-bearers on major issues.
In other words, not much other than a willingness to come together to compromise on a platform that hits the issues that matter the most to the American people and can beat the regime. Not every issue has to be addressed in terms that Republicans can exploit—the AIPAC war is one example. The fix is to get big money out of politics and lobbying so AIPAC loses its power to influence policy. No more purity tests based on accepting AIPAC money. Look at the divisive issues in terms of what is giving them the power to divide, and what about the system is failing and needs to be changed.
One of the main issues to fight is going to be this constant coloring of Democratic ideas as "communist" by this administration. I am appalled at how little the understanding of communism vs social democracy the MAGA crowd has! I am just as appalled at how the Left has not been able to get the message across to them, that most of them are the beneficieries of a more socially aware system!
Has anyone even approached the Independents and Democrats about this idea Georgia? I can imagine how difficult an undertaking it would be, however, if every action/new legislation/executive order is analyzed by a shadow cabinet, and explained how it could be done differently for the advantage of all Americans, those who voted for this buffoonery might start replacing their MAGA hats with IAUMB (I am starting to use my brain) ones!
I wonder if Georgia's proposal might land well on some Substacks, in the form of conversations with experts already posting videos of conversations -- Wajahat Ali and Joy Redid have spoken about "grandtifas", defined by context as senior activists rocking boats and shifting tides of thought -- makers of good trouble.
Humans tend to figure out how to survive within sick systems, such as corporations. Congress is no different. It’s a sick system, and the “well” members are trying to get things done as best they can within the toxicity. Of course, some of the poison makes them less “well.” How do we help create a healthy system?
We can have all the policies, budgets, and priorities in the world, but corruption at the level trump is getting away with is destroying this country. Every.Single.Day he emulates the likes of Saddam Hussein vs. a president. It is appalling and terribly dangerous.
From Dan Rather's July 21st Substack column:
"His latest move is eye-popping, even by Trump 2.0 standards. Late Thursday, as everyone was speculating about the president’s “big news” speech that wasn’t, Trump Media, the parent company of his social media platform, Truth Social, announced it will sell — yes sell — early access to its posts."
"Wall Street firms and banks that are willing to pay Trump would get access to posts before everyone else, allowing them to trade and therefore profit from the information. This is White House-sanctioned insider trading with the bonus of lining the president’s already stuffed-by-corruption pockets."
The once "Party of Lincoln" has become corrupt as hell, and that includes their members of Congress and a number of judges. Maybe we are so inundated with corruption we forget what it is. Remember that Republicans were once ready to dump Nixon over corruption on a much smaller scale. It should be the word of the day, the word of the year.
"Those July 3 pardons were Trump’s usual garbage. Nine were for people convicted of crimes related to violating the Clean Air Act. Given that the admin doesn’t believe in clean air, that one makes sense
Many of them were upstanding folks who sold or installed a device on diesel trucks that fooled the vehicle’s emission control system, because how dare you stop them from polluting. Indeed, according to Trump, convicting them for doing so was persecution: “It is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for ‘fixing their car.’”
Well, Trump won’t need to issue a bunch of pardons about that going forward. The Department of Justice has announced they will no longer prosecute people for violating this part of the Clean Air Act, period. Now, devices to bypass vehicles’ pollution controls can be bought and installed. For freedom."
Said before, but worth repeating, again and again. "Don't tell me what you value," Joe Biden used to say all the time. "Show me your budget and I'll tell YOU what you value."
I used to be a church choir soloist. I heard many sermons. The only thing I remember from any of them was a preacher saying that the only theological document that most congregations produce is their budget.
I love the idea of medicaid for all American children through grad school. Now, we just need all American children to have a public education provided free of charge through the age of 26 and that would be a dynamic duo. Of course, we need to have the government stop telling teachers to teach lies, and omit information that is truthful about our history and about science.
Loren, in one of my pieces called, "A Plan B for Catastrophe" and a "A Plan C for Catastrophe", I believe I suggested to people raising children in the US to plan to go to Mexico or Canada, depending on which part of the country you live in, or some other country if you have an affinity to it for their vaccines.
Here they are. Plan B was written before Trump came into power, right after he was reelected.
As a former teacher, so maybe more critical of parents than the average person, I think that parents with resources, who do not make alternative plans for their children are remiss.
I would prefer they put it under Medicare for all and expand Medicare to include the spouses/partners of those under 65 years old.
My wife and I went through the bullshit of having to switch carriers for her when I turned 65 and then I had to have a separate supplemental insurance policy. Many elderly people become unable to navigate the Medicare/Medicaid system and become uninsured as a result of the bureaucracy.
A superb example of your premise, Kelli, was the G.I. Bill. Arising from the ashes of a global conflagration, this was a launch device for one of the most robust recoveries from war in history. Investment, indeed! How ironic that our current devastation is one we have visited upon ourselves. So it is no surprise where the reversal lies.
So Musk, the biggest Welfare Queen in US history, and other billionaires (especially those who have paid Trump off personally) are this government's priority?
Honestly, I sometimes _wish_ that Hogsbreath blasts all ammo away in his real-life Call of Duty game, leaving the US military depleted and without cash before the end of this summer, making America irrelevant as a military power. Maybe then Europe, Canada and Japan get a chance to TALk to Iran about the Strait of Hormuz. You know, old-fashioned _diplomacy_ instead of guns blazing explosions bald eagles American flags waving…
I'm afraid you're right... And I really hope that when his chubby, greedy, grabby little fingers reach for that big red atomic button, somebody in the military _finally_ says "enough!" and stops him.
It's more than that, in fact. Ultimately, the stability of a democratic society also depends on its shared norms and history has shown that the content of those norms is less important than the unanimity with which they are accepted and adhered to by its citizens. This administration is challenging those norms and running a huge risk in doing so. You've already narrowly avoided an insurrection in 2021 and if enough people no longer accept these basic norms then you are on course for another collapse in public order.
Trump has been aided by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court led by chief justice John Roberts which is engaged in a long-term plan to dismantle progressive reforms achieved since the Second World War and to greatly increase the powers of the president and the executive.
It may be that bad losses for the GOP in the midterm elections will hobble this administration and place a roadblock to these plans but one has to bear in mind that so far Trump has successfully been able to bypass Congress and he will doubtless continue to try to do so.
Democrats comprise 30% of the electorate as do Republicans. That leaves 40% of the electorate to Independents, the swing voters in every election.
While the overall approval rating for Cheeto is around 33-37%, among the swing voters, the Independents, that approval rating drops to 26%!
Since Independents will be motivated to vote, 74% will be voting to oust Nazi Republicans in the midterms and probably in 2028 as well. Hopefully longer. WE the People will not forget what they tried to do to our country.
This is because once an approval rating drops below 30%, the magic number, there is zero chance that a politician or party like Cheeto and the Nazi Republicans will recover. Their disastrous experiment in a fascist takeover of the government is dead. A Hoover like moment is about to displace them from the history books.
Cheery statistics but you are leaving out the fact that our system does not weight votes equally. Not when Wyoming and California both have equal weight in the Senate. And as we know, not in the Electoral College, which has brought us Trump. And certainly not with SCOTUS allowing gerrymandering that can crack and pack minorities so they do not get equal representation, like in Tennessee.
The 30% rule was developed in Japan, and applies to parliamentary systems. Approval ratings matter in parliamentary systems because they help signal whether a government still has the public and party support needed to govern effectively, but they are usually more about political vulnerability than direct survival. In parliamentary regimes, the executive depends on legislative confidence, so low approval can weaken party cohesion, embolden rivals, and increase the odds of resignation, reshuffles, or an early election. The current example is the demise of Starmer in the UK.
I know that CNN and USA Today and NPR are talking about low approval ratings and how they will affect the midterms, but there is no magic number in nantionwide polling that will get us there because it doesn't include the overlay of the unequal weighting of your vote depending on where you live. That is one of the major things that has to be addressed in electoral reform.
One of the first things we must do in 2029 when I hope Democrats take power is to expand the Supreme Court to 13, following our tradition of one justice per circuit
I'm against court expansion for one reason, where does it stop? If the Dems expand the court during the next administration, what's to prevent the Reps from expanding the court during their next reign?
Though not a great solution, term limits would help. The founding father's idea of a supreme court is a good one but they didn't address the real problem, how to populate that court.
So, fear is what is keeping you from supporting court expansion? We’re already there, already losing our democracy. I say we should woman up and do whatever it takes.
Three points:
- the court has been the same size since 1869 while the US population has grown from 38,558,371 in 1870 to 331,449,281, a 7.5 fold increase according to my back of the envelope;
- the federal court system is structured with each SCOTUS justice having authority over one or more appeals circuit(s), of which there are 13, so it makes sense for there to be at least 13 justices; and
- expanding it is not easy so I just don’t buy that whole cowardly whining that if we do it they will; make no mistake — if republicans thought they could get away with it they would do it in a heartbeat.
Life expectancy was 42 years when the founders were around so they could never have known that justices would hang on until they were 90. And they absolutely did make constitutional provision for confirming justices (article 2 section 2).
Court expansion has happened several times in our history and it makes perfect sense now.
One more basic civics note — in America we don’t have ‘reigns’. That is for kings, which we absolutely DO NOT HAVE. We have presidential administrations.
Clementine: You go, girl!!! I love the fact-filled response. It doesn’t stop the recurrent trolls (not referring to Julius, who isn't one), but it educates the rest of us and provides great talking points. Thank you!
Thanks so much for your support! And I certainly agree that Julius is not one of the trolls.
I’m a retired lawyer so I can’t help myself when it comes to the joy of getting the information out there. Use the talking points all you want if it helps — I love it!
Our Constitution is a work or art and an easy read — pass it on!
That was one of the topics in Heather’s conversation yesterday with Brian Tyler Cohen. Cohen argues that fear of tit-for-tat is one of the main reasons why Dems did not act to stop the Republican drive to take over and reshape government. One side played by the rules while the other did not, going back to examples like Obama and the ACA negotiations.
“The government you elect is the government you deserve.”
Thomas Jefferson
The same guy figured out the value of his slaves fabricating nails in his nail factory. The daily quantity of nails forged. The cost of the iron. The daily cost of food and housing of said slave. The profit margin of nails. Thomas Jefferson was a very smart man. If he were alive today, he might have a vaulted place in the administration.
Lauren, I used to believe we needed to expand the Supreme Court. However Senator Cory Booker has proposed term limits of 18 years on the bench. This would get needed turnover and not race to get young judges or block nominees like what happened under Obama. Sen. Booker also addresses the need for Justices to not accept "gifts". If we keep expanding the Supreme Court it could turn into an endless race.
What tradition are you referencing? The only tradition that is relevant is the one that has had nine justices since 1869, a 157 year tradition.
I'll bet you wouldn't be pining for court packing if the current court was ruling as you preferred. You aren't winning so the rules have to be changed. That's the mark of losers.
Whew. A quick note: the way to tell if you are losing an argument is when you start to make the attacks personal, as in calling the other persons ‘losers’ because you have no winning points to make.
And out of curiosity — just how many years does it take for something to be a tradition? Is 157 the magic number? The number of justices ranged from 7-10 throughout the 19th century. Are any of those specific years when the number of justices was different more traditional than 157?
There is no magic number that won't get us there -- by exactly the same token.
All the signs from the past year point to something big, something blue, something too big to rig (hopefully). Some polls out there measure something far more valuable than approval -- voter enthusiasm, those that say that come hell-or-high-water or crawling on broken glass, they will be certain to vote. Democratic determination has never been higher. Last year, every county in Virginia, even the most ruby-red ones, blue shifted by at least 10 points. Every one.
Nobody denies gerrymandering isn't a tremendous obstacle (if that weren't so, Republican legislatures wouldn't be trying to circumvent the public's right to choose their own representatives), but gerrymandering is no guarantee against sheer rage, which is all around. In the past, public fervor has swept seemingly permanent majorities into dust. We are witnessing momentum building toward precisely another such moment in history. As Pete Buttigieg likes to say, "there is no such thing as a permanently red state."
I don’t disagree that there are signs that the electorate is waking up and the rage is growing. But the regime and the oligarchs behind it see the midterms and 2028 as an existential threat, so they are pulling out all the stops, and SCOTUS is actively aiding and abetting them.
Getting informed people to the polls is a large part of the battle—but ensuring the votes are counted fairly is also part of the war we are in. Trump just told us he is all in on bringing back the Big Lie, and the DOJ is now in the hands of people who will act on his claims. Then there is the task of making sure that the people who are elected in contested elections, and I believe there will be many because the DOJ will say so, are seated in Congress in a timely manner. Will a complicit SCOTUS decide that they can’t be seated so the Republicans keep a functional majority? Ultimately, it is the House and Senate that decide who can be seated.
Republicans have long leveraged the vulnerabilities in our democracy, while Democrats keep defending adherence to the spirit of the rules, instead of facing up to the vulnerabilities and being proactive in defending against them.
An aside, 93: please don't respond to RS. He's repugnant and we all want to rant back at his insanity, but that encourages him and leaves a trail of junk we need to scroll through to read the worthwhile comments. Thanks.
Just click on his name and it will take you to his page - there will be 3 dots to the right of his name - click on those and one of the options to choose is "block"
Yeah, well you got lucky tonight Socialists lost a couple of elections so there’s a few sane Democrats left but not many. Did you see Van Jones tonight? Your hero says the left is gone way wacko. Lololol.
🇺🇸 We democrats need to convince the non-voters and the young people to vote blue by getting loud & organized of how the Democrats are better stewards of our taxpayers money and verbalize why voting blue will pick up to fix the GOP wrecking ball and GOP debt. 🤡
Moron, you still can’t do math. Once again, if 40% of the electorate is 100% against Trump. What’s the highest rated he can get. Let’s say he gets 80% of the other 40% and let’s call it 60% of the balance. What’s his rating Archimedes. ?lmfao.
You fucking scumbag piece of oh shit using the word Nazi. I hope one day and Nazi grabs you thinking you’re a Jew takes you through the paces and I’ll come visit you when you look like a briquette. But I’ll make sure I have to pee when I get there
This administration declared war on the American people (except the very rich) on day one. I wish every report from every news source would acknowledge this truth: The US Government seeks to destroy everything that makes America America!
As their ChristoNazi regime weaponizes its anti-abortion, austerity and anti-vax murders into a genuine new-and-expanding Holocaust -- and does so with genuinely obscene glee.
Heather’s conversation with Brian Tyler Cohen on his new book The Day After is a breath of fresh air and brought me real hope. It is loaded with exactly what the opposition has needed—a plan for what to do, and what is achievable faced with the realities of two years of divided government post-midterms, and then the strategies the opposition has to use to re-engineer democracy. It gets to the underlying causes of dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party.
Trouble is, Mr. Cohen's book is meaningless without a shadow government to enact his proposals. We've already seen -- repeatedly -- (had our noses rubbed it, in fact), that the present-day Democrats are all words and no action.
Loren: You know you are preaching to the choir on that issue to me—just 100 days away and no sign of a coherent, cohesive platform of doable actions for the next session of Congress, and no intimation of what would be done if the regime was voted out in 2028.
ICTT is right—rage is building. What I am not seeing is a platform to channel that rage into concrete change. And that requires the opposition to squarely and honestly address what can and cannot be done with an opposition Congress, but a Trump presidency and complicit SCOTUS.
Never have I witnessed such systematic degradation, disrespect and dismantling of America as I see today under the thumb of the President Donald Trump. What is happening now is an assault on the people, the mission and the values of America’s most valued institutions.
Yesterday, Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) stated the obvious to a clearly stunned Kegsbreath. "if Iran still has 50% of their missile capacity and ability to pull drones out of caves and still injure our allies and U.S. service members, then we have not won the war." So OF COURSE he wasn't telling the truth on the 14th day of the war, any more than he did on the 4th month of the war.
You haven't even used 50% of the existing $150 billion the reconciliation process provided,' she asked. 'Why are you here asking for more money for a war the American people don't support, rather than re-allocating $75 billion in already approved, unused funding?'
Clearly unprepared for such direct questioning, he responded with the usual shuffle-and-tap dancing about Joe Biden, clearly meaning to intimidate her. "I would hope for some perspective in this town," he bloviated. "Do you really want Iran to get a nuclear bomb?" She was having none of it and cut him off. "I don't want to hear your speech again because I have limited time," she snapped. "If you can't answer my question, I will move on to my next one."
Anybody who's ever worked in government for any agency whose head gets called to testify in Congress knows the concept of a "murder board." You prepare lists of questions for your boss that cover every possible concern, nuance, problem, outstanding issue, in order to convey confidence, rather than arrogance. But it was clear that this made-for-tee-vee-jerk hadn't even prepared for the simplest and most obvious of questions. That alone tells you everything you need to know.
To put it mildly, these are not serious people. They're phony conmen playing shell games with your money, our servicemembers' lives and America's reputation all over the world.
That was Biden’s deal sending $200 billion to Ukraine to kill 100,000 Russians, and 100,000 Ukrainians that was a slick move huh that was your taxpayer money at work.
And too bad you forgot, who got Ukraine into the mess in the first place.
The same party that killed 56,000 people Who made it as far is Arlington?
Go do some research I sent you some numbers do a little work yourself but be careful because you’re gonna find out shit you didn’t know actually happening, mostly caused under the Biden administration’s opening of the border and then lying about it
If you included links to credible sources for your fantasy numbers, I might even look them up to see what you are wailing about. But since you do not, I can only assume that you made it all up to suit yourself, instead of citing facts. Remember facts?
What Numbers am I making up? Go ahead tell me what numbers I’m making up and I’ll respond to you in the morning but do me a favor. Make sure your brain is engaged before you put your mountain gear if I could throw a couple of memes up here right now I would. Fact, let me try one to see if it posts. Well, here’s a good one for you. That’s a starter kit. These are a list of all the crimes in arrests for illegals. Now look at the numbers jump when Joe Biden takes office. That’s the they. Numbers of the top or total arrests, the numbers on the bottom are by category of crime. Do you see the 60 murders per year? You see the hundreds of sexual offenses per year. ?
Do you know what that number should be? Zeeeeero 000000000000000
So go apologize to them for 500 families that lost a loved one because they were killed by an illegal like one mother who is just walking through the park legends on her head, dragged into a tunnel, raped and murdered and left five children without a mother by an illegal criminal that’s just an example And look at the number of sexual offenses, like rape, which should’ve been zero In fact, there are 4000 on a crime for rapes in this country every year and you know why, because you fucking pussy, liberals won’t punish anybody you put them in jail and give them no cash bail took it out the next day for the last six weeks they’ve killed people after they got out with no cash bail
You let the Republicans take care of the rapes they would simply castrate these people, Manchester balls, but their entire penis, and then cut off a finger on each hand maybe the ring finger so you noticed them for the rest of their lives I guess so many crimes would happen after that with these people like oh they were underprivileged all they were on drugs. They didn’t know what they were doing. That’s your liberal horde. You whine and complain and make me sick because you don’t want to enforce the law
Medicaid coverage for all children versus cutting it and denying its funding to California and Minnesota shows the Parties are not the same. Attacking states that had the gall to house candidates opposing President Trump in the last election is subtle pressure. People losing food stamps while the military demands more money without stating war aims. Keep your eyes open, contact your representatives, and vote Blue.
Yeah, who gives a shit about the $9 billion of fraud. Ad Minneapolis with already over 100 people convicted of the crime. And maybe you LEARED SOMETHING AT THEIR LEARING CENTER. OMG. And that’s tax dollars went. People taking advantage of snap, in the education of the less fortunate. 100 convicted and probably another hundred more waiting for trial if they’re not deported first
Have you been keeping up with the news of proof of massive Medicaid fraud in both states? Seems to me to be more than prudent to withhold funds until there is proof of compliance with the rules. Something that both Newsom and Walz are fighting tooth and nail to avoid. I wonder why?
Around 79% of that is nothing to do with fraud but genuine billing errors made by health professionals. And, research has put a lot of that down to insufficient training. Surely it would be better for individuals, families, communities and national productivity to just fix the training and other common causes of genuine mistakes and THEN play political games? To pretend this is all or mostly down to fraud is economic insanity. Republicans like Ronald Regan will be turning in their graves.
They don’t give a shit if the Democrats are the fraudsters. Maybe they got something out of the LEARING center. And no, I didn’t spell that wrong. Lmao.
2026: The Republican’s/MAGA Trump’s so called “Big Beautiful Bill” made the deepest cuts in SNAP history.
2021: The Biden Administration made the largest increase in SNAP benefits in the program’s history.
Once again, another example of the decency and compassion of the Biden Administration and the cruelty and callousness of our current administration.
Nationwide, more than 4.7 million people have lost Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) introduced stricter eligibility and work requirements.
A breakdown — SNAP Tracker: People Are Losing Food Assistance as the Harmful 2025 Republican Reconciliation Law Is Implemented
Meanwhile Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is asking Congress for a $67 billion to $88 billion emergency supplemental funding injection to address shortfalls from the ongoing war in Iran, (that nobody wants) alongside a historic $1.5 trillion defense budget for the 2027 fiscal year.
Per Hegseth testimony the war in Iran has officially cost the United States $37.5 billion so far. Per external experts and lawmakers they voice strong skepticism, suggesting the actual economic impact is significantly higher.
The war in Iran officially started on February 28, 2026. That’s only 144 days…
How much food could be purchased for $37.5 Billion dollars and provided to over 4.7 Million Americans who no longer receive SNAP benefits?
“The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life—the sick, the needy and the handicapped." - Hubert Humphrey
“Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts." - Margaret Meade
A reminder that the Big Ugly Bill passed the House of Representatives in the very dead of night -- around 3:30am -- by a vote of 215 to 214, with no Democrats supporting. They did this by a single vote. In the Senate, ONE vote -- Sad Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) provided the missing cover for their ugliness.
Think about that. Who works their fingers to the bone in the wee hours of the night to pass a bill filled with cruelty and perversion, aside from Republicans bent on destroying every public good we have?
Grave robbers delivering bodies to Dr. Frankenstein, that's who.
Thank you for the reminder. Recall referring to them all as “ghouls” after reading that the Big Ugly Ass Bill passing. The word “ghouls” seemed so fitting for all those creatures feeding on the corpses that they will accumulate due to their vile legislation..
But thanks to Barack the Betrayer's altering the SNAP regs to shaft single males, for me the alleged "decency and compassion" of Biden's increase amounted to a mere $10 -- from $14 to $24 per month (this after Obama's savage reduction of my stipend from a rational, livable $130 per month.)
Do not doubt your personal experience and find it overall wrong that there are way too many people in this country that are not paid a living wage to be able to afford food and basic needs. As well as our government spends money in areas that don’t benefit the people.
While the Obama administration accepted the SNAP reductions, the cuts were considered a compromise. They were spearheaded by Republican lawmakers who wanted much steeper cuts to SNAP while many Democrats in Congress opposed any reductions at all.
The Farm Bill that year was a necessary piece of legislation that President Obama knew he had to sign. Believe the Republicans were the ones who placed the SNAP cuts in the Farm Bill knowing that this legislation would get Obama’s signature.
It is baffling that this administrpation feels free to move money from popular things like health care, national parks, and veterans services into projects like golden arches and tacky gilded statues. Given that they do, democrats need to be willing to call for election protections and recounts wherever there are obvious or more subtle interference tactics (they add up) or later, any suspicious outcomes - none of this cringing for fear we might look like crazies hunting for bamboo fibers. It's time we stopped falling for all the tactics and start protecting our votes.
Not so baffling, really. It's part of a systematic plan to destroy the very concept of public goods (things that -- once built, created or funded -- cannot be denied to anyone, but automatically enjoyed by everybody -- our national park system, for example).
These people are determined that what is clearly public must be made private, available for use only by the rapacious, connected few -- uranium, gas, coal, and copper mining companies whose donations to political campaigns "earn" them private licenses through the most corrupt of quid pro quos. They intend to destroy what earlier generations made public, whether public lands, universal education, access to primary health care for children, libraries, safe food, clean water and the like.
They will tell you that that healthcare is really private and personal and government has no business creating national health insurance, ignoring the very concepts of Medicare and Medicaid. They are already trying to destroy those systems from within by arbitrarily accusing states of fraud in order to savage those public health systems and privatize what remains.
But that's only half the game. The other half is to make public all the things in our country widely understood as completely private -- the right to decide whether, and under what circumstances to start a family, to marry the person you love, to worship God (or not) in the privacy of your own conscience and heart. They want a political system where you have absolutely no say-so over your own body, sexuality, faith. And that most certainly includes overriding the growing right to make your own choices about end-of-life care as and when that time arrives.
Wow, and here is this and that but as usual, empty statement of air
National health insurance does not have anything to do with privacy. You cretin
If you want to socialize medicine, there are one way flights out of here. I don’t really cheap right now in fact the rents right now in Iran really low. Just pack a suitcase leave everything else behind because wherever you go there going to supply everything you need to continue to live is a lazy do nothing
Wow, lol someone’s been inculcated believe anything they read in a headline, instead of the truth on the fact. The save act it’s going to protect your votes. Did you see an even democratically controlled New Jersey? They found I think thousands of people who shouldn’t of been on the voter rolls
Well, since Joe Biden was president and allow these things to happen, they means the Democrats. in Minneapolis it’s the Democrat wackos in LA. It’s the Democrat wackos in New York City. It’s the Democrat socialist wackos take your pick.
This is so obviously political retribution. The definition of treason needs to be expanded to include deliberately impoverishing a portion of the American population. Because that is also giving aid and comfort to enemies.
Our tax dollars are not being spent to help people. We are, instead, threatening and killing people on our very own streets. We are killing little school girls in another country. (What became of that investigation Hegseth promised?)
We are prioritizing the wealthy, the military-industrial complex, and red states over blue ones.
My God feel for a Jew you’re really a lazy investigator. It’s embarrassing using phrases like the military industrial complex. Mail but I guess it’s good to have a thesaurus handy. lol.
Do you know that Harry Truman killed a half 1 million people. Do you know that Joe Biden participated in the killing of 100,000 Ukrainians and 100,000 Russians with the money he sent them. Do you know we spent $1 trillion on a legal since Biden was in office. $1 trillion. Food, transportation, housing, stipends, and free medical care which Americans do not get. Come on, at least be smart use your wits.
Do you have any idea how many illegals have killed Americans have raped American women have created crime here in this country I have a chart would you like to see it?
The crime illegals. went up, tenfold when Biden took office. Ooooops. The rape and murder of American women. Great when the media covers the ice killings, but don’t cover the killings by illegals Women and men run over by cars and killed in Maine. No coverage at all three huge trucking accidents recently by illegals not one major station covered any of the accident because it would shed bad light on the Liberals. Coverage from ABC, NBC, or CBS. 60 Americans killed on average by illegals and Biden’s term. Hundreds raped where is the outrage from you? Good night everybody
Just buy movie one little A created a great salutations. HAVE AN ICE DAY.
I guess this is where you have to come to vent instead of Playing with yourself. lol
The man or woman with no facts, no Case, no rational thought. Yet still has the bravery to come out here and embarrass him self every single day that takes a vagina so kudos to you
Ow is the time for the Jeffersons and Madisons and Adams of this age to be figuring out how we as a nation can hit the ground running after the 2028 election. The changes could well take decades for some things. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to call for a Constitutional Convention to fix things like the Electoral College.
Yes, your ‘Electoral College’ system is a ridiculous holdover from post Civil War ‘hankies’ for the losers.
No state is ‘more important’ than ANY OTHER STATE. Just silly hubris.
You also NEED the device we have in Canada to rid ourselves - quickly - of people like Trump, et al, by a ‘Non-Confidence Motion’ against a crook like Trump…vote to hold an IMMEDIATE election, then the huge % dissatisfied - as your current population IS - VOTE THE BASTARD “OUT”…batta bing, batta BOOM! 💥
Why torture yourselves with your ‘constant’, never-ending campaigning?
AND…BTW…when uncontrolled $$$$ is involved, NOTHING WILL EVER BE FAIR!
Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) is one of our more intelligent, capable Senators. His reelection this fall is critical. Please consider contributing to his campaign, as oligarch, billionaires are actively supporting his Republican-MAGA opponent, Mike Collins, who would be a disaster for America.
I have been watching Jon Ossoff since he appeared on the scene. He’s one of the best! Have sent what I could, meanwhile at 92 a GOTV postcard writer. The idea is to elect as many Democrats in as many states as possible. There are elections constantly. Currently Writing postcards for a Thursday election in Tennessee.
I need to get writing some postcards too -- I wrote at least a hundred each for Ossoff and Warnock when they were first running. Ossoff is outstanding.
MediKids is fantastic and should be available to all children, regardless of income. Just like Medicare … wait, are we really just backing into Medicare For All? Please , let’s support this egalitarian means to deliver healthcare to every American 🩵
Every government eventually answers the same question: What do we owe one another?
The answer isn’t found in speeches. It’s found in budgets, policies, and priorities. They reveal whether we see one another as burdens to manage or neighbors to support.
The future isn’t shaped by what governments say they value. It’s shaped by who they’re willing to invest in.
Some things are only provided by mutual participation. The Bill of Rights is meaningless unless the preponderance of our citizens commit to honoring and protecting the rights of one another. It's fundamental and goes way back. "... we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."
Last month dozens of Democratic Senators and one Republican contacted the NSF urging them to stop dismantling the OOI deep-sea sensors dictated by Project 2025, then Congress passed a bipartisan bill to stop them, and the NSF started redeploying what it had removed [see our monthly post for July 2026 on OneClick2BetterWorld.substack.com "Climate Change and Our Oceans"]. We need to work together for the upcoming midterms against the Authoritarian movement in America.
But we can ONLY do that if Democrats and Independents control the Senate and the House. This Congress has the honor of being the least productive in history. Their crowning legislation was the OBBBA which took away health care and food from millions of Americans, especially the most vulnerable among us.
Check your voter registration regularly especially if you live in a red state like Texas or Florida. They are more than happy to purge the voter roles even if it is illegal. And vote early. I know many people prefer to vote on Election Day, but remember, the Fascists are in control and they don't give a damn about laws, norms or regulations.
No, THIS Congress has the dishonor of being THE most anti-American in our short history. It is stunning they are not being treated similarly as to the French Revolution. Stay tuned.
Honor, by the way, is a concept worth unearthing in the age of plutocrats. What is properly for sale, and what not?
Honor and integrity are the main ingredients missing from today's administration and its enablers. I don't think either concept has meaning for them, and dishonorable people in an administration can be fatal to a country as history teaches us over and over. But who's reading history?
Per The Hill, "[T]he Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said it reviewed California’s claims for certain in-home care programs and other claims that officials said require more documentation."
CMS has a built-in appellate system to deal with the attacks on Minnesota & California. We have been here before. Both Minnesota & California can deal with the
not-so "Great & Wonderful Mehmet Oz" .
IMO the attacks against Minnesota. & CA are subject to first temporary & then permanent injunctions. Recommend Rule 11 sections in Federal Court against the bad-faith male actors.
Paging Marc Elias you have a phone call.
Add it to the list of about 70 active lawsuits against these assholes for fraud, deceit, violation of codes of conduct, due process, and the Constitution itself.
Back to the question I raised some time ago JL; Why did we agree and pledge to a government *in the first place, that a majority could support. The proposition being foisted upon us is no more than a return to jungle law - dog eat dog. Worse, it's apparent to me anyway that this is corporatocracy, led by an unfit unitary executive branch, the face of which is no more than a belligerent adolescent.
Which is why before any of this even beGAN, there was an estimated 750,000 homeless?
All the more reason for there to be an opposition shadow cabinet that hammers out a platform that makes it clear what the budgetary priorities will be to provide opportunities for all Americans, and stop supporting the transfer of wealth to the uber-rich.
Absolutely. Right now, programs developed by Democrats appear to be random. Someone gets an idea, he/she gets a few fellow travelers to sign on and there it is. A shadow cabinet would come up with a proposal and then flesh it out so it can be presented to the American people and then, to the Congress as a viable program.
"programs developed by Democrats appear to be random".
Yes, that's been my impression. I think that there needs to be more of a sense of what Democrats are reaching for. A new direction, not just repairs. Biden was departing from the "Reaganomics" script that that derailed progress almost half a century ago, most of my lifetime, but lacked a compelling narrative to go with it.
Think of many ways in which liberty and justice for all lost momentum, including climate abuse. Even Tricky Dick was amenable to environmental protection, and that's no small thing. Even Ike warned not to mess with major social programs. Without enough eyes on the prize, we could see government of, by, and for the people perish from the earth.
The Dems should present a program as developed policy. "This is what we want to do, and this is how we'll do it". I think the American voter would warm to that. "Well, yeah. That could work. And it's better than what the other side is offering".
It's pretty damn obvious the extremists had a manifesto, and are playing out that plan.
Project 2025. They presented it to the world in 2024 and few people thought it was possible. And here we are, with much of it already being implemented. It was long, it was boring, it was scary. I waded through about 20% of it and most Americans just blew it off.
Shit happens when we don't pay attention.
The Democrats have proposed dozens of bills that go to die like increasing the Federal minimum wage, increasing the tax rate, etc. And they just die. For years, McConnell just let them die even when they were passed by the House. They called him the 'grim reaper.' And Thune and Johnson are just as bad or maybe even worse.
Hello Georgia... From HCR Today: "While administration officials are slashing government programs that protect ordinary Americans, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine appeared on Capitol Hill today before the Senate Appropriations Committee to explain why the Pentagon is urgently in need of an injection of $67 billion to tide it over until the end of the fiscal year on September 30." | | | When Asked about the current state of the Idiotic Iranian War, Bezalel Smotrich, the Far-Right, Israeli Finance Minister, Smotrich replied that he liked where things are now... The USA is running out of Interceptors which is why American Casualties are mounting... Indeed, when Israel is attacked by Iranian Drones, and Missiles, the Israelis conserve their Interceptors, and let the USA provide the bulk of the Defense... Netanyahu wanted this War, and Netanyahu is letting the USA fight most of it... Feeling 'Had' Yet?...
Most definitely feeling “had”. Netanyahu is getting to use the US attention on Iran to distract from the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, his forays killing thousands of civilians in Lebanon, and the lawless settlers in the West Bank. Netanyahu needs to keep his far-right coalition intact while the Iran war covers his corruption and hold on power, just like it does for Trump’s vulnerabilities in the Epstein files.
The similarities are remarkable, aren't they, Georgia?
When you have no morals, you learn from the worst I guess!
Netanyahu and Putin know how to play Trump like a fiddle. And Netanyahu is encouraging more and more illegal settlements and does not deal with settler violence against Palestinians.
Hello Georgia... Indeed, now the Israelis are building an Earthen Wall in the south third portion of Gaza to essentially trap over 2-million Gazans into a Prison Ghetto... The Israelis Kill anybody who tries to escape... Is Israel a Compassionate, Just Country?....
I agree with many American Jews and Israelis who believe that Netanyahu is despicable and corrupt and is destroying Israel. Just like here. Netanyahu has had two decades of intermittent rule to whittle away at Israel’s norms and stifle any pluralistic impulses, as opposed to Trump’s one decade. Netanyahu’s cruelty is fully on display and a feature of his administration. Trump is still somewhat shy about revealing the full horror of the detention camps on US soil. Otherwise, they seem pretty much cut from the same cloth. They both use events to their advantage to try to strengthen their hold on power.
PS. Just wondering what MBS gave Trump in return for the ability to enrich uranium without inspections in the new Saudi nuclear energy deal.
Hello Georgia... In the portion that the Israelis control, they are destroying the Buildings, and Infrastructure so that the Gazans will have a difficult time returning, if ever... This is a War-Crime... As Regards Netanyahu, The Israelis Keep On Re-Electing Him...
and is it the case that with Trump's relaunching the war on Iran, Netenyahu's trial for fraud will be suspended again?
Undoubtedly, that would be Bibi’s plan—taking maximum advantage of every turn of events. It is hard work to keep up with how quickly the truly corrupt are able to respond to a shifting landscape. The only way I think anyone can, is by continually asking “How could this event be used to Trump’s (actually the Trump regime’s) advantage?”
Republicans’ and the oligarch-engineered slide towards authoritarianism has been shaped for decades by purpose-driven objectives. Meanwhile, Democrats and a new, broader-based opposition are still being stymied by a failure of imagination into reactive rather than proactive responses. Looking forward to reading “The Day After”
Yes; And one that is prepared to hit the ground running with more than just damage repairs.
Accountability has to be the theme after the midterms unless there is a veto-proof majority in both houses, because Trump will veto everything that he can. It is in the regime’s best interest to have an inflicted “do-nothing” opposition Congress. Besides, he will need something to use as a weapon of retribution.
The legislative reform platform has to be in place now, though, so the electorate understands what can change and, just as importantly, how it can be funded. Things have to be teed up for a trifecta in 2028.
Hey, Georgia. What are the mechanics for Dems to form an opposition shadow cabinet? I'd like to be able to propose that in my contacts with my 3 reps so we can hit the ground running after midterms and through to 2028.
Get someone like Obama to invite a group of young opposition stars from across the big tent, along with mid-career folk like Raskin, and some grey heads like Whitehouse, Warren, Sanders ,Pelosi and Schiff to a zoom call and tell them to each suggest one expert in the area they think needs the most immediate attention in order to right the ship of state and stop the authoritarian slide. Then divvy them up by interest and expertise, and get them to come up with workable compromises that all can get behind. Mentor the new stars like Kim, Buttigieg, Ossoff, AOC, and Mamdani, and give them opportunities to serve as standard-bearers on major issues.
In other words, not much other than a willingness to come together to compromise on a platform that hits the issues that matter the most to the American people and can beat the regime. Not every issue has to be addressed in terms that Republicans can exploit—the AIPAC war is one example. The fix is to get big money out of politics and lobbying so AIPAC loses its power to influence policy. No more purity tests based on accepting AIPAC money. Look at the divisive issues in terms of what is giving them the power to divide, and what about the system is failing and needs to be changed.
One of the main issues to fight is going to be this constant coloring of Democratic ideas as "communist" by this administration. I am appalled at how little the understanding of communism vs social democracy the MAGA crowd has! I am just as appalled at how the Left has not been able to get the message across to them, that most of them are the beneficieries of a more socially aware system!
Have you ever considered running for office, Georgia?
Completely agree, Georgia.
Has anyone even approached the Independents and Democrats about this idea Georgia? I can imagine how difficult an undertaking it would be, however, if every action/new legislation/executive order is analyzed by a shadow cabinet, and explained how it could be done differently for the advantage of all Americans, those who voted for this buffoonery might start replacing their MAGA hats with IAUMB (I am starting to use my brain) ones!
I wonder if Georgia's proposal might land well on some Substacks, in the form of conversations with experts already posting videos of conversations -- Wajahat Ali and Joy Redid have spoken about "grandtifas", defined by context as senior activists rocking boats and shifting tides of thought -- makers of good trouble.
Humans tend to figure out how to survive within sick systems, such as corporations. Congress is no different. It’s a sick system, and the “well” members are trying to get things done as best they can within the toxicity. Of course, some of the poison makes them less “well.” How do we help create a healthy system?
We can have all the policies, budgets, and priorities in the world, but corruption at the level trump is getting away with is destroying this country. Every.Single.Day he emulates the likes of Saddam Hussein vs. a president. It is appalling and terribly dangerous.
From Dan Rather's July 21st Substack column:
"His latest move is eye-popping, even by Trump 2.0 standards. Late Thursday, as everyone was speculating about the president’s “big news” speech that wasn’t, Trump Media, the parent company of his social media platform, Truth Social, announced it will sell — yes sell — early access to its posts."
"Wall Street firms and banks that are willing to pay Trump would get access to posts before everyone else, allowing them to trade and therefore profit from the information. This is White House-sanctioned insider trading with the bonus of lining the president’s already stuffed-by-corruption pockets."
The once "Party of Lincoln" has become corrupt as hell, and that includes their members of Congress and a number of judges. Maybe we are so inundated with corruption we forget what it is. Remember that Republicans were once ready to dump Nixon over corruption on a much smaller scale. It should be the word of the day, the word of the year.
"Those July 3 pardons were Trump’s usual garbage. Nine were for people convicted of crimes related to violating the Clean Air Act. Given that the admin doesn’t believe in clean air, that one makes sense
Many of them were upstanding folks who sold or installed a device on diesel trucks that fooled the vehicle’s emission control system, because how dare you stop them from polluting. Indeed, according to Trump, convicting them for doing so was persecution: “It is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for ‘fixing their car.’”
Well, Trump won’t need to issue a bunch of pardons about that going forward. The Department of Justice has announced they will no longer prosecute people for violating this part of the Clean Air Act, period. Now, devices to bypass vehicles’ pollution controls can be bought and installed. For freedom."
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/7/21/800073141/justice/trump-pardon-donors-clean-air-act-violators/#dk-comments
Trump and his party don't just block lawful prosecution of crooks, they make them heroes. How corrupt is that?
"If I can't threaten you to give me what I want, maybe I can bribe you to do so." The President of the United States.
Said before, but worth repeating, again and again. "Don't tell me what you value," Joe Biden used to say all the time. "Show me your budget and I'll tell YOU what you value."
I used to be a church choir soloist. I heard many sermons. The only thing I remember from any of them was a preacher saying that the only theological document that most congregations produce is their budget.
Yes indeed.
I love the idea of medicaid for all American children through grad school. Now, we just need all American children to have a public education provided free of charge through the age of 26 and that would be a dynamic duo. Of course, we need to have the government stop telling teachers to teach lies, and omit information that is truthful about our history and about science.
First, though, we need for USian children to survive the anti-vax murders.
Loren, in one of my pieces called, "A Plan B for Catastrophe" and a "A Plan C for Catastrophe", I believe I suggested to people raising children in the US to plan to go to Mexico or Canada, depending on which part of the country you live in, or some other country if you have an affinity to it for their vaccines.
Here they are. Plan B was written before Trump came into power, right after he was reelected.
https://lindaweide.substack.com/p/a-plan-b-for-catastrophe?r=f0qfn
Plan C was written after he had been in power again for less than a month and I was gauging the mood of many people to stay no matter what.
https://lindaweide.substack.com/p/a-plan-c-for-catastrophe?r=f0qfn
As a former teacher, so maybe more critical of parents than the average person, I think that parents with resources, who do not make alternative plans for their children are remiss.
I would prefer they put it under Medicare for all and expand Medicare to include the spouses/partners of those under 65 years old.
My wife and I went through the bullshit of having to switch carriers for her when I turned 65 and then I had to have a separate supplemental insurance policy. Many elderly people become unable to navigate the Medicare/Medicaid system and become uninsured as a result of the bureaucracy.
This is a feature of Trump world, not a bug.
A superb example of your premise, Kelli, was the G.I. Bill. Arising from the ashes of a global conflagration, this was a launch device for one of the most robust recoveries from war in history. Investment, indeed! How ironic that our current devastation is one we have visited upon ourselves. So it is no surprise where the reversal lies.
My father went to Law School on the G.I. bill! Wonderful program.
My father finished high school, college and law school, all on the GI Bill, after Korea.
So Musk, the biggest Welfare Queen in US history, and other billionaires (especially those who have paid Trump off personally) are this government's priority?
Honestly, I sometimes _wish_ that Hogsbreath blasts all ammo away in his real-life Call of Duty game, leaving the US military depleted and without cash before the end of this summer, making America irrelevant as a military power. Maybe then Europe, Canada and Japan get a chance to TALk to Iran about the Strait of Hormuz. You know, old-fashioned _diplomacy_ instead of guns blazing explosions bald eagles American flags waving…
That may yet happen but not until Trump has wrought more chaos and destruction across the entire region.
I'm afraid you're right... And I really hope that when his chubby, greedy, grabby little fingers reach for that big red atomic button, somebody in the military _finally_ says "enough!" and stops him.
This givt poring money uno trump family, tech billionaires and Qatar. And poison for Hispanics and their so soccer teams.
Kelli Klymenko is a powerful voice with an excellent Substack. Please check it out and subscribe!
It's more than that, in fact. Ultimately, the stability of a democratic society also depends on its shared norms and history has shown that the content of those norms is less important than the unanimity with which they are accepted and adhered to by its citizens. This administration is challenging those norms and running a huge risk in doing so. You've already narrowly avoided an insurrection in 2021 and if enough people no longer accept these basic norms then you are on course for another collapse in public order.
Trump has been aided by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court led by chief justice John Roberts which is engaged in a long-term plan to dismantle progressive reforms achieved since the Second World War and to greatly increase the powers of the president and the executive.
It may be that bad losses for the GOP in the midterm elections will hobble this administration and place a roadblock to these plans but one has to bear in mind that so far Trump has successfully been able to bypass Congress and he will doubtless continue to try to do so.
Budgets are moral documents.
Yes—a budget is the consummate expression of an administration’s values.
Good News For WE the People
Democrats comprise 30% of the electorate as do Republicans. That leaves 40% of the electorate to Independents, the swing voters in every election.
While the overall approval rating for Cheeto is around 33-37%, among the swing voters, the Independents, that approval rating drops to 26%!
Since Independents will be motivated to vote, 74% will be voting to oust Nazi Republicans in the midterms and probably in 2028 as well. Hopefully longer. WE the People will not forget what they tried to do to our country.
This is because once an approval rating drops below 30%, the magic number, there is zero chance that a politician or party like Cheeto and the Nazi Republicans will recover. Their disastrous experiment in a fascist takeover of the government is dead. A Hoover like moment is about to displace them from the history books.
Cheery statistics but you are leaving out the fact that our system does not weight votes equally. Not when Wyoming and California both have equal weight in the Senate. And as we know, not in the Electoral College, which has brought us Trump. And certainly not with SCOTUS allowing gerrymandering that can crack and pack minorities so they do not get equal representation, like in Tennessee.
The 30% rule was developed in Japan, and applies to parliamentary systems. Approval ratings matter in parliamentary systems because they help signal whether a government still has the public and party support needed to govern effectively, but they are usually more about political vulnerability than direct survival. In parliamentary regimes, the executive depends on legislative confidence, so low approval can weaken party cohesion, embolden rivals, and increase the odds of resignation, reshuffles, or an early election. The current example is the demise of Starmer in the UK.
I know that CNN and USA Today and NPR are talking about low approval ratings and how they will affect the midterms, but there is no magic number in nantionwide polling that will get us there because it doesn't include the overlay of the unequal weighting of your vote depending on where you live. That is one of the major things that has to be addressed in electoral reform.
One of the first things we must do in 2029 when I hope Democrats take power is to expand the Supreme Court to 13, following our tradition of one justice per circuit
I'm against court expansion for one reason, where does it stop? If the Dems expand the court during the next administration, what's to prevent the Reps from expanding the court during their next reign?
Though not a great solution, term limits would help. The founding father's idea of a supreme court is a good one but they didn't address the real problem, how to populate that court.
So, fear is what is keeping you from supporting court expansion? We’re already there, already losing our democracy. I say we should woman up and do whatever it takes.
Three points:
- the court has been the same size since 1869 while the US population has grown from 38,558,371 in 1870 to 331,449,281, a 7.5 fold increase according to my back of the envelope;
- the federal court system is structured with each SCOTUS justice having authority over one or more appeals circuit(s), of which there are 13, so it makes sense for there to be at least 13 justices; and
- expanding it is not easy so I just don’t buy that whole cowardly whining that if we do it they will; make no mistake — if republicans thought they could get away with it they would do it in a heartbeat.
Life expectancy was 42 years when the founders were around so they could never have known that justices would hang on until they were 90. And they absolutely did make constitutional provision for confirming justices (article 2 section 2).
https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/article-2/
Court expansion has happened several times in our history and it makes perfect sense now.
One more basic civics note — in America we don’t have ‘reigns’. That is for kings, which we absolutely DO NOT HAVE. We have presidential administrations.
Clementine: You go, girl!!! I love the fact-filled response. It doesn’t stop the recurrent trolls (not referring to Julius, who isn't one), but it educates the rest of us and provides great talking points. Thank you!
Thanks so much for your support! And I certainly agree that Julius is not one of the trolls.
I’m a retired lawyer so I can’t help myself when it comes to the joy of getting the information out there. Use the talking points all you want if it helps — I love it!
Our Constitution is a work or art and an easy read — pass it on!
https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution
Something else you might be interested in is a resolution three women representatives will be submitted to the Congress:
Expressing support for Reproductive Justice on the 250th Anniversary of the United States of America.
https://pressley.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/250th-reproductive-justice-resolution-2.pdf
That was one of the topics in Heather’s conversation yesterday with Brian Tyler Cohen. Cohen argues that fear of tit-for-tat is one of the main reasons why Dems did not act to stop the Republican drive to take over and reshape government. One side played by the rules while the other did not, going back to examples like Obama and the ACA negotiations.
“The government you elect is the government you deserve.”
Thomas Jefferson
The same guy figured out the value of his slaves fabricating nails in his nail factory. The daily quantity of nails forged. The cost of the iron. The daily cost of food and housing of said slave. The profit margin of nails. Thomas Jefferson was a very smart man. If he were alive today, he might have a vaulted place in the administration.
Shocking I know.
but if it were to be expanded over time - so that one party would not be able to appoint 7 additional justices, might that work?
Lauren, I used to believe we needed to expand the Supreme Court. However Senator Cory Booker has proposed term limits of 18 years on the bench. This would get needed turnover and not race to get young judges or block nominees like what happened under Obama. Sen. Booker also addresses the need for Justices to not accept "gifts". If we keep expanding the Supreme Court it could turn into an endless race.
What tradition are you referencing? The only tradition that is relevant is the one that has had nine justices since 1869, a 157 year tradition.
I'll bet you wouldn't be pining for court packing if the current court was ruling as you preferred. You aren't winning so the rules have to be changed. That's the mark of losers.
Whew. A quick note: the way to tell if you are losing an argument is when you start to make the attacks personal, as in calling the other persons ‘losers’ because you have no winning points to make.
And out of curiosity — just how many years does it take for something to be a tradition? Is 157 the magic number? The number of justices ranged from 7-10 throughout the 19th century. Are any of those specific years when the number of justices was different more traditional than 157?
There is no magic number that won't get us there -- by exactly the same token.
All the signs from the past year point to something big, something blue, something too big to rig (hopefully). Some polls out there measure something far more valuable than approval -- voter enthusiasm, those that say that come hell-or-high-water or crawling on broken glass, they will be certain to vote. Democratic determination has never been higher. Last year, every county in Virginia, even the most ruby-red ones, blue shifted by at least 10 points. Every one.
Nobody denies gerrymandering isn't a tremendous obstacle (if that weren't so, Republican legislatures wouldn't be trying to circumvent the public's right to choose their own representatives), but gerrymandering is no guarantee against sheer rage, which is all around. In the past, public fervor has swept seemingly permanent majorities into dust. We are witnessing momentum building toward precisely another such moment in history. As Pete Buttigieg likes to say, "there is no such thing as a permanently red state."
I don’t disagree that there are signs that the electorate is waking up and the rage is growing. But the regime and the oligarchs behind it see the midterms and 2028 as an existential threat, so they are pulling out all the stops, and SCOTUS is actively aiding and abetting them.
Getting informed people to the polls is a large part of the battle—but ensuring the votes are counted fairly is also part of the war we are in. Trump just told us he is all in on bringing back the Big Lie, and the DOJ is now in the hands of people who will act on his claims. Then there is the task of making sure that the people who are elected in contested elections, and I believe there will be many because the DOJ will say so, are seated in Congress in a timely manner. Will a complicit SCOTUS decide that they can’t be seated so the Republicans keep a functional majority? Ultimately, it is the House and Senate that decide who can be seated.
Republicans have long leveraged the vulnerabilities in our democracy, while Democrats keep defending adherence to the spirit of the rules, instead of facing up to the vulnerabilities and being proactive in defending against them.
Polling is fine but the only poll that really matters is in November.
VOTE BLUE
VOTE BLUE
VOTE BLUE
An aside, 93: please don't respond to RS. He's repugnant and we all want to rant back at his insanity, but that encourages him and leaves a trail of junk we need to scroll through to read the worthwhile comments. Thanks.
I blocked him so, happily, I don't have to read his BS anymore!
I've tried to but it doesn't seem to work. Will get my friendly Macbook tech to help me. :)
Just click on his name and it will take you to his page - there will be 3 dots to the right of his name - click on those and one of the options to choose is "block"
I'm cautiously optimistic, but dismayed how easily the safeguards built into the government have been cowed into submission.
Yeah, well you got lucky tonight Socialists lost a couple of elections so there’s a few sane Democrats left but not many. Did you see Van Jones tonight? Your hero says the left is gone way wacko. Lololol.
🇺🇸 We democrats need to convince the non-voters and the young people to vote blue by getting loud & organized of how the Democrats are better stewards of our taxpayers money and verbalize why voting blue will pick up to fix the GOP wrecking ball and GOP debt. 🤡
Moron, you still can’t do math. Once again, if 40% of the electorate is 100% against Trump. What’s the highest rated he can get. Let’s say he gets 80% of the other 40% and let’s call it 60% of the balance. What’s his rating Archimedes. ?lmfao.
You fucking scumbag piece of oh shit using the word Nazi. I hope one day and Nazi grabs you thinking you’re a Jew takes you through the paces and I’ll come visit you when you look like a briquette. But I’ll make sure I have to pee when I get there
This administration declared war on the American people (except the very rich) on day one. I wish every report from every news source would acknowledge this truth: The US Government seeks to destroy everything that makes America America!
Bought and paid for Orwellian nominal "Republicans" and trying to to sink the republic to service "aristocracy".
As their ChristoNazi regime weaponizes its anti-abortion, austerity and anti-vax murders into a genuine new-and-expanding Holocaust -- and does so with genuinely obscene glee.
And this all to get rid of the non-productive, costly “NPCs”, so there’s more money for Musk and Thiel to steal.
America is very fast becoming a, ahh what did the president of the US like to call it… “a shithole country”.
Heather’s conversation with Brian Tyler Cohen on his new book The Day After is a breath of fresh air and brought me real hope. It is loaded with exactly what the opposition has needed—a plan for what to do, and what is achievable faced with the realities of two years of divided government post-midterms, and then the strategies the opposition has to use to re-engineer democracy. It gets to the underlying causes of dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHgvzlhJiDY&t=3s
We have got to find a way to get the goddamn tsunami of patently corrupting money out of politics and make voting an unalienable right.
Ordered Cohen’s book after the conversation.
I did too. Heather even said she adored his writing. Most effusive praise I have ever heard her give.
Trouble is, Mr. Cohen's book is meaningless without a shadow government to enact his proposals. We've already seen -- repeatedly -- (had our noses rubbed it, in fact), that the present-day Democrats are all words and no action.
Loren: You know you are preaching to the choir on that issue to me—just 100 days away and no sign of a coherent, cohesive platform of doable actions for the next session of Congress, and no intimation of what would be done if the regime was voted out in 2028.
ICTT is right—rage is building. What I am not seeing is a platform to channel that rage into concrete change. And that requires the opposition to squarely and honestly address what can and cannot be done with an opposition Congress, but a Trump presidency and complicit SCOTUS.
She’s hilariously effusive about the movie Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter!
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1611224/
Thx so much for this information. Just watched interview. Outstanding.
Never have I witnessed such systematic degradation, disrespect and dismantling of America as I see today under the thumb of the President Donald Trump. What is happening now is an assault on the people, the mission and the values of America’s most valued institutions.
“Thumb” would be a good name for the Donald…I also like to call him “Stumpy”.
Thumb “ with a b” is pretty good, but why not “ stupid”?
Yesterday, Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) stated the obvious to a clearly stunned Kegsbreath. "if Iran still has 50% of their missile capacity and ability to pull drones out of caves and still injure our allies and U.S. service members, then we have not won the war." So OF COURSE he wasn't telling the truth on the 14th day of the war, any more than he did on the 4th month of the war.
You haven't even used 50% of the existing $150 billion the reconciliation process provided,' she asked. 'Why are you here asking for more money for a war the American people don't support, rather than re-allocating $75 billion in already approved, unused funding?'
Clearly unprepared for such direct questioning, he responded with the usual shuffle-and-tap dancing about Joe Biden, clearly meaning to intimidate her. "I would hope for some perspective in this town," he bloviated. "Do you really want Iran to get a nuclear bomb?" She was having none of it and cut him off. "I don't want to hear your speech again because I have limited time," she snapped. "If you can't answer my question, I will move on to my next one."
Anybody who's ever worked in government for any agency whose head gets called to testify in Congress knows the concept of a "murder board." You prepare lists of questions for your boss that cover every possible concern, nuance, problem, outstanding issue, in order to convey confidence, rather than arrogance. But it was clear that this made-for-tee-vee-jerk hadn't even prepared for the simplest and most obvious of questions. That alone tells you everything you need to know.
To put it mildly, these are not serious people. They're phony conmen playing shell games with your money, our servicemembers' lives and America's reputation all over the world.
That was Biden’s deal sending $200 billion to Ukraine to kill 100,000 Russians, and 100,000 Ukrainians that was a slick move huh that was your taxpayer money at work.
And too bad you forgot, who got Ukraine into the mess in the first place.
The same party that killed 56,000 people Who made it as far is Arlington?
Uh oh. Making up numbers again. Shush, now.
Go do some research I sent you some numbers do a little work yourself but be careful because you’re gonna find out shit you didn’t know actually happening, mostly caused under the Biden administration’s opening of the border and then lying about it
Chuckle.
If you included links to credible sources for your fantasy numbers, I might even look them up to see what you are wailing about. But since you do not, I can only assume that you made it all up to suit yourself, instead of citing facts. Remember facts?
You’re always good for a chuckle.
What Numbers am I making up? Go ahead tell me what numbers I’m making up and I’ll respond to you in the morning but do me a favor. Make sure your brain is engaged before you put your mountain gear if I could throw a couple of memes up here right now I would. Fact, let me try one to see if it posts. Well, here’s a good one for you. That’s a starter kit. These are a list of all the crimes in arrests for illegals. Now look at the numbers jump when Joe Biden takes office. That’s the they. Numbers of the top or total arrests, the numbers on the bottom are by category of crime. Do you see the 60 murders per year? You see the hundreds of sexual offenses per year. ?
Do you know what that number should be? Zeeeeero 000000000000000
So go apologize to them for 500 families that lost a loved one because they were killed by an illegal like one mother who is just walking through the park legends on her head, dragged into a tunnel, raped and murdered and left five children without a mother by an illegal criminal that’s just an example And look at the number of sexual offenses, like rape, which should’ve been zero In fact, there are 4000 on a crime for rapes in this country every year and you know why, because you fucking pussy, liberals won’t punish anybody you put them in jail and give them no cash bail took it out the next day for the last six weeks they’ve killed people after they got out with no cash bail
You let the Republicans take care of the rapes they would simply castrate these people, Manchester balls, but their entire penis, and then cut off a finger on each hand maybe the ring finger so you noticed them for the rest of their lives I guess so many crimes would happen after that with these people like oh they were underprivileged all they were on drugs. They didn’t know what they were doing. That’s your liberal horde. You whine and complain and make me sick because you don’t want to enforce the law
Medicaid coverage for all children versus cutting it and denying its funding to California and Minnesota shows the Parties are not the same. Attacking states that had the gall to house candidates opposing President Trump in the last election is subtle pressure. People losing food stamps while the military demands more money without stating war aims. Keep your eyes open, contact your representatives, and vote Blue.
Yeah, who gives a shit about the $9 billion of fraud. Ad Minneapolis with already over 100 people convicted of the crime. And maybe you LEARED SOMETHING AT THEIR LEARING CENTER. OMG. And that’s tax dollars went. People taking advantage of snap, in the education of the less fortunate. 100 convicted and probably another hundred more waiting for trial if they’re not deported first
Have you been keeping up with the news of proof of massive Medicaid fraud in both states? Seems to me to be more than prudent to withhold funds until there is proof of compliance with the rules. Something that both Newsom and Walz are fighting tooth and nail to avoid. I wonder why?
Egads. A new troll… Get a job, man! Oh, wait… Of course, this IS your job.
Around 79% of that is nothing to do with fraud but genuine billing errors made by health professionals. And, research has put a lot of that down to insufficient training. Surely it would be better for individuals, families, communities and national productivity to just fix the training and other common causes of genuine mistakes and THEN play political games? To pretend this is all or mostly down to fraud is economic insanity. Republicans like Ronald Regan will be turning in their graves.
Oh, dear.
They don’t give a shit if the Democrats are the fraudsters. Maybe they got something out of the LEARING center. And no, I didn’t spell that wrong. Lmao.
Where Have you been mad hatter?
2026: The Republican’s/MAGA Trump’s so called “Big Beautiful Bill” made the deepest cuts in SNAP history.
2021: The Biden Administration made the largest increase in SNAP benefits in the program’s history.
Once again, another example of the decency and compassion of the Biden Administration and the cruelty and callousness of our current administration.
Nationwide, more than 4.7 million people have lost Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) introduced stricter eligibility and work requirements.
A breakdown — SNAP Tracker: People Are Losing Food Assistance as the Harmful 2025 Republican Reconciliation Law Is Implemented
https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/snap-tracker-people-are-losing-food-assistance-as-the-republican-megabill
Meanwhile Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is asking Congress for a $67 billion to $88 billion emergency supplemental funding injection to address shortfalls from the ongoing war in Iran, (that nobody wants) alongside a historic $1.5 trillion defense budget for the 2027 fiscal year.
Per Hegseth testimony the war in Iran has officially cost the United States $37.5 billion so far. Per external experts and lawmakers they voice strong skepticism, suggesting the actual economic impact is significantly higher.
The war in Iran officially started on February 28, 2026. That’s only 144 days…
How much food could be purchased for $37.5 Billion dollars and provided to over 4.7 Million Americans who no longer receive SNAP benefits?
“The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life—the sick, the needy and the handicapped." - Hubert Humphrey
“Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts." - Margaret Meade
A reminder that the Big Ugly Bill passed the House of Representatives in the very dead of night -- around 3:30am -- by a vote of 215 to 214, with no Democrats supporting. They did this by a single vote. In the Senate, ONE vote -- Sad Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) provided the missing cover for their ugliness.
Think about that. Who works their fingers to the bone in the wee hours of the night to pass a bill filled with cruelty and perversion, aside from Republicans bent on destroying every public good we have?
Grave robbers delivering bodies to Dr. Frankenstein, that's who.
Those for whom the love of money, irrespective of pain and even death imposed on others, is their sole, narcissistic concern.
Thank you for the reminder. Recall referring to them all as “ghouls” after reading that the Big Ugly Ass Bill passing. The word “ghouls” seemed so fitting for all those creatures feeding on the corpses that they will accumulate due to their vile legislation..
But thanks to Barack the Betrayer's altering the SNAP regs to shaft single males, for me the alleged "decency and compassion" of Biden's increase amounted to a mere $10 -- from $14 to $24 per month (this after Obama's savage reduction of my stipend from a rational, livable $130 per month.)
Do not doubt your personal experience and find it overall wrong that there are way too many people in this country that are not paid a living wage to be able to afford food and basic needs. As well as our government spends money in areas that don’t benefit the people.
While the Obama administration accepted the SNAP reductions, the cuts were considered a compromise. They were spearheaded by Republican lawmakers who wanted much steeper cuts to SNAP while many Democrats in Congress opposed any reductions at all.
The Farm Bill that year was a necessary piece of legislation that President Obama knew he had to sign. Believe the Republicans were the ones who placed the SNAP cuts in the Farm Bill knowing that this legislation would get Obama’s signature.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/food-stamps-cuts-will-hit-four-states-review-finds
It is baffling that this administrpation feels free to move money from popular things like health care, national parks, and veterans services into projects like golden arches and tacky gilded statues. Given that they do, democrats need to be willing to call for election protections and recounts wherever there are obvious or more subtle interference tactics (they add up) or later, any suspicious outcomes - none of this cringing for fear we might look like crazies hunting for bamboo fibers. It's time we stopped falling for all the tactics and start protecting our votes.
Not so baffling, really. It's part of a systematic plan to destroy the very concept of public goods (things that -- once built, created or funded -- cannot be denied to anyone, but automatically enjoyed by everybody -- our national park system, for example).
These people are determined that what is clearly public must be made private, available for use only by the rapacious, connected few -- uranium, gas, coal, and copper mining companies whose donations to political campaigns "earn" them private licenses through the most corrupt of quid pro quos. They intend to destroy what earlier generations made public, whether public lands, universal education, access to primary health care for children, libraries, safe food, clean water and the like.
They will tell you that that healthcare is really private and personal and government has no business creating national health insurance, ignoring the very concepts of Medicare and Medicaid. They are already trying to destroy those systems from within by arbitrarily accusing states of fraud in order to savage those public health systems and privatize what remains.
But that's only half the game. The other half is to make public all the things in our country widely understood as completely private -- the right to decide whether, and under what circumstances to start a family, to marry the person you love, to worship God (or not) in the privacy of your own conscience and heart. They want a political system where you have absolutely no say-so over your own body, sexuality, faith. And that most certainly includes overriding the growing right to make your own choices about end-of-life care as and when that time arrives.
Medical Aid in Dying finally becomes legal in NY on August 5th. Thank goodness.
Wow, and here is this and that but as usual, empty statement of air
National health insurance does not have anything to do with privacy. You cretin
If you want to socialize medicine, there are one way flights out of here. I don’t really cheap right now in fact the rents right now in Iran really low. Just pack a suitcase leave everything else behind because wherever you go there going to supply everything you need to continue to live is a lazy do nothing
Wow, lol someone’s been inculcated believe anything they read in a headline, instead of the truth on the fact. The save act it’s going to protect your votes. Did you see an even democratically controlled New Jersey? They found I think thousands of people who shouldn’t of been on the voter rolls
‘They’?? Who’s this ‘they’, fella?
Well, since Joe Biden was president and allow these things to happen, they means the Democrats. in Minneapolis it’s the Democrat wackos in LA. It’s the Democrat wackos in New York City. It’s the Democrat socialist wackos take your pick.
This is so obviously political retribution. The definition of treason needs to be expanded to include deliberately impoverishing a portion of the American population. Because that is also giving aid and comfort to enemies.
Does the name Biden song familiar or maybe Obama when he sent billions to Iran to let them rebuild their uranium machine.
The litany of destruction continues.
Given the absolute uncertainty of the elections, literally with no end in sight.
Our tax dollars are not being spent to help people. We are, instead, threatening and killing people on our very own streets. We are killing little school girls in another country. (What became of that investigation Hegseth promised?)
We are prioritizing the wealthy, the military-industrial complex, and red states over blue ones.
This cannot continue...
My God feel for a Jew you’re really a lazy investigator. It’s embarrassing using phrases like the military industrial complex. Mail but I guess it’s good to have a thesaurus handy. lol.
Do you know that Harry Truman killed a half 1 million people. Do you know that Joe Biden participated in the killing of 100,000 Ukrainians and 100,000 Russians with the money he sent them. Do you know we spent $1 trillion on a legal since Biden was in office. $1 trillion. Food, transportation, housing, stipends, and free medical care which Americans do not get. Come on, at least be smart use your wits.
Do you have any idea how many illegals have killed Americans have raped American women have created crime here in this country I have a chart would you like to see it?
The crime illegals. went up, tenfold when Biden took office. Ooooops. The rape and murder of American women. Great when the media covers the ice killings, but don’t cover the killings by illegals Women and men run over by cars and killed in Maine. No coverage at all three huge trucking accidents recently by illegals not one major station covered any of the accident because it would shed bad light on the Liberals. Coverage from ABC, NBC, or CBS. 60 Americans killed on average by illegals and Biden’s term. Hundreds raped where is the outrage from you? Good night everybody
Just buy movie one little A created a great salutations. HAVE AN ICE DAY.
Every one of the scumbags in Maladministration II need to hang for their treason.
I guess this is where you have to come to vent instead of Playing with yourself. lol
The man or woman with no facts, no Case, no rational thought. Yet still has the bravery to come out here and embarrass him self every single day that takes a vagina so kudos to you
Ow is the time for the Jeffersons and Madisons and Adams of this age to be figuring out how we as a nation can hit the ground running after the 2028 election. The changes could well take decades for some things. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to call for a Constitutional Convention to fix things like the Electoral College.
If the Electoral College isn't abolished, as a priority, there will never be elections reflecting the will of the people.
Yes, your ‘Electoral College’ system is a ridiculous holdover from post Civil War ‘hankies’ for the losers.
No state is ‘more important’ than ANY OTHER STATE. Just silly hubris.
You also NEED the device we have in Canada to rid ourselves - quickly - of people like Trump, et al, by a ‘Non-Confidence Motion’ against a crook like Trump…vote to hold an IMMEDIATE election, then the huge % dissatisfied - as your current population IS - VOTE THE BASTARD “OUT”…batta bing, batta BOOM! 💥
Why torture yourselves with your ‘constant’, never-ending campaigning?
AND…BTW…when uncontrolled $$$$ is involved, NOTHING WILL EVER BE FAIR!
Duh x 1,000,000,000 🤨
🇨🇦🤝🇺🇸
We most definitely need a No Confidence Motion.
Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) is one of our more intelligent, capable Senators. His reelection this fall is critical. Please consider contributing to his campaign, as oligarch, billionaires are actively supporting his Republican-MAGA opponent, Mike Collins, who would be a disaster for America.
https://www.meetmikecollins.com/?gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAABDUn6JY9WB5pf8hKJQmhBI_kRH7P5
I have been watching Jon Ossoff since he appeared on the scene. He’s one of the best! Have sent what I could, meanwhile at 92 a GOTV postcard writer. The idea is to elect as many Democrats in as many states as possible. There are elections constantly. Currently Writing postcards for a Thursday election in Tennessee.
I need to get writing some postcards too -- I wrote at least a hundred each for Ossoff and Warnock when they were first running. Ossoff is outstanding.
Thank You For Your Service, Virginia!
MediKids is fantastic and should be available to all children, regardless of income. Just like Medicare … wait, are we really just backing into Medicare For All? Please , let’s support this egalitarian means to deliver healthcare to every American 🩵
The time for such discussions will be after MediKids has revolutionized family healthcare security and people's eyes have been opened.