Today the Biden administration launched its “Investing in America” tour with the announcement of a $40 billion investment to make sure everyone in the United States has access to affordable, reliable high-speed internet by the end of the decade. Comparing the effort to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Rural Electrification Act during the New Deal, the White House noted today that 8.5 million households and small businesses live in areas without the infrastructure for high-speed internet, while millions more have limited or unreliable options (like me!). High-speed internet is no longer a luxury, the administration points out; it is not possible to participate equally in jobs, school, or healthcare, or to stay connected to family and friends without it (they didn’t mention shopping, but that’s an issue, now, too).
“Speaking as a Watergate historian, there’s nowhere on thousands of hours of Nixon tapes where Nixon makes any comment as clear, as clearly illegal, and as clearly self-aware as this Trump tape.”--Garrett Graff
And yet, even with T***p basically confessing on tape he did something illegal, Republicans in the House, and some in the Senate, STILL will deny T***p did anything wrong. The man could literally do or say ANYTHING and they would not believe in his culpability. How TF does one counter that kind of obstinacy?!? If that ain't a cult I don't know what is!!
'Did anyone in your pack of irrational fopdoodles ever stop, even for a moment, to think about the fact that the guy who keeps getting indicted, the guy who a jury recently found liable for sexual abuse and defamation, the guy who lies as easily as he breathes, the guy whose company was found guilty of multiple charges of criminal tax fraud and falsifying business records, the guy who riled up an angry mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol, the guy whose own lawyer (Michael Cohen) went to prison, the guy whose campaign chair (Paul Manafort) and national security adviser (Mike Flynn) and chief strategist (Steve Bannon) AND campaign adviser (Roger Stone) were all convicted on felony charges, the guy whose company’s chief financial officer pleaded guilty to 15 felonies in a decade-long tax scheme…have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, this isn’t the best guy to pin your political party’s future hopes on?'
'Has it ever dawned on any of you that perhaps the guy who seems to constantly surround himself with criminals might not really be the victim in this story?'
'Trump's own vice president, Mike Pence, said this week while launching his own presidential campaign that during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Trump put himself over the Constitution and "should never be president of the United States again." (Of course he later told Fox News he'll support whoever wins the GOP presidential nomination.)'
'If Trump was any more of an albatross for Republicans he’d be whacking you all in the face with his wings and squawking for a bucket of fish.'
'Republicans have had chance after chance to rinse off the stain of Trump
These new indictments against Trump are, once again, a perfect opportunity for you to do away with this toxic tyrant. You could’ve done it when he was first impeached by the House of Representatives. You could’ve done it when he was impeached a second time by the House of Representatives. You could’ve done it when he continued to push the lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. And you could’ve done it when he was indicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in Manhattan back in March.'
'Biden wins again: Debt ceiling deal reveals the impotence of Donald Trump's MAGA 'movement
'But each time, all you did was rally around him like cheerleaders with Stockholm syndrome, rooting for the losingest loser to ever lose.'
'He’s dragging you and your party down, he’s viciously attacking DeSantis — who many of you seem to think is the party’s savior — and you know full well he’s dangerous and damaged goods. And he's not doing America any favors either.'
'So why not, for the good of the GOP and the good of the whole country, rid yourselves of Trump and nudge your party back toward some semblance of reality and normalcy?'
'Maybe it's because you can’t stop yourselves. You’ve bought into his victimization narrative every bit as much as he has, and you’re hooked. It’s like being addicted to banging your heads against the wall — it ain’t doing you or anybody else a bit of good, and you REALLY need to find a way to stop.'
'Republicans need to shake out of their stupor and read the writing on the wall
Consider this before you utter your next “THIS IS A SICKENING WITCH HUNT!” or “WHAT ABOUT EQUAL JUSTICE?”: This foul-mouthed bully you’ve leashed yourselves to is standing in a crapnado of legal trouble already, and there are two other major investigations — one federal, regarding attempts to overturn he 2020 election, and one state, regarding election interference in Georgia — yet to play out.'
'Sometimes a bad dude is just a bad dude. You can hate Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton or whoever else you want to hate, but the reason other people aren’t in the position Trump’s in is not because of some conspiracy.'
'It’s because there isn’t enough evidence to put any of them in such a position. Period.'
'Wake up, Republicans. You’re supporting a man who wouldn’t pour his Diet Coke on you if you were on fire.'
'It's time to wipe the zany from your eyes, pinch yourselves out of your cult-induced stupor, pull out your pocket knives and cut bait.' (USAToday) See link below and another by Huppke right below it.
They love him because he allowed them to be who they always were, without fear or shame, with favor. He was their champion. Others are stepping closer, lurking nearby to grab the banner should the champion falter, but none have illusions about who the champion is as long as Trump still sings the siren song: America,1955 or thereabouts.
Huppke has always had a flair for the right words and just the right amount of "kick." If you're on the right side of it you howl with laughter, while those on the wrong side howl in pain.
Bravo to Rex Huppke, and thanks so much for posting this, Fern McBride. Who do the Rs nominate next? Al Capone for President, Bonnie and Clyde for Vice?
Anyone who can read, or who gets information from outside of the right-wing false-news bubble, knows that Trump is a criminal, has always been, and now has lost his mind and is a danger to himself and others.
But, watch Fox News for 1/2 an hour. 3 minutes about Russia, 10 minutes about Hunter Biden, 5 minutes about Ron DeSantis saving us, 5 minutes about how Biden is old and doesn’t know what he is doing, Jim Jordan talking about corruption in the DOJ, which is the only time that Trump is mentioned. They haven’t mentioned Trump’s trials for days, except to say “they are still out to get him.”
Fox (I refuse to put the word News on there) is the living embodiment of why we need the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine. In 1987 Congress passed this legislation and ronnie raygun vetoed it.
What tfg said and did resonated with them (the voters). If not, then they would have been as appalled as we all are. I've felt this way since nearly the beginnng. Friends and relatives have been revealed and until I hear they regret their vote for him, I can only assume they will support him again (or someone like him).
We will not/can not move forward as a country until many more people turn away from him.
MK, DJT has resonated with many of the scapegoaters but not with a majority of American voters. I think that denouncements of him will get louder each time that he is indicted and convicted, along with the circulation of his self-incriminating audios. That gigantically dishonest, cruel and ignorant madman will shrink into and an orange turd behind bars.
Neal Katyal just gave all voters a huge victory this morning overturning the "independent state legilature" sedition in 6-3 Opinion in Moore vs Harper.
J. Nol, let's take an important win. 'Supreme Court Rejects Theory That Would Have Transformed American Elections. The 6-to-3 majority dismissed the “independent state legislature” theory, which would have given state lawmakers nearly unchecked power over federal elections.' (NYTimes) I do not have a gifting option with the paper now. If you subscribe to the Times or Washington Post, I suggest that you read about this decision. Politico, which you can reach by Google, has a article about the decision, so try that.
Well, that says it all, Fern! What a writer Huppke is. Funny: Fopdoodle! Crapnado! Wipe the zany from your eyes! If only. I doubt the zanies would read and appreciate its humor or its truth. But it surely started MY day off very well. Thank you!
I live in Tornado Alley Oklahoma, and I believe I have been in the worst "Crapnado" in history for the past 7 years! Here they're going to use my tax dollars to fund religious schools!
I am profoundly hoping that the angry cheeto is the trumper (they are not Republicans any more) nominee. At that point, the Dems could run an ham sandwich and win.
Rex Huppke was with the Chicago Tribune for many years until they cut their budget and offered buy-outs. That is when he moved to USA Today. He always keeps me laughing and feeling empowered by the truth he reveals.
If Despicable Don has ever said anything truthful, it was when he said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue in the middle of the day and STILL not lose his voters.
"...he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue in the middle of the day and STILL not lose his voters."
Yes, that statement by trump is probably accurate: That's such an ominous measure of his control over his masses.
That would be a valuable measure of how strong his support is. If each trump supporter could be told of trump's statement--including the date and location of the statement--and then ask that supporter if he or she believes the statement is accurate and if they would still support trump after he simply shot someone in cold blood..
Will Bidenomics convert some in the cult or are they too overweight (a disease, no one dares talk about) and too drunk on opioids to take advantage of good jobs and the general economy the president is offering?
Virginia, as you know there’s a disease called Denial at present in The House of Representatives by ‘the trumpests’. As for being overweight In all it’s undisguised
form, it’s so nearly universal that not many know how or want to deal with it. It’s almost a form of suicide since obesity is the number one underlying cause of death in this country.
Samm, thank you for letting me know what I guessed about obesity. As for “trumpests” it’s just great! Shall capitalize it and use it if it’s ok with you.
No doubt about the severity of the obesity issue in the U.S. That's why I'm concerned about the president's appointee to the Biden administration’s 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. Dr. Fatima Stanford, a highly-credentialed M.D. said, “The number one cause of obesity is genetics...if you were born to parents that have obesity, you have a 50-85% likelihood of having the disease yourself even with optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, stress management.” (Said on CBS’s “60 Minutes” Jan. 1.)
It's hard for me to believe Dr. Stanford's statement; that is, blaming obesity on genetics. So, the obese who choose to avoid optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, and stress management--they could just blame their condition on genetics and say there's nothing to be done about it.
From what I recently heard, 50% of the U.S. population is expected to be obese by 2030. Needless to say, the pharmaceutical industry will find ways to thrive on that.
There is something each of us can do...please start tomorrow (Tuesday) and call your Republican Congressperson (House and/or Senate, if you have one) to ask point blank and respectfully whether the Member has heard OR READ the tape and if not, why not?, and if he/she will admit that T****clearly violate the law by possessing and sharing a classified document? Don't let them escape from answering the question, and/or from staff from promising to pass your questions on to the MOC? Will you do it? I have only Dems, thank goodness.
It’s not possible to make them answer any question. They all have PhDs in lying, misdirecting, denying, counterattacking, etc. It’s their only skill and their definition of governance.
The chance of getting to actually talk to our representative is probably slim, but all of them have websites. We could ask the question there and after they remove the question from their sites, we can ask it again and again.
Yes, indeed! Our Representative retired after about 30 years of being our jerk in Congress, thankfully. Then our districts were redrawn to reflect more fair.maps. Now for the FIRST time in 40 years we have better representation at least in our state. Go Big Gretch!
Fortunately, I have Ds all around representing me here in Oregon. People in the 5th district should be calling their Rep, a R who barely won, and asking her this and other pertinent questions. She already has quality Ds who want to take her on. Whenever I read about the cult, I think about a house we see when we drive a certain road here in Salem.....flying several death star flags. Our rep in the Oregon legislature is, as my husband put, a Christofascist and is beyond any sane response. The legislature for this year is finally over and passed a flurry of bills because the Rs walked out and there was no quorum in the Senate. According to a measure voters passed by a large margin, they cannot run again. Of course, they will fight it in court. Ds are also considering changing the quorum rules and just go for a simple majority.
Wonderful suggestion. Thanks, and I will call mine. I’m sure my House Rep, Andy Harris, will have some false conspiracy based statement prepared as he was a participant at the December 21,2020 “let’s commit treason and overthrow the government - electoral college election results meeting.” He got his political start with a $250k campaign donation from Nazi Admirer Harlan Crow. He claims to care about this nation and uses his service in the Navy to support his claims(US Naval doctor). He disgraces “one of the uniforms of service” of our nation as he behaved/behaves as a treasonous liar with his participation in that December 21st meeting and then his vote to deny the results of the election. I have no doubt that he continues to participate in TFG’s protracted coup. I will call his office.
You pose a fascinating question. What might be the psychology and material circumstances and ages of those affixed adoringly and passionately to Agent Chaos? For nowhere else is there a large group of Americans as vociferously and staunchly and publicly in support of things you’d think would be high on the list to be passionate about. Like the insulting crappy health care system. Or like the corporate insistence on precision scheduling of workers (a pure stress mill), or the weak kneed efforts to deal with economic decisions generating houselessness, or the super big existential enchilada of Big Oil’s burgeoning continuing profits while increasingly dire statistics of speeding up climate events posing the end of life as we know it. Isn’t it curious? No one’s talking about the rising rates of depression and suicide among the children? No one seems to care about that. Not in the same action oriented way that supporters of Trump are acting. Not surprising the loud voices are getting all the media attention. And Biden okayed the gigantic destructive big gas/oil Willow project in Alaska. The citizenry? Not even a peep. Go figure.
And the media continues to cover all the people who spout on and on about how victimized and unfair it is for the government to continue to hold the T.rubble to task....this style of reporting only supports his followers to continue in their delusion. I for one, do not want to see another interview with the citizen on the street who mouth the propaganda of the repugnants trying to salvage their power.
Elements of your comment sharply resonate with me. It's because of a book I've been immersed in, "The Deluge" by Stephen Markley. While fiction, it reads like a non-fiction account of the world we inhabit today and a far more calamitous one that increasingly looks plausible — if not likely — as soon as the next decade.
Ron, thank youfor this....for sharing "youtube".....Jackson Browne has been one of my favorites. He is a wonderful poet.....fitting lyrics for these times.
Virginia, Putin has been in and around the Artic for years. He does not miss an opportunity to put down his "footprint". I wonder if we are as serious. He is forward looking as far as gaining power, control and opportunity.
Of course this includes mining in Africa and building relationships.....as he uses the people.
Absolutely we cannot sleep! My “non-comment” is that with oilmen crawling over Alaska, it’s both protection for Alaskans and cover for our intelligence agencies for US to be there en masses. As a true Green Survivaler I don’t like the pursuit of oil AT ALL, but don’t think President Biden would have gone for it without good reason - beyond keeping Republicans quiet, that is. I also recognize that we cannot be green overnight in America. It’s likely that social governments will be more organized to handle transitions. Look at trains in Europe, for example.
The willow project is indeed horrific. I believe it was a case of “pick your battles”. It was permitted under dumpty and faced multiple expensive legal challenges, which it was felt would win. Also the witless greedy folks in Alaska strongly favor it, as the state distributes taxes paid by the environmental destroyers to the people in Alaska. Same idea as buying off networks with lots of advertising $$$for products the viewers cannot buy. Your doctor may also be in the pay of pharmaceutical companies, mine was a “consultant “ and made nearly 20% of her income from it. Never met an antidepressant she didn’t love.
I am an Alaskan but do not consider myself witless or greedy. i have seen, and lived, what oil money did for the people of Alaska. Schools were built. Alaskan Natives were allowed to keep their children home in the villages because schools were built there and children were no longer forced to be sent to boarding schools. That alone is reason to thank oil companies. The oil companies would have happened anyway in Alaska and it was best to ensure that some of the money would come to Alaskans......and that means every resident. It was brilliant. i am definitely aware of the profit the oil companies have earned as well as the fossil fuel dangers to the climate, as most Alaskans who are neither witless nor greedy are aware. Dont think that it was an easy decision for Biden or Alaskans. There has been a Stop the Willow Project outcry for years.
I did not mean to offend. My daughter in law lives near Fairbanks and teaches, and I am aware of what big oil does “for” Alaskans. I think it’s a sad irony that climate change is more rapid near the poles and equator,, and will affect the Gulf coast, whose entire economy is based on extractive oil industries and will suffer the most and soonest.
Said daughter in law bemoans the dramatic changes she’s seen (they fish salmon and hunt) yet somehow never connects the oil industry and her income from it to the damage she sees.
I consider her “witless” in that sense, not seeing what is plainly obvious.
The time for burning oil for fuel has passed. I’m an a organic chemist and I cannot understand the stupidity of burning these difficult to manufacture complex molecules to ship watermelons from South America when we know better.
I do know...........maybe not the way you suggest. I am a native Alaskan, born here before Alaska became a state. A teacher myself, I was raised in a village on the Kuskowim River. I continue to do much hunting and fishing and the fishing I do requires a long gill net set off the beach. The sockeye run is strong this year, but we have never failed to get our fish any year. ADF&G manages the hunting and fishing to ensure adequate resources . Unfortunately the Yukon River has seen an insufficient escapement to allow subsistence fishing there. Might it be related to fish wheels? I really doubt it is related to oil development. You would have to show me the direct connection. Fish travel out to sea and return so where is the oil impact? 100 brown bears were shot in Southcental Alaska this year to protect the caribou. Too many??? where is the oil impact? remarkable engineering raised the oil pipeline so caribou could travel under it and those herds are thriving. It is true that many from outside Alaska (Alito et al) come here to fish and hunt for sport, and others to fish commercially and return with profits to other states. In my opinion, limiting sport fishing and hunting from out of staters would be great, but the big bucks are welcome for the out of state outfitters.
i dont believe any state returns part of its oil profit to the people of that state as much as Alaska. The Willow Project continues to be a controversy, but many believe there will not be any production for at least 10 years. i dont see oil people swarming the area where I live, and not in Anchorage either. Maybe they travel here and back to the Lower Fortyeight too often to be seen much.
I don't understand how you can say you did not mean to offend.
But what is more important about your comment is the amount of ignorance it displays about the complexity of Alaska's relationship with oil.
The Willow Project approval was impossible for Biden to avoid but it does not mean that there will ever be drilling actually done.
The time for burning oil for fuel and for using it to produce a gazillion other products is hardly over; how much of your clothing contains polyester?
The people of Alaska are on the front lines of climate change; they more than anyone else in the United States can see climate change happening. But the people of Alaska are also on the front lines of figuring out how to make a transition from an extraction based economy to something sustainable and livable. It is far from simple and it's unfair to judge from the lower 48.
Except, since we are all interdependent, our choices and behaviors affect the whole system in small and large ways. Thus we should all have some input into the decisions that will affect not only humans but all other living beings on the planet. Some of us need to advocate for those without voices, whose every existence is imperiled by human beings' reckless exploitation of the earth. Consumerism will be the death of us all.
You sound like "American Carnage". You are VERY incorrect about Willow project. Everyone is talking about the rates of depression and suicide. I do not see supporters of Trump acting to reverse climate change or youth suicide.
'Listen: In audio recording, Trump heard discussing sensitive Iran document'
'The Washington Post has obtained the 2021 audio recording in which former president Donald Trump appears to brag about possessing a classified document related to Iran that he acknowledges he did not declassify before leaving office.'
'The recording, referenced in the federal indictment against Trump and first aired Monday by CNN, features Trump describing a multi-page document that he alleges is about possibly attacking Iran.'
“See, as president I could have declassified it, now I can’t. … Isn’t that interesting? It’s so cool,” Trump said on the recording.
'Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents. In a recent interview, Trump claimed that he was unaware of the Iran document being among the materials in the boxes recovered at Mar-a-Lago — his private club and Florida residence — by the FBI and Justice Department. He also continued to claim that everything he took with him was declassified. He pleaded not guilty earlier this month during an arraignment at a federal courthouse in Miami.'
'Prosecutors’ 49-page indictment outlined two instances in which Trump disclosed sensitive papers in unsecured environments, post-presidency, to individuals who lacked the necessary security clearances required to view any classified information. The second instance described in the indictment was an August or September 2021 meeting where Trump showed an unnamed representative of his political action committee a classified map of “Country B,” and expressed to the individual that he shouldn’t be sharing the map.'
'The audio recording is quoted in the indictment, which describes a meeting Trump held at his Bedminster golf club in July 2021 with two staffers, as well as the publisher and writer of an upcoming book. People familiar with the matter have said the book was a forthcoming memoir by Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows.'
'Meadows described the scene in his book, “The Chief’s Chief,” indicating that Trump described a four-page document he claimed was an invasion plan for Iran that he said was written by the Defense Department and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. At that time, Milley was a frequent target of Trump’s ire, and the former president was hoping to push back against articles and books in which Milley was described as having had to restrain Trump from irresponsible military action in Iran.'
'Former military officials previously told The Post that Milley never recommended attacking Iran. But it was customary for the Pentagon to prepare memos outlining a variety of military options to respond to a foreign adversary, people familiar with Milley’s briefings to the president said. The Pentagon did have a memo for a military attack on Iran as one conceivable option, but it was not written by Milley, these people said.'
'During the nearly two-minute recording, Trump describes a document as “highly confidential” before saying “this is secret information.” At one point he says, “You probably didn’t believe me, but now you believe me. It’s incredible.”
'The audio also runs counter to what Trump told Fox News anchor Bret Baier in an interview that aired last week. In the interview, Trump denied referring to an actual document during the conversation at Bedminster; rather, he said he was discussing “newspaper stories, magazine stories and articles.” (WAPO) See link below and the link to Trump audio, which was obtained by CNN and posted in HCR's, Notes. If WAPO link does open to audio, the link to Trump audio on CNN, taken from Notes, was also posted below.
The Trump disclosure Transcript is featured on several platforms this morning:
" Trump: These are the papers".
Jack Smith has requested & a Court Hearing is now docketed for July 14, 2023 to discuss CIPA procedures generally. No downside to showing jurors the Iran War plans in open Court in my opinion. Although not required, I would call Trump's Aide, MARGO MARTIN, for context as she recorded the admissions.
BREAKING: Solid work by NEAL KATYAL at SCOTUS today. Victory in Moore v Harper.
Thanks again Fern! To steal a moniker from another person, "Agent Chaos" was and is such a threat to all Americans and should be treated as such. When he was "elected" in 2016 I was afraid for our country. People actually said, "it's only for four years, relax". Sadly, we can all see the damage agent chaos has wreaked on our country. The fact that he still appears so strong is really a commentary on the people of this country as much as it is on him.
Bruce, Jack Smith will demonstrate exactly how to deal with a mendacious manipulator including direct testimony today from 6 Secret Service Trump agents before the J6 Grand Jury.
I have no doubt Jack Smith will call General Milley on Trump's entire "war with Iran" desperate wag-the-dog gambit AFTER November 2020 but, before J6. More to come from Jack Smith linking Trump directly to sedition.
Actually, I think many of them know, on some level, how abysmally messed up this all is, but if they allow one thread to unravel by admitting concern about anything, the entire ridiculousness of their adherence to this guy will be revealed as it all unravels. Instead, they double down on the double downed lies to convince their uneducated, undereducated racist minions that it’s just an attempt to harm their Fuehrer. Nazis believe that telling a lie long and loud enough gives it the gleam of truth-perception is reality. They count on that. They did it then; they are doing it now. Speaking truth would hold them accountable for the cruel and twisted mess we are in. Speaking truth? For them-oh, the horror. The GOP are Nazis-every one of them. Even their silence is complicity. I’m disgusted. End of rant.
Jen, I suspect that you are Right on target with your unraveling metaphor. As Jack Smith continues his "bottom up" process of investigation, many of those R congress-critters who were part of the fake elector schemes are PARTICULARLY concerned that not one thread unravel because they lie (in all senses of the word) at the other end of those threads.
LoL. I need to put on my readers. It’s late, but I swear I first saw, “And yet, even with F*****g basically confessing on tape he did something illegal....” Oops, no. Then I thought, what if Bruce doesn’t have my sailor potty mouth? Then I saw, “How TF does one counter that kind of obstinacy?!?” and thought, right on, Bruce, Effin A, how DOES one talk logic to those incapable of it?
Trying to think of an historical figure akin to T, Rasputin comes to mind. But then again, T is in no way as intelligent as Rasputin was. T is likely more evil.
Donald Trump had a historical poor relationship with common sense. In many instances, he would defy any logic if it does not agree with his stand
This is his personality and he would brag of how he does things to his own egoistic attitude.
I once read a book by Donald Trump dubbed how to become rich, but as you read, you will notice the bragging nature of his inheritance (though he didn't mention in the book) and how he personally wrote the book.
So, Trump leaking classified information is not a surprise to me.
Edwin, exactly......a poor relationship with truth.....his own egotistical attitude....and his total disrespect for his voters whom he whispers sweet NOTHINGS to.....knowing they will believe and receive anything and everything he does or says with NO JUDGEMENT.
I was in shock when he was nominated for President. His nomination was my ending to all or any respect for the Republican Party and the end of my voting for anyone within the Republican Party. I saw him as unamerican, as an enemy of this country....as devoid of the ability to lead a free nation.
NOTHING has changed about this person. I also see a complete void of courage in most of the members of the Republican Party. How can one person who is so lacking in character, have such a hold on elected leaders and citizens of a "free" country???? It is unbelievable to me and yet here we are!!!
I am proud to vote for members of the Democratic Party who love freedom for all , who demonstrate more respect for our fellow human beings, for our earth and climate change....for supporting Ukraine. I am for healthcare for all and opportunity for an excellent education for our children. We must work hard for these things if we want to continue to become a greater nation and an example of goodness and freedom and opportunity in this world.
And thanks to Joe Biden and to other leaders who have voted for improved internet communication for all....including remote areas. Thank you!!! President Biden's love for this country and its people is not just shown in words but ACTION!!!
There is movement and proof that "Building Back Better" is becoming a reality. Thanks to all the men and women who are using their gifts and skills to accomplish this hard work.
I am grateful for leadership that chooses to feed the hungry and provide health care for those in need. I am grateful for Americans who support freedom everywhere and are putting words into actions!!!
You have such an incredible, an all-out-of-heart explanation about Donald Trump and your view towards a united country with respect for freedom and those with diverse opinions 👏
Donald Trump won't change his personality nor how he leads America.
Bruce, I would like to amend your comment, " Republicans in the House, and some in the Senate, STILL will PUBLICALLY deny T***p did anything wrong. "
If these members can tie their shoes, they have to privately acknowledge his guilt, but as a cohesive voice, why should they? He has them bullied and beaten into a mockery of a Congress ( aexcepting our side). The longer a lie stands unchallenged, the more likely it will be accepted as truth. We have all heard the expression Ideas trump Facts, and Beliefs trump Ideas. Here is another version:
Some believe what they want to believe, facts be damned. Just returned from a family reunion in Texas. My almost 70-year old nephew is completely vested in the conspiracy theories: Trump won the 2020 election as did Kari Lake in Arizona - the elections were stolen. Fraud was widespread. His "news" sources? OAN and Newsmax. All the others, MSNBC, ABC, BBC, CNN and more are fake news. (His words.)
Bruce, it is a cult. And tfg grabbed what there is of the minds of the opiated masses and used their religion to fuel his narcissistic wet dream. And the superwealthy grabbed him as a front man for their agenda of perpetual enrichment of themselves at the expense of those masses.
I doubt that. The citizenry were much more vocal and engaged then than these days. The only ones stirring up the air waves and putting their bodies where their tongues are these days appear to be Trump supporters. Whistle blowers were not thrown in jail then like these days. Corporate media hadn’t swallowed 50% plus of local newspapers across the land and consolidated their power into what ? 5 outfits today? Infotainment replacing various views. Explosion in governmental surveillance of citizens today. No. As Wolins described it. Inverted totalitarianism depends on an apathetic ( read inactive undemonstrable disengaged)citizenry so corporations Can will out their profit making designs on a passive public under a “managed” democracy. Chomsky perceives we have one party today. The Business Party with a Democratic Party tilted slightly leftward and a Republican Party (Cult?) bent Rightward. Seems an apt description. Otherwise why wouldn’t we be crashing the White House gates relentlessly for the actions required now to make a future livable for our children? Do you just sit around watching your home burn down with your children in it?
When Nixon committed his crimes, most of the survivors of World War 2 were still alive, and had watched the McCarthy Witch Hunts on TV and had no tolerance for Nazi dog whistles or nuts with guns shooting children in schools. It is a different era now.
“Corporate media hadn’t swallowed 50% plus of local newspapers across the land and consolidated their power into what ? 5 outfits today?“
Very appreciative you bring this to light. It seems to be one of the very things so many many many peopled have missed. The monopoly ownership of media serves no one but those who are the monopoly owners. They can, and do, decide what you read (also see and hear). It’s one step away from “government controlled media” like exists in authoritarian governed countries and dictatorships.
These countries control the government, control the media, control the courts…..
We’re very very close to this being the case in the USA, but here it will be the Oligarchy, the wealthiest 1/10th of the top 1% wealthiest people running the show. The richest of the rich forming the serfdom for which we will all be submissive (and to some extent already are). And dare I say it’s a “Christian Oligarchy” doing the takeover, or trying to….
Now do Robert E Lee and Jefferson Davis. There’s a whole secessionist “State of Jefferson” made of parts of rural Northern California and Southern Oregon most of America knows nothing about.
I live in Humboldt County, CA & have been aware of the push for the “State of Jefferson” for awhile….it is mostly the northern inland parts of CA & parts of So Oregon and some (lots of parts) of the western mountain states. My county is mostly blue-ish (thank you!), but we rub up against diametrically opposed opinions of governance in surrounding areas. To say that it is a challenge and interesting at the same time is an understatement!
John, it's such little-known California history, but our first senator in California, William Gwin, was a slaveowner from Mississippi who had a hammer lock on California politics for its first decade as a state, and he tried very hard and more successfully than I would ever have thought to either make California secede to the Confederacy or create a separate, Pacific Republic that would enshrine slavery as the law, in perpetuity.
So yes, I know those of us who live in the “State of Jefferson” are well aware of it, but I sincerely doubt most of the rest of you knew of this West Coast embarrassment. Thank you Alexandra for chiming in with some of the history. Joining the military remains one of the best ways of getting out of the South, which is also the highest recruiting area, and California has many military bases including the largest Naval base in the world in San Diego (also how I got out), and sadly many bring their bigotry with them.
However, Jefferson Public Radio is broadcast out of Ashland, Oregon which has got to be the most liberal city in the region...
Really it's mostly humor these days, but if Pearl Harbor hadn't been attacked...
And beyond the humor is the very real fact that southwestern Oregon and Northwestern California have been "out of the loop" of their respective state governments, and remain challenged by access difficulties.
When I first moved to “Jefferson” in 2006, I did a lot of rural healthcare lobbying in Sacramento, and the “Jefferson” Assembly members and State Senators were routinely the biggest roadblocks to progress, squarely aiming for their own feet with both barrels.
Yes, south west Oregon county voters have been their own worst enemies too. They were spoiled by years of timber revenue and saw no reason to support their own services.
Exactly. And there were Repugs back then downplaying Nixon’s crimes . . . A social studies teacher even arguing that Nixon didn’t commit the crimes behind Watergate even as the Watergate hearings were being aired. We should have put the hammer to criminal politicians; there should be accountability and deterrence. Instead, we passed flawed laws allowing fascist corporate heads to skew elections and blithely legitimatize the corruption as “Citizens United.” The Repugs have ALWAYS been a corrupt entity and now the party is an outright, organized crime syndicate for neonazi fascists.
Susan, that’s an interesting question. The attempt to hold Nixon accountable has fed the “stabbed in the back” narrative the right loves to flog. If he had been convicted by the Senate I’m not sure it would have improved the arc of the right’s slide into collective madness. Too many feeder streams of resentment. The Clinton impeachment was in large part payback for Nixon’s.
I was furious when Ford pardoned him which he certainly didn't deserve. I wonder if he ever privately acknowledged that what he did was wrong. If nobody is above the law, then even presidents should be held accountable.
The Biden administration yet again deserves praise for sweeping improvements to the U.S. infrastructure. It's long overdue. I suspect many Americans, who can't afford to travel abroad, have no idea how far behind the country is compared to many other nations.
We're also way behind in regulating what companies can charge for basic services, which high-speed has become. It's so essential to living, yet the price gouging is obscene. Which is exactly what the Republicans and their monied handlers want.
High speed (normal) internet is as essential as electricity and water to survive and possibly thrive in this nation. Most towns have only one provider. If they have two, they collude to rig prices. It's a complicated problem that could be solved if we took the power from the money grubbing oligarchs.
The good ole free enterprise way would be to require towns to employ additional options. But that doesn't work, because the wires are owned by the single provider. That would require a new company to spend enormous amounts to wire the town. It ain't happening.
So what's the simple solution? Create regional independent government sponsored and regulated internet systems. Just like water. Take over the wiring. And expand it to all.
In a neighboring affluent town, there is an internet service from the town itself. Most towns couldn't afford to do that. But it is inspiring.
So hats off to this administration for attempting to bring this country up to speed on an essential of life.
In North Carolina, the GOP-controlled legislature has made it illegal for municipalities to provide internet service when the for-profit-companies refuse to do so. So, even when the municipality can afford to do it, the GOP makes it impossible.
Bill, it would seem that we are ripe for congress (the president?) to do what was done back in the 1930's and declare high-speed internet a public utility serving all citizens. The government (state governments) could regulate what can be charged and how much and how often prices can be raised to cover the costs of maintaining the infrastructure much the same way we have managed electricity supply (except, I suppose, in Texas).
VERY IMPORTANT observation, Michael Bates. High speed rail in France (TGV) takes EVERYBODY. And I hear from friends who just flew there that Air France doesn’t do internal flights, but is using high speed rail instead. (Did anyone else read that flights release jet fuel as they fly or did everyone but me know that?)
Trains, at least good ones, are a joy. And besides the environmental benefits, train travel is free of the stress of air travel. Last week, we took a seven-our train ride from Oslo to Bergen on the Norwegian coast. It traversed dense forest and snowy mountains but was smoother than a recent trip from Portland to Seattle on Amtrak.
Stop! Stop! As one who has ridden the TGV in France over most of the country (my husband was the grandson of a PRR engineer, HOscale models from 1934-44, a member of the PRRT&HS, and a rider of any train he could get on), I have learned European trains in several countries, including Poland’s version of the TGV from Bialystok to Warsaw (excellent). My last big train trip, thanks to Covid, was a Paris-Warsaw jaunt about which I shall laugh forever. Have you tried provincial trains in France? Not bad. Single or double cars often. Smooth rides on cement tie tracks.
Not surprised that Oslo-Bergen was smoother than Amtrak. The track upkeep, like that of public transport in Chicago, is terrible. Why can’t we have concrete ties?
mark cramer, thank you! Knew I had read that, but didn’t remember where or when. (Too much information!) Wwondering today while living in Canadian forest fire smoke, whether it aids the forest fires.
Scientists CAN give us so much help surviving environmentally until we can get our minds around gently reducing population and learn to live with Mother Nature.
Thank you again for knowing about kerosene droplets from above.
With so much going on, its hard to process it all. But you seem to make it all make sense. I love the connection you always make to history: it gives me hope.
"...while millions more have limited or unreliable options (like me!)."
I never imagined that someone in your position in teaching and with your massive presence on social media would have that issue! In my area there are many children who don't have reliable access to the internet, despite living in the Silicon Valley area. Joe Biden has enabled so much good for our country. Perhaps in history years from now, he will be much more appreciated for his accomplishments during his term as POTUS.
I suspect HCR was referring to the coverage, or lack thereof, halfway up the coast of Maine in Round Pond, where she seems to spend a lot of her time. I'm sure the coverage at Boston University is just fine.
But I'm shocked to hear that internet coverage isn't all that reliable in parts of Silicon Valley.
As for President Biden, I keep saying! He's the best president of my lifetime, which began early in the Eisenhower Administration, or if you count in utero, in the Truman Admin. He's doing the kinds of things that Roosevelt did, and I can't help thinking, especially during his second term, that a lot of middle and lower class GOPers are finally going to realize how much better things will be getting. Since LBJ, all the Democratic presidents have disappointed me until Biden, who is putting the wind at our backs!
I admire Biden for leaning in and getting the job done w/out fanfare or accolades (even tho he deserves them) for the benefit of ALL, regardless of party affiliation. He does not need to stand on a stage an holler “me me me me!” again and again…he just does the work that needs doing. I am SO tired of the partisans picking at illusory scabs just to present opposition talking points.
DFN a telltale sign that an account is a bot and/or posting from an IP addy in St. Petersburg is when it repetitively peppers threads on HCR's posts with the same comment.
In seriousness, though, Biden may be 80 but he works more in a month than TFG did in 4 years. TFG is only 3 years younger, in worse health, is more clearly suffering the onset of dementia, and (unlike Biden) is a serial, compulsive liar and a criminal.
Biden may end up with professional nursing care in his own home in Wilmington or Rehoboth in a decade, but it's likely to be much less time before TFG is getting care for his failing health in a federal correctional institute.
I think a lot of people tend to assume that the Bay Area as a whole is some high tech nirvana but the reality is that it's three large cities with a lot of small cities and towns and suburbs and even rural areas in between. A couple of large, unfriendly corporations pretty much have a stranglehold on Internet access here, one of whom is seriously price-gouging (Comcast/Xfinity). It took many, many years for AT&T to finally come good on their promise of fiber to my neighborhood. And cell phone coverage is also pretty spotty in many parts of the Bay Area so your chance of 5G Internet is low too.
Two hours north of San Francisco, and our ISP transmits via baling wire and duct tape, when it works at all, but the bills go out at high speed. Good luck with that, Joe. Don’t have a car problem or health problem or try to report a drunk driver in many of these parts, because 911 is hilarious. If you even have a signal, you’ll get connected to Sacramento, where they have NO idea where you are calling from. And yeah, you can get the kids laptops here, but they can’t connect, so guess how education fared in the pandemic in the rural areas of America? Yup, stupider than ever. At our first active shooter drill last year, we were warned it would take at least an hour for law enforcement to SHOW UP. Guess they’ll have to upload our videos later from the phones they take from our dead hands, once they get signal (we probably have more guns per capita, or, as I once heard it pronounced, ‘purr caPEEta’). To Jeff Foxworthy this whole thing, you can tell you’re in the country when you have zero bars and empty beer cans every ten feet along the road. It’s kinda funny, but it’s also not funny because you’re laughing at us, not with us, and it doesn’t have to be this way.
Bridging the city/rural infrastructure divide is going to take a huge $$$ investment in this country because of the sheer land scale... and a lot of those rural areas are still voting against that sort of investment and pushing back on the sort of government programs it takes to make it all happen. It's a really difficult economic AND social problem to solve.
I agree Sean. I live in Sacramento Metropolitan area, not as populace as the Bay Area. We too are strangled by Xfinity and AT&T. No, we don't have fiber optic they flat out lie and charge us for it but when pressed admit it is "years in the future" away, The problem in both areas is a few years ago our then politicians sold us out. They gave Comcast and AT&T exclusive rights on the promise of "future fiber optic" with no set date. I'm not accusing bribery, I think the politicians were just duped into thinking those companies would do the right thing.
I lived in the Bay Area 1970-71, and '73-'75 (Stanford and Berkeley respectively), I visit 2-3 times a decade, and I have probably my second highest concentration of good friends in the Bay Area. But I'm surprised that corporations are able to price gouge in such a sophisticated area. And yet, as I think about it, I'm being naive. Thanks for giving me the perspective.
I live in a very rural part of a state in the northwestern US, red enough that I never reveal my location. But it's probably as isolated as Heather's Maine residence. As a retired technoid, I thought I might jump in and share my experience with internet coverage over the past ten years, for what it's worth. I've tried it all, from satellite (which kills video streaming due to transmission latency) to fixed point microwave based ISPs to the newer cellular coverage being offered by AT&T, T-Mobile and others (I've tried both of the former). In my opinion the best internet coverage, at least here, is available through T-Mobile's Home Internet service. They have been very aggressive in building out their infrastructure, charge a reasonable rate ($50/month with no contract and a no price hike guarantee), provide a free gateway (wireless router/modem) and have been very reliable. I'm able to get a minimum 15 mbps download speeds (frequently 30 to 100) which is sufficient to have allowed me to "cut the cable" - and cable isn't even available to me - and stream all my TV from the internet. Full disclosure, I've had to employ high gain directional diversity antennas and amplifiers to achieve this, and at significant cost, but the point is that it's doable. Of course, every situation is unique, but I offer this in the hope that it may benefit someone that has fought these connectivity issues in rural areas. For the record, I'm not connected with T-mobile or being compensated for my commentary in any way. Just sharing my experience. Good luck.
I live in the East Bay in one of the most expensive counties in our state...for 47 years now. Dropped Comcast like a hot potato about 4 years ago. Can’t stand AT&T but there are so few options as my husband is a sports fanatic. I live in an old part of town where the homes were built in the 20’s. Without Netgear’s wifi extender, no rooms in our home would have Internet.
Those of us with a couple of alums from Boston University would agree with you that there is perfectly fine coverage at BU. It’s Boston College, where HCR teaches, where there might be connection problems.😜
When HCR does her weekly video chats from home in Maine, she sometimes goes to a neighbors' house for better connectivity, as she notes at the outset of her chat.
Trump is a symptom of dreadful problems: some of them come from a profit by any unethical means with part of the press and similarly with social media. Plenty of others are just about profits and then there are the culture wars. Grist for historian's mills for years to come.
Who remembers that at the time it was said that candidate Obama chose Senator Biden for his experience abroad? I watched Biden’s leaving the Senate speech late morning (CST?). It convinced me, who knew little about him, that Obama had chosen well. May he continue!
Okay. Let’s not hear anymore complaints about Democratic messaging. Democrats are messaging the hell out of it. The problem is message reception. As Faux found out, if the message differs from what the willfully ignorant want to hear, they refuse to listen. The key is voter turnout. More important than candidates, message, policy, or any other factor. Join a GOTV project that you believe is effective, and put your heart into it. And your pocketbook, to the extent possible.
I'm encouraging our daughter at university to make sure all her friends are registered to vote, and spreading the same message to their friends. Regardless of messaging, Gen Z seems to understand better than any other age group that it's in their best interests to vote against MAGATs.
Call me naive or call me crazy...but how in the f... is trump walking around a free man?? Any of us would be wearing the orange jumpsuit. Sorry just have to vent once and awhile. I completely trust Jack Smith to do the right thing. It’s just very frustrating that it takes so long.
I fully agree, Karen. IF any of us had bern charged federally with the crimes he’s been charged with, do you think fir one second that we would be walking out of that courtroom to go home? Not no, but HELL NO!!! There’s no way in two hell’s that ANY Federal Judge, or Prosecutor, would allow a citizen charged with 31 counts of the Espionage Act to leave that courthouse in anything except handcuffs, headed to the local jail for safekeeping until trial.
I also agree with you, but perhaps it was done on purpose so that they could get more evidence from the horses mouth, tightening his own noose, and using his way with words against him........
Daniel I couldn't agree more wholeheartedly, however, I imagine Jack Smith is aware he has been hired to lead the UXB team to defuse the Orange Human Bomb which by now should be obvious is a rather sensitive and complex task with large repercussions if handled entirely as if it were "any of us."
At a minimum, he should be under house arrest. Ankle bracelet. Oh...wait...he is campaigning to become President. "That would be so unfair!" Sorry, aren't we responsible for our actions?
What's unfair is that a person who has betrayed his nation is allowed to even consider running for director of parks and recreation.
I’m just saying that if a common person had committed 31 counts of Espionage, there’s no way in hell that person will walk free. There’s no way that person would be allowed to “turn himself in” at a scheduled time and date.
Case in point, the Air Force man that was just arrested. Wasn’t that for Espionage? They sent the SWAT team to his home and drug him out in his skivies! There’s several that have recently been arrested for one count of the Espionage Act, and they have been sitting in jail awaiting trial since they were picked up, and arrested. Not one of them were allowed to report to the courthouse on such and such day to turn themselves in.
And, you ate correct. “No one is above the law.” And “Nobone should receive preferential treatment”. But Trump is receiving all kinds of preferential treatment, and allowances none of the rest of us would ever get.
Of the two main "razors" I use to determine if an activity is appropriate for government action, the easiest to use is also the simplest: "The Government's job is to remove barriers to work." The most obvious example is infrastructure improvements, and many thanks to the Biden Administration and the Democrats in Congress for making them a top priority.
And as a side note, I still don't understand the argument that if you give rich people free money they will somehow "invest" it in their existing or new businesses. If they want to expand or start a business, why in hell do they need tax dollars? I thought that's what banks were for -- you propose a business plan and if it's a good one, the banks will loan you money. If you give rich people free money and they don't have a good reason to expand their businesses, they just keep the money with scarcely a "thank you." How anyone could think otherwise is a mystery and I wish someone could explain it to me.
Nothing to explain. It upside-down-think. Nobody hires for the fun of it; perhaps they might pick up a servant or two, but the incentive favors hiring as few non-domestic employees as possible, as we have seen with mergers and downsizing, offshoring, "gig" employment, automating, etc. Employers hire because they need help to engage with customers who have money to spend. The complication is that the employed and customers are, for the most part, the very same people, and holding down employment and wages tends to cook the goose that lays golden eggs. No matter. Those obsessed with unfettered gain seem to care little about the health of a society, so long as they are clearly and excessively dominant.
Yet, while I certainly don't run across may mega-rich people, much less the uber-rich, the wealthy ones I have met socially (probably in the $10-50 million range) have been among the nicest, most educated, and the most socially curious people I've ever met. There's a disconnect here between who they seem to be and how American business operates. I guess I just never get invited to the devils' parties, for some reason.
The richest person I know,($23 million in the bank) ran a franchise across Canada, worked 18 hour days his whole life, was best friends with one of the people running one of the franchise outlets. Many of the people you mention probably did something similar. The tech and corporate billionaires have a different relationship to their holdings, their employees, and the world in general. Humility and gratitude are not in their vocabulary.
One of the wealthiest couples I've ever met came from tech (badge #2 at Intel). They're also among the nicest and most socially responsible, using their wealth primarily to support K-12 educational programs in schools and in communities after school.
I've found that lack of humility and gratitude affects about 25% of the population across all socioeconomic strata. The wealthy ones just get more public scrutiny.
The Bible condemns the "love of money", which makes sense to me if I think of such "love" and what one will sacrifice anything else for. Also that money is a form of power, and that a "love of dominance", using any of the means to force one's will at the peril of others, is a pretty good definition of evil, as well as aggressive sociopathy. We can take a harder look at the over-all impact of economic inequality on others (and I have more assets than most) but there is something unique to the problem of be willing to harm anyone and anything to gain personal advantage, be it by offering "perfectly legal" "payday loans" or taking people's money at gunpoint. Some of the wealthiest people on the planet seem to resent the hell out of any sort of break for the common man or woman, and many use their money and position to short-circuit rule of law and democracy. There are always those who aspire to rule the world. And also those who aim to empower. Note that a fair number of those who are effective in the latter category have been assassinated, although those who live by the sword have often been killed as well. Social-minded George Soros is portrayed as a preternatural Bond villain by the right, when in fact some of their most substantial patrons are far better fitted to the role.
Dirk,I suspect you KNOW the "reason" already. This "trickle-down" theory is merely a diversion to distract from the central purpose of financial self-interest (aka: capitalism, for-profit business, privatization) demonstrated year after year by the R's. It would be interesting to see figures on the average net worth, or yearly income or amount invested in the stock market of R's in Congress compared with D's. What we have lost ios an ability to balance capitalism with the public welfare.
When I finally understand why it is that "you simply can't find good CEOs unless you pay them millions", but at the same time "paying a living wage to working stiffs will just ruin their incentive to work", then I might be able to try to explain! /s
I have been wondering the same thing for such a long time. Give 100mil dollars to one person, or 100mil divided between 10 people and see how it is spent and how it gets pumped back into the “economy”...........
Sorry, John, but it's a bit irritating to see someone, who just yesterday directed me to an excellently written, Russia-Ukraine analysis by "Big Serge," then turning around and offering me Australia's version of the National Inquirer (it looks even seedier than Fox, although I don't watch Fox enough to compare very well.)
Note that for all the blather, the producers of this 18:36 minute waste of this board's space to use about 10 seconds of Biden's hundreds of speeches to make this unattributed gag reel, complete with 18:26 minutes of self-satisfied, unsubstantiated, snark.
Perhaps as an exercise you could send me several hours of your public appearances -- I'm sure I could generate, without AI or any other aid, a segment even more nastily hilarious (at least to certain minds), just as I could with a similar amount of footage from me.
Why did you post this link? What do you think it actually demonstrates? Do you really think this constitutes evidence of Pres. Biden's mental incapacity? If so, how so?
In a word, yes. And again, please show something better than a low-rent version of a right-wing Saturday Night Live skit passing itself off as "op-ed" as evidence of mental decline.
I have to question the accuracy of your response. I recall that the elder President Bush had a reputation for mangled syntax, and the younger President Bush was well-known for moments of incoherence. But Obama,, Clinton and Carter did not have a reputation for struggling with the delivery of their message in the same way that Biden now does. (And Biden, earlier in his career, did not appear to have this problem, at least to this extent.) Furthermore, none of the above-mentioned Presidents had Biden's set of incidents involving slips, trips and falls. As I said in the link that I posted above, Biden's declining state is putting the Democrats at risk in 2024.
Are you really asserting that neither Barack Obama, Hilary (or Bill) Clinton, nor Jimmy Carter made any goofs, trips, fumbles, misstatements, stumbles, or embarrassments during their thousands of hours of public appearances?
No, you aren't. Instead you are relying on something you refer to as "reputation," as nebulous and attribution-free a statement as I have ever heard. Is this a "reputation" that you just carry around in your head? Did you hear about it from someone, or is this something that "everybody" knows? Would a court take judicial notice of it, or would an honest, competent fact-finder roll their eyes and scornfully laugh at someone foolish enough to represent an un-sourced "reputation" as some brand of truth?
I see nothing to distinguish your "reputation" evidence as anything other than your own vague opinion, sourced from nothing more probative than a 5-year-old's schoolyard taunt delivered by a television entertainers masquerading as a journalists. Worse, and quite telling, you assert this foolishness without any reference to how Biden and his administration are actually performing their jobs.
Oh, yes, I too am certain that the Biden gag reel will be a prominent feature of the 2024 election, simply because his opponents will have nothing else to offer beyond culture-war crap and malicious innuendo. Are you going to help them spread it?
The Commerce Department has worked for several years on rural internet. It was to be part of the First Net program started more than five years ago. It’s good to see that funding has finally come through. Of course, on balance, now all of rural America will have access to the social media echo chambers.
“Journalist Garrett Graff, who wrote a history of President Richard Nixon’s Watergate scandal, the one that led Nixon to resign under threat of impeachment and conviction, listened to the tape and tweeted: “Speaking as a Watergate historian, there’s nowhere on thousands of hours of Nixon tapes where Nixon makes any comment as clear, as clearly illegal, and as clearly self-aware as this Trump tape.””
But... need we say it?
Yes.. we must, again and again...
Lying Watergate criminal President Richard M. Nixon, a neofascist of the first water that led over 70 criminals to sentencing and to jail, resigned in disgrace following lying criminal Vice President Spiro T. “Ted” Agnew, making room for twice married cocksman former governor VP NELSON ALDRICH ROCKEFELLER. President Nixon was soon pardoned by the weak former GOP Speaker, President Gerald Rudolph Ford, a boring, heavy drinking congressman from Michigan, married to an alcoholic. That pardon excused Nixon from criminal charges and certain sentencing.. while the Watergate burglars and White House plumbers and enablers were charged and served time... that pardon cost Ford his career in the White House as he lost his last election... setting the course for tonight’s liar in chief.. that lacks the courage to leave politics and will be charged, tried, convicted and sentenced, hopefully without pardon... slamming the door on such behavior and the Party that supports fascism today... and the millions of enablers that find the lying pathological legacy brat, fascist President TRUMP, suitable for the White House one more time..
Though, with Latvian parents, the Wagner/Putin thing worries me deeply ( and I was outraged that Obama’s response to the annexation was pretty much a symbolic appeasement) the rural internet thing MIGHT be the thing that turns some of my neighbors into re-thinking “some stuff.” We all know here, in the rural Great Lake lands of our difficult access ( boy, do the tourri get pissed) and we’re aware of the damage that does/has been done (especially) to our students in the last few years.
Now we need to make sure students and the elderly have the personal technology to access education and emergency services when needed I rural areas.
Forgive me, but I don't think all of Biden's successes will cause his approval rating to go up to any significant extent. I'm afraid that the negative attitudes of many voters about Biden have been baked in. I hope HCR's readers can convince me I'm wrong!
Trump's MAGA supporters will never stop following him blindly, but most of the voting public will be understanding the seriousness of Trump's offenses as they learn more about them. And hopefully, how completely unfit he is to be near the Oval Office ever again.
David, I'm worried that a third party group like No Labels will siphon off votes from those who don't like Trump, but don't want to vote for Biden. I'm also uncertain if RFK, Jr. will pull votes away.. And then there's Cornel West running as a Democrat.
Bottom line? Biden's margin of victory over Trump might not be large enough to overcome the above challenges.
Mina, I don’t think we have to worry to much about RFK, Jr. and these others running in the Democratic primary. I believe Biden will defeat them. None of them are the debater that Biden is, and they surely can’t compete against him with the hot topics of the government/countries issues.
Yesterday I stopped into a store for the first time thinking it was for service to vets and military issues. I did not realize that the store was for vet entrepreneurs. The girl approached and I asked what was happening to the stalling of promotions of military officers…..she gave me a blank stare and said she never listens to the news. That sent a chill down my back. Was this gal representative of many Americans? They don’t care enough to listen?
I wonder if it was the same bunch as set up a table yesterday outside a local Kroger selling cheap merch under a sign proclaiming that their work was supporting "veteran housing." But all the merch was the usual right-wing, 2nd Amendment crap, as if all veterans really approve of gun-totin', "Don't Tread On Me" bullshyte. I'm still undecided whether I want to ask the manager if that's a group he wants Kroger to be associated with.
You're right, I should ask, although I'm not sure how to report about it here without just dropping it in without context. Here, the "moving finger" not only passes on, it vaults to five different pages, contradicts itself twice, and forgets what it was just thinking about.
Certainly not in a class by herself. I have a relative, an intelligent and hardworking 40yo woman, who clearly knows nothing about news, government or history -- nor does she have any interest in learning. I suspect she is caught between two warring factions of her family: far right and far left. So she has bowed out. I love her but can’t help being so disappointed.
Much too early in the game, Mina. And please take into account that ultimately the question is which candidate do you vote for as compared to the other candidate or candidates? Joe wins! Moreover, we are yet to hear evidence in the MAL criminal indictment, the Jan6 indictment to come, etc etc --- so Joe's rating will go up compared to his opposition!
Dan: the numbers are there! As many as 8 Million new young voters in 24 and more in 26. Unquestionably they bring a more progressive point of view particularly on reproductive health, gun control and climate change. Polling shows that even conservative women 35 to 44 in suburbs do not accept Republican abortion bans because they are worried about their teenage and young twenties daughters. These issues will dominate 24 and set up the potential for massive gains particularly because T freezes all of their candidates including incumbents into fealty!
No need to convice you of anything just make a responsible read of valid data. The French president was re-elected with a 32 percent favorability rating. Obviously a social scientist wants a "likely voters" cohort or catch one hour straight of Steve Kornacki read outs.
Key data point this week is the stability of Biden's 42-44 percent.
Mina, Biden is growing. One thing I learned years ago was to not change horses in mid stream. I was pulling a pack string in the Bob Marshall when I came to the South Fork of the Flathead river trail crossing. I knew that my boots would fill with water as there was a small segment of deep water near the opposite bank. Usually it was a relatively easy crossing. On that day I was pulling only four loaded packhorses. I opted to be lazy and stand up in the saddle rather than to stop and stow boots. We had already pulled ten miles and the horses were hot as it was about noon. As the last horse hit the river he decided to roll which daisy chained up to my lead rope pulling me off and landing me on the packhorse behind me. The wreck was monumental. Fortunately there were no witnesses. Cargo floating off down the river, saddles on bellies, horses headed off in opposite directions. Me sitting in the middle of the river. I managed to get the show on the road again but like I said we ain’t never gonna change horses in mid stream again.
Pat, I loved your comment! I'm a city girl and I didn't have much contact with horses let alone ever hearing about "pack strings" or even the "Bob Marshall." However, I agree that it's usually best not to change horses in mid-stream! Thanks for making my day!!
President Biden’s performance is stunning and well understood by our most informed, experienced, professional and intelligent.
We must pray for the president’s health and wellbeing. Neither party today can offer a candidate with President Biden’s skills, quiet genius, patience, maturity, decency, empathy, warm humor, modesty and cool.
Running the executive branch today looks easy when a brilliant humble master is president.
Our people must hope and pray for continuity. It takes decades of hard work to acquire what President Biden brings to the Oval Office.
Personally, I'd rather not report Mr. Schmeeckle, since I've yet to see him do anything actually offensive beyond just showing lousy judgment as to probity. I don't want him to leave, I just want him to STEP UP HIS GAME.
I have no intention of allowing a troll to tell me which issues are "legitimate" --and I'm reasonably sure that goes for many others who are as bored as I am with seeing this "Schmeeckle" account repetitively post the same garbage on this thread.
Perhaps Harmless the Troll shouldn't have had that second bottle of wine before he started typing. Otherwise, he might have avoided bloviating about which issues are "legitimate."
Perhaps he is hoping to make an impression on the I.M.F. Holocaust deniers...
What an incredible contrast in tonight's letter between what a functional presidency and a totally dysfunctional presidency is!
My admiration of Joe Biden continues to grow as he keeps his focus on governing for the benefit of all of the American people while supporting his son in the most loving way possible as Republicans keep up their sniping. With Watters taking over Carlson's old prime time slot at Fox I am sure there will be more to come.
Trump’s bluster is like that of a cornered bully. Every time he speaks, he digs his hole deeper and gives Jack Smith more ammunition in his already airtight espionage case against him.
ProPublica published the White House’s four-page Bidenomics document.
Thanks Mim. I just printed it out and will talk about it tonight at a current affairs zoom Alum group [University of California, Berkeley]. I am a native of San Francisco and then later moved to Berkeley. Right now I’m near D.C. – came for a job. But every time I go out, I see construction crews repairing roads/bridges like I-95 which extends from Maine to Florida. And I see cargo trucks jamming the interstate. What this tells me is Bidenomics is working in real time.
'Kari Lake Declares Herself New Leader of the Wagner Group'
'PHOENIX (The Borowitz Report)—The situation in Russia descended into further uncertainty after Kari Lake stunned geopolitical experts by declaring herself the new leader of the Wagner Group.'
'Speaking from the mercenary force’s new headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, the former anchorwoman claimed that she won the leadership of Wagner by a landslide.'
'She warned Russian state media against questioning her claim to the Wagner helm. “I will be your worst frickin’ nightmare,” she said.'
'Wagner troops expressed surprise at Lake’s sudden elevation and reservations about whether she would be an improvement over their former leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin. “She seems really mean,” one said.' (Satire, NewYorker)
“Speaking as a Watergate historian, there’s nowhere on thousands of hours of Nixon tapes where Nixon makes any comment as clear, as clearly illegal, and as clearly self-aware as this Trump tape.”--Garrett Graff
And yet, even with T***p basically confessing on tape he did something illegal, Republicans in the House, and some in the Senate, STILL will deny T***p did anything wrong. The man could literally do or say ANYTHING and they would not believe in his culpability. How TF does one counter that kind of obstinacy?!? If that ain't a cult I don't know what is!!
'Donald Trump is not the victim here, folks'
by Rex Huppke
USA TODAY
'Did anyone in your pack of irrational fopdoodles ever stop, even for a moment, to think about the fact that the guy who keeps getting indicted, the guy who a jury recently found liable for sexual abuse and defamation, the guy who lies as easily as he breathes, the guy whose company was found guilty of multiple charges of criminal tax fraud and falsifying business records, the guy who riled up an angry mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol, the guy whose own lawyer (Michael Cohen) went to prison, the guy whose campaign chair (Paul Manafort) and national security adviser (Mike Flynn) and chief strategist (Steve Bannon) AND campaign adviser (Roger Stone) were all convicted on felony charges, the guy whose company’s chief financial officer pleaded guilty to 15 felonies in a decade-long tax scheme…have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, this isn’t the best guy to pin your political party’s future hopes on?'
'Has it ever dawned on any of you that perhaps the guy who seems to constantly surround himself with criminals might not really be the victim in this story?'
'Trump's own vice president, Mike Pence, said this week while launching his own presidential campaign that during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Trump put himself over the Constitution and "should never be president of the United States again." (Of course he later told Fox News he'll support whoever wins the GOP presidential nomination.)'
'If Trump was any more of an albatross for Republicans he’d be whacking you all in the face with his wings and squawking for a bucket of fish.'
'Republicans have had chance after chance to rinse off the stain of Trump
These new indictments against Trump are, once again, a perfect opportunity for you to do away with this toxic tyrant. You could’ve done it when he was first impeached by the House of Representatives. You could’ve done it when he was impeached a second time by the House of Representatives. You could’ve done it when he continued to push the lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen. And you could’ve done it when he was indicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in Manhattan back in March.'
'Biden wins again: Debt ceiling deal reveals the impotence of Donald Trump's MAGA 'movement
'But each time, all you did was rally around him like cheerleaders with Stockholm syndrome, rooting for the losingest loser to ever lose.'
'He’s dragging you and your party down, he’s viciously attacking DeSantis — who many of you seem to think is the party’s savior — and you know full well he’s dangerous and damaged goods. And he's not doing America any favors either.'
'So why not, for the good of the GOP and the good of the whole country, rid yourselves of Trump and nudge your party back toward some semblance of reality and normalcy?'
'Maybe it's because you can’t stop yourselves. You’ve bought into his victimization narrative every bit as much as he has, and you’re hooked. It’s like being addicted to banging your heads against the wall — it ain’t doing you or anybody else a bit of good, and you REALLY need to find a way to stop.'
'Republicans need to shake out of their stupor and read the writing on the wall
Consider this before you utter your next “THIS IS A SICKENING WITCH HUNT!” or “WHAT ABOUT EQUAL JUSTICE?”: This foul-mouthed bully you’ve leashed yourselves to is standing in a crapnado of legal trouble already, and there are two other major investigations — one federal, regarding attempts to overturn he 2020 election, and one state, regarding election interference in Georgia — yet to play out.'
'Sometimes a bad dude is just a bad dude. You can hate Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton or whoever else you want to hate, but the reason other people aren’t in the position Trump’s in is not because of some conspiracy.'
'It’s because there isn’t enough evidence to put any of them in such a position. Period.'
'Wake up, Republicans. You’re supporting a man who wouldn’t pour his Diet Coke on you if you were on fire.'
'It's time to wipe the zany from your eyes, pinch yourselves out of your cult-induced stupor, pull out your pocket knives and cut bait.' (USAToday) See link below and another by Huppke right below it.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/06/09/trump-indicted-federal-charges-espionage-act-republicans-still-support-him/70304948007/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/06/11/trump-indictment-classified-documents-evidence-accountability/70307577007/
They love him because he allowed them to be who they always were, without fear or shame, with favor. He was their champion. Others are stepping closer, lurking nearby to grab the banner should the champion falter, but none have illusions about who the champion is as long as Trump still sings the siren song: America,1955 or thereabouts.
Maybe 1855 or thereabouts
Thanks, Fern. Very refreshing!
It's a scream and best indictment/comedy I've read. Thanks, Lynell; laughter lifts the day!
and I got to look up two new words that I hope to use, especially the first one:
fopdoodle: A stupid or insignificant fellow; a fool; a simpleton
and
crapnado: A shitstorm, only taller, faster, more deadly, and possibly involving cows or cow dung
;)
They are better words than "Bigly"! I am still in a contest with a friend to find a way to use that word (?) in a real sentence.
Whenever Bigly speaks there is another tremor on or near the San Andreas. (test run)
The angry cheeto is in trouble bigly....
Huppke has always had a flair for the right words and just the right amount of "kick." If you're on the right side of it you howl with laughter, while those on the wrong side howl in pain.
No, they just don't understand the words and they won't look them up like Liz did!
Sounds a lot like our TC, doesnt it?
Bravo to Rex Huppke, and thanks so much for posting this, Fern McBride. Who do the Rs nominate next? Al Capone for President, Bonnie and Clyde for Vice?
Sadly Sander, there are people out there that will read the Rex Huppke piece and believe it as fact and not satire...
I guess I am one of those sadly Sander people. I thought of this as apostrophe to those drunk on T****.
Fern, this is the best blunt summary of the whole F-ing situation I have read. Thanks for sharing!
AGREE!
Anyone who can read, or who gets information from outside of the right-wing false-news bubble, knows that Trump is a criminal, has always been, and now has lost his mind and is a danger to himself and others.
But, watch Fox News for 1/2 an hour. 3 minutes about Russia, 10 minutes about Hunter Biden, 5 minutes about Ron DeSantis saving us, 5 minutes about how Biden is old and doesn’t know what he is doing, Jim Jordan talking about corruption in the DOJ, which is the only time that Trump is mentioned. They haven’t mentioned Trump’s trials for days, except to say “they are still out to get him.”
That's FOX all right!
Fox (I refuse to put the word News on there) is the living embodiment of why we need the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine. In 1987 Congress passed this legislation and ronnie raygun vetoed it.
Fox is in an alternative universe.
Ohhh how I loved this, Fern! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Good morning, dear Marlene!
I am a little late, Fern but good morning!💞
Excellent! Thank you, Fern McBride, and USA Today and Rex Huppke.
Thanks for this Fern.
What tfg said and did resonated with them (the voters). If not, then they would have been as appalled as we all are. I've felt this way since nearly the beginnng. Friends and relatives have been revealed and until I hear they regret their vote for him, I can only assume they will support him again (or someone like him).
We will not/can not move forward as a country until many more people turn away from him.
MK, DJT has resonated with many of the scapegoaters but not with a majority of American voters. I think that denouncements of him will get louder each time that he is indicted and convicted, along with the circulation of his self-incriminating audios. That gigantically dishonest, cruel and ignorant madman will shrink into and an orange turd behind bars.
Neal Katyal just gave all voters a huge victory this morning overturning the "independent state legilature" sedition in 6-3 Opinion in Moore vs Harper.
Bryan, is that tangentially connected to the orange turd behind bars in our dreams?
Neal Katyal just commented on his 3rd posting on his new Platform. Anything that strengthens the rule of law makes incarceration more likely.
Ah the picture of the "orange turd" BEHIND BARS! Now that lives in my imagination (hopefully in the future will be reality).
I am looking forward to seeing that happen!
Let's hope you're correct. I'm worried about how gerrymandering and Republican state governments are working to prevent people from voting.
J. Nol, let's take an important win. 'Supreme Court Rejects Theory That Would Have Transformed American Elections. The 6-to-3 majority dismissed the “independent state legislature” theory, which would have given state lawmakers nearly unchecked power over federal elections.' (NYTimes) I do not have a gifting option with the paper now. If you subscribe to the Times or Washington Post, I suggest that you read about this decision. Politico, which you can reach by Google, has a article about the decision, so try that.
Oh yes. I did read about it, and heard about it on NPR. So I'd say it's a win, but that doesn't stop the gerrymandering, or does it?
They were told this in 2012, after Obama won. Then they turned to chump. See the problem…
“Crapnado of legal trouble …” 😁
Well, that says it all, Fern! What a writer Huppke is. Funny: Fopdoodle! Crapnado! Wipe the zany from your eyes! If only. I doubt the zanies would read and appreciate its humor or its truth. But it surely started MY day off very well. Thank you!
Thank you, Fern!
Fopdoodles - my new favorite word.
I live in Tornado Alley Oklahoma, and I believe I have been in the worst "Crapnado" in history for the past 7 years! Here they're going to use my tax dollars to fund religious schools!
Crapnado..... stolen.... immediately...
North Carolina is funding charter schools with public money. One step away from religious schools.
The only thing wrong with that analysis is that hanging on to Trump assures that Republicans speed toward the dustbin of history.
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THAT!
Not a thing
I am profoundly hoping that the angry cheeto is the trumper (they are not Republicans any more) nominee. At that point, the Dems could run an ham sandwich and win.
I would love to steal this an post it on my FB page. Maybe, JUST maybe someone would read it and learn!
That's not stealing Colette; I call it sharing, which is exactly what I have done. Go for it!
Thanks again Fern!
Rex Huppke was with the Chicago Tribune for many years until they cut their budget and offered buy-outs. That is when he moved to USA Today. He always keeps me laughing and feeling empowered by the truth he reveals.
Right on, Bruce.
If Despicable Don has ever said anything truthful, it was when he said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue in the middle of the day and STILL not lose his voters.
"...he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue in the middle of the day and STILL not lose his voters."
Yes, that statement by trump is probably accurate: That's such an ominous measure of his control over his masses.
That would be a valuable measure of how strong his support is. If each trump supporter could be told of trump's statement--including the date and location of the statement--and then ask that supporter if he or she believes the statement is accurate and if they would still support trump after he simply shot someone in cold blood..
Heydon. Trumpist response ; “If he shot someone, they probably deserved it. We need more brave people like Our Trump”
Dave, I have to agree. Shooting people isn't a negative to these acolytes of the gun culture.
Will Bidenomics convert some in the cult or are they too overweight (a disease, no one dares talk about) and too drunk on opioids to take advantage of good jobs and the general economy the president is offering?
Virginia, as you know there’s a disease called Denial at present in The House of Representatives by ‘the trumpests’. As for being overweight In all it’s undisguised
form, it’s so nearly universal that not many know how or want to deal with it. It’s almost a form of suicide since obesity is the number one underlying cause of death in this country.
Samm, thank you for letting me know what I guessed about obesity. As for “trumpests” it’s just great! Shall capitalize it and use it if it’s ok with you.
No doubt about the severity of the obesity issue in the U.S. That's why I'm concerned about the president's appointee to the Biden administration’s 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. Dr. Fatima Stanford, a highly-credentialed M.D. said, “The number one cause of obesity is genetics...if you were born to parents that have obesity, you have a 50-85% likelihood of having the disease yourself even with optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, stress management.” (Said on CBS’s “60 Minutes” Jan. 1.)
It's hard for me to believe Dr. Stanford's statement; that is, blaming obesity on genetics. So, the obese who choose to avoid optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, and stress management--they could just blame their condition on genetics and say there's nothing to be done about it.
From what I recently heard, 50% of the U.S. population is expected to be obese by 2030. Needless to say, the pharmaceutical industry will find ways to thrive on that.
Without a doubt if they aren’t already and the American Grocers Association will continue to push processed foods.
Don't forget the American fast food industry. And the US government subsidizing corn but not broccoli.
NB/ I may not respond to every comment here. So, I have expound this issue on my newsletter. Subscribe and read more
Trump had a way of escaping from the truth. If he is wrong, he calls them as alternative facts. If someone does not agree with him, he mocks them.
Trump mirrored resemblance to weather. Changing to suit his predicament.
Little did we know this would be the scariest quote ever!
That statement seemed so absurd at the time, but man has it proven true,SO FAR!!! No one is above the law!
There is something each of us can do...please start tomorrow (Tuesday) and call your Republican Congressperson (House and/or Senate, if you have one) to ask point blank and respectfully whether the Member has heard OR READ the tape and if not, why not?, and if he/she will admit that T****clearly violate the law by possessing and sharing a classified document? Don't let them escape from answering the question, and/or from staff from promising to pass your questions on to the MOC? Will you do it? I have only Dems, thank goodness.
Dems in my state too, but I still bombard the R senators in a former state of residence with letters and calls on every issue I can.
Terrific thank you
Great idea!
It’s not possible to make them answer any question. They all have PhDs in lying, misdirecting, denying, counterattacking, etc. It’s their only skill and their definition of governance.
That's not a reason for not trying?
Agree but some Republican House members are on the bubble and sometimes respond.
Me too, Ira! Thank goodness for the Dems in my state.
How lucky you are
Sorry for the terrible typos!
The chance of getting to actually talk to our representative is probably slim, but all of them have websites. We could ask the question there and after they remove the question from their sites, we can ask it again and again.
But if you ever have a chance to travel to DC you can arrange appointments to see them in person. How satisfying it would be to ask them face to face.
Yes, indeed! Our Representative retired after about 30 years of being our jerk in Congress, thankfully. Then our districts were redrawn to reflect more fair.maps. Now for the FIRST time in 40 years we have better representation at least in our state. Go Big Gretch!
Fortunately, I have Ds all around representing me here in Oregon. People in the 5th district should be calling their Rep, a R who barely won, and asking her this and other pertinent questions. She already has quality Ds who want to take her on. Whenever I read about the cult, I think about a house we see when we drive a certain road here in Salem.....flying several death star flags. Our rep in the Oregon legislature is, as my husband put, a Christofascist and is beyond any sane response. The legislature for this year is finally over and passed a flurry of bills because the Rs walked out and there was no quorum in the Senate. According to a measure voters passed by a large margin, they cannot run again. Of course, they will fight it in court. Ds are also considering changing the quorum rules and just go for a simple majority.
Me too. I feel so fortunate to be represented by all Dems. There are pockets of sanity in the country.
Wonderful suggestion. Thanks, and I will call mine. I’m sure my House Rep, Andy Harris, will have some false conspiracy based statement prepared as he was a participant at the December 21,2020 “let’s commit treason and overthrow the government - electoral college election results meeting.” He got his political start with a $250k campaign donation from Nazi Admirer Harlan Crow. He claims to care about this nation and uses his service in the Navy to support his claims(US Naval doctor). He disgraces “one of the uniforms of service” of our nation as he behaved/behaves as a treasonous liar with his participation in that December 21st meeting and then his vote to deny the results of the election. I have no doubt that he continues to participate in TFG’s protracted coup. I will call his office.
I have tried calling and ALL I ever get is a recording......I never get to talk to a person...........
You pose a fascinating question. What might be the psychology and material circumstances and ages of those affixed adoringly and passionately to Agent Chaos? For nowhere else is there a large group of Americans as vociferously and staunchly and publicly in support of things you’d think would be high on the list to be passionate about. Like the insulting crappy health care system. Or like the corporate insistence on precision scheduling of workers (a pure stress mill), or the weak kneed efforts to deal with economic decisions generating houselessness, or the super big existential enchilada of Big Oil’s burgeoning continuing profits while increasingly dire statistics of speeding up climate events posing the end of life as we know it. Isn’t it curious? No one’s talking about the rising rates of depression and suicide among the children? No one seems to care about that. Not in the same action oriented way that supporters of Trump are acting. Not surprising the loud voices are getting all the media attention. And Biden okayed the gigantic destructive big gas/oil Willow project in Alaska. The citizenry? Not even a peep. Go figure.
And the media continues to cover all the people who spout on and on about how victimized and unfair it is for the government to continue to hold the T.rubble to task....this style of reporting only supports his followers to continue in their delusion. I for one, do not want to see another interview with the citizen on the street who mouth the propaganda of the repugnants trying to salvage their power.
Bravo Ms. Sweet on a new moniker, "Agent Chaos", for his despicableness. Well done!
"Comrade Chaos" is another I saw years ago that I liked. That gets his Putin into his name, too.
It’s the basket of deplorables of whom HRC spoke. The second part of a quotation of which only that line made it, thanks to Republican propaganda.
Elements of your comment sharply resonate with me. It's because of a book I've been immersed in, "The Deluge" by Stephen Markley. While fiction, it reads like a non-fiction account of the world we inhabit today and a far more calamitous one that increasingly looks plausible — if not likely — as soon as the next decade.
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Deluge/Stephen-Markley/9781982123093#:~:text=In%20the%20first%20decades%20of,violent%20weather%20and%20extreme%20politics.
Micheal; I think Jackson read that book
https://youtu.be/bfF0x8e38Kg
Dave Dalton Writes Dave Fake News - "Micheal; I think Jackson read that book"
And with the lyrics:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SX-HFcSIoU
Masterful, poignant writing. He captures so much in the song. Thanks for the version with lyrics. I'll here the song as I finish the book.
Ron, thank youfor this....for sharing "youtube".....Jackson Browne has been one of my favorites. He is a wonderful poet.....fitting lyrics for these times.
Brilliant. Thanks, Dave.
Thank you Michael for the recommendation. Will follow up on it.
We humans seem easily galvanized around hate but so much less so around positive values and actions for good.
Is the approval because Alaska wants it and because
Putin is getting very active in the Arctic? Is anyone else getting “The Barents Observer” online? It appeared in my email.
Virginia, Putin has been in and around the Artic for years. He does not miss an opportunity to put down his "footprint". I wonder if we are as serious. He is forward looking as far as gaining power, control and opportunity.
Of course this includes mining in Africa and building relationships.....as he uses the people.
We cannot sleep!!!
Absolutely we cannot sleep! My “non-comment” is that with oilmen crawling over Alaska, it’s both protection for Alaskans and cover for our intelligence agencies for US to be there en masses. As a true Green Survivaler I don’t like the pursuit of oil AT ALL, but don’t think President Biden would have gone for it without good reason - beyond keeping Republicans quiet, that is. I also recognize that we cannot be green overnight in America. It’s likely that social governments will be more organized to handle transitions. Look at trains in Europe, for example.
Putin has pulled out of scientific study and research in the Arctic.
But is putting two submarines there says the Barents Observer.
The willow project is indeed horrific. I believe it was a case of “pick your battles”. It was permitted under dumpty and faced multiple expensive legal challenges, which it was felt would win. Also the witless greedy folks in Alaska strongly favor it, as the state distributes taxes paid by the environmental destroyers to the people in Alaska. Same idea as buying off networks with lots of advertising $$$for products the viewers cannot buy. Your doctor may also be in the pay of pharmaceutical companies, mine was a “consultant “ and made nearly 20% of her income from it. Never met an antidepressant she didn’t love.
Follow the money.
I am an Alaskan but do not consider myself witless or greedy. i have seen, and lived, what oil money did for the people of Alaska. Schools were built. Alaskan Natives were allowed to keep their children home in the villages because schools were built there and children were no longer forced to be sent to boarding schools. That alone is reason to thank oil companies. The oil companies would have happened anyway in Alaska and it was best to ensure that some of the money would come to Alaskans......and that means every resident. It was brilliant. i am definitely aware of the profit the oil companies have earned as well as the fossil fuel dangers to the climate, as most Alaskans who are neither witless nor greedy are aware. Dont think that it was an easy decision for Biden or Alaskans. There has been a Stop the Willow Project outcry for years.
I did not mean to offend. My daughter in law lives near Fairbanks and teaches, and I am aware of what big oil does “for” Alaskans. I think it’s a sad irony that climate change is more rapid near the poles and equator,, and will affect the Gulf coast, whose entire economy is based on extractive oil industries and will suffer the most and soonest.
Said daughter in law bemoans the dramatic changes she’s seen (they fish salmon and hunt) yet somehow never connects the oil industry and her income from it to the damage she sees.
I consider her “witless” in that sense, not seeing what is plainly obvious.
The time for burning oil for fuel has passed. I’m an a organic chemist and I cannot understand the stupidity of burning these difficult to manufacture complex molecules to ship watermelons from South America when we know better.
And in Alaska by now you should know better too.
I do know...........maybe not the way you suggest. I am a native Alaskan, born here before Alaska became a state. A teacher myself, I was raised in a village on the Kuskowim River. I continue to do much hunting and fishing and the fishing I do requires a long gill net set off the beach. The sockeye run is strong this year, but we have never failed to get our fish any year. ADF&G manages the hunting and fishing to ensure adequate resources . Unfortunately the Yukon River has seen an insufficient escapement to allow subsistence fishing there. Might it be related to fish wheels? I really doubt it is related to oil development. You would have to show me the direct connection. Fish travel out to sea and return so where is the oil impact? 100 brown bears were shot in Southcental Alaska this year to protect the caribou. Too many??? where is the oil impact? remarkable engineering raised the oil pipeline so caribou could travel under it and those herds are thriving. It is true that many from outside Alaska (Alito et al) come here to fish and hunt for sport, and others to fish commercially and return with profits to other states. In my opinion, limiting sport fishing and hunting from out of staters would be great, but the big bucks are welcome for the out of state outfitters.
i dont believe any state returns part of its oil profit to the people of that state as much as Alaska. The Willow Project continues to be a controversy, but many believe there will not be any production for at least 10 years. i dont see oil people swarming the area where I live, and not in Anchorage either. Maybe they travel here and back to the Lower Fortyeight too often to be seen much.
I don't understand how you can say you did not mean to offend.
But what is more important about your comment is the amount of ignorance it displays about the complexity of Alaska's relationship with oil.
The Willow Project approval was impossible for Biden to avoid but it does not mean that there will ever be drilling actually done.
The time for burning oil for fuel and for using it to produce a gazillion other products is hardly over; how much of your clothing contains polyester?
The people of Alaska are on the front lines of climate change; they more than anyone else in the United States can see climate change happening. But the people of Alaska are also on the front lines of figuring out how to make a transition from an extraction based economy to something sustainable and livable. It is far from simple and it's unfair to judge from the lower 48.
Except, since we are all interdependent, our choices and behaviors affect the whole system in small and large ways. Thus we should all have some input into the decisions that will affect not only humans but all other living beings on the planet. Some of us need to advocate for those without voices, whose every existence is imperiled by human beings' reckless exploitation of the earth. Consumerism will be the death of us all.
Selina,
You sound like "American Carnage". You are VERY incorrect about Willow project. Everyone is talking about the rates of depression and suicide. I do not see supporters of Trump acting to reverse climate change or youth suicide.
The Willow Project again? Really?
Just because you have not paid attention to the comments does not mean they do not exist.
This was written as a response to Selina's comment...
'Listen: In audio recording, Trump heard discussing sensitive Iran document'
'The Washington Post has obtained the 2021 audio recording in which former president Donald Trump appears to brag about possessing a classified document related to Iran that he acknowledges he did not declassify before leaving office.'
'The recording, referenced in the federal indictment against Trump and first aired Monday by CNN, features Trump describing a multi-page document that he alleges is about possibly attacking Iran.'
“See, as president I could have declassified it, now I can’t. … Isn’t that interesting? It’s so cool,” Trump said on the recording.
'Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents. In a recent interview, Trump claimed that he was unaware of the Iran document being among the materials in the boxes recovered at Mar-a-Lago — his private club and Florida residence — by the FBI and Justice Department. He also continued to claim that everything he took with him was declassified. He pleaded not guilty earlier this month during an arraignment at a federal courthouse in Miami.'
'Prosecutors’ 49-page indictment outlined two instances in which Trump disclosed sensitive papers in unsecured environments, post-presidency, to individuals who lacked the necessary security clearances required to view any classified information. The second instance described in the indictment was an August or September 2021 meeting where Trump showed an unnamed representative of his political action committee a classified map of “Country B,” and expressed to the individual that he shouldn’t be sharing the map.'
'The audio recording is quoted in the indictment, which describes a meeting Trump held at his Bedminster golf club in July 2021 with two staffers, as well as the publisher and writer of an upcoming book. People familiar with the matter have said the book was a forthcoming memoir by Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows.'
'Meadows described the scene in his book, “The Chief’s Chief,” indicating that Trump described a four-page document he claimed was an invasion plan for Iran that he said was written by the Defense Department and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. At that time, Milley was a frequent target of Trump’s ire, and the former president was hoping to push back against articles and books in which Milley was described as having had to restrain Trump from irresponsible military action in Iran.'
'Former military officials previously told The Post that Milley never recommended attacking Iran. But it was customary for the Pentagon to prepare memos outlining a variety of military options to respond to a foreign adversary, people familiar with Milley’s briefings to the president said. The Pentagon did have a memo for a military attack on Iran as one conceivable option, but it was not written by Milley, these people said.'
'During the nearly two-minute recording, Trump describes a document as “highly confidential” before saying “this is secret information.” At one point he says, “You probably didn’t believe me, but now you believe me. It’s incredible.”
'The audio also runs counter to what Trump told Fox News anchor Bret Baier in an interview that aired last week. In the interview, Trump denied referring to an actual document during the conversation at Bedminster; rather, he said he was discussing “newspaper stories, magazine stories and articles.” (WAPO) See link below and the link to Trump audio, which was obtained by CNN and posted in HCR's, Notes. If WAPO link does open to audio, the link to Trump audio on CNN, taken from Notes, was also posted below.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/06/26/donald-trump-audio-recording-iran-documents/
https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/26/politics/trump-classified-documents-audio/index.html
Impressive annotation FERN.
Solid work by Washington Post.
The Trump disclosure Transcript is featured on several platforms this morning:
" Trump: These are the papers".
Jack Smith has requested & a Court Hearing is now docketed for July 14, 2023 to discuss CIPA procedures generally. No downside to showing jurors the Iran War plans in open Court in my opinion. Although not required, I would call Trump's Aide, MARGO MARTIN, for context as she recorded the admissions.
BREAKING: Solid work by NEAL KATYAL at SCOTUS today. Victory in Moore v Harper.
Thanks again Fern! To steal a moniker from another person, "Agent Chaos" was and is such a threat to all Americans and should be treated as such. When he was "elected" in 2016 I was afraid for our country. People actually said, "it's only for four years, relax". Sadly, we can all see the damage agent chaos has wreaked on our country. The fact that he still appears so strong is really a commentary on the people of this country as much as it is on him.
Bruce, Jack Smith will demonstrate exactly how to deal with a mendacious manipulator including direct testimony today from 6 Secret Service Trump agents before the J6 Grand Jury.
I have no doubt Jack Smith will call General Milley on Trump's entire "war with Iran" desperate wag-the-dog gambit AFTER November 2020 but, before J6. More to come from Jack Smith linking Trump directly to sedition.
Actually, I think many of them know, on some level, how abysmally messed up this all is, but if they allow one thread to unravel by admitting concern about anything, the entire ridiculousness of their adherence to this guy will be revealed as it all unravels. Instead, they double down on the double downed lies to convince their uneducated, undereducated racist minions that it’s just an attempt to harm their Fuehrer. Nazis believe that telling a lie long and loud enough gives it the gleam of truth-perception is reality. They count on that. They did it then; they are doing it now. Speaking truth would hold them accountable for the cruel and twisted mess we are in. Speaking truth? For them-oh, the horror. The GOP are Nazis-every one of them. Even their silence is complicity. I’m disgusted. End of rant.
Jen, I suspect that you are Right on target with your unraveling metaphor. As Jack Smith continues his "bottom up" process of investigation, many of those R congress-critters who were part of the fake elector schemes are PARTICULARLY concerned that not one thread unravel because they lie (in all senses of the word) at the other end of those threads.
Agreed! Having to admit their wrongness as well as facing punishment for their despicable unAmerican actions is their nightmare.
Rant on, Jen!!!!!
LoL. I need to put on my readers. It’s late, but I swear I first saw, “And yet, even with F*****g basically confessing on tape he did something illegal....” Oops, no. Then I thought, what if Bruce doesn’t have my sailor potty mouth? Then I saw, “How TF does one counter that kind of obstinacy?!?” and thought, right on, Bruce, Effin A, how DOES one talk logic to those incapable of it?
Trying to think of an historical figure akin to T, Rasputin comes to mind. But then again, T is in no way as intelligent as Rasputin was. T is likely more evil.
Perhaps Caligula? Sorry if I spelled his name incorrectly. Or perhaps the fictional character of Darth Vader's leader in Star Wars?
Actually, when I was a real estate broker in Manhattan, I found myself in a line of brokers to shake hands with him. That was a long time ago.
I swear, I felt Voldemort had touched me. Pure evil.
Ewww! Cooties! I have often called him Voldemort!
Donald Trump had a historical poor relationship with common sense. In many instances, he would defy any logic if it does not agree with his stand
This is his personality and he would brag of how he does things to his own egoistic attitude.
I once read a book by Donald Trump dubbed how to become rich, but as you read, you will notice the bragging nature of his inheritance (though he didn't mention in the book) and how he personally wrote the book.
So, Trump leaking classified information is not a surprise to me.
Edwin, exactly......a poor relationship with truth.....his own egotistical attitude....and his total disrespect for his voters whom he whispers sweet NOTHINGS to.....knowing they will believe and receive anything and everything he does or says with NO JUDGEMENT.
I was in shock when he was nominated for President. His nomination was my ending to all or any respect for the Republican Party and the end of my voting for anyone within the Republican Party. I saw him as unamerican, as an enemy of this country....as devoid of the ability to lead a free nation.
NOTHING has changed about this person. I also see a complete void of courage in most of the members of the Republican Party. How can one person who is so lacking in character, have such a hold on elected leaders and citizens of a "free" country???? It is unbelievable to me and yet here we are!!!
I am proud to vote for members of the Democratic Party who love freedom for all , who demonstrate more respect for our fellow human beings, for our earth and climate change....for supporting Ukraine. I am for healthcare for all and opportunity for an excellent education for our children. We must work hard for these things if we want to continue to become a greater nation and an example of goodness and freedom and opportunity in this world.
And thanks to Joe Biden and to other leaders who have voted for improved internet communication for all....including remote areas. Thank you!!! President Biden's love for this country and its people is not just shown in words but ACTION!!!
There is movement and proof that "Building Back Better" is becoming a reality. Thanks to all the men and women who are using their gifts and skills to accomplish this hard work.
I am grateful for leadership that chooses to feed the hungry and provide health care for those in need. I am grateful for Americans who support freedom everywhere and are putting words into actions!!!
You have such an incredible, an all-out-of-heart explanation about Donald Trump and your view towards a united country with respect for freedom and those with diverse opinions 👏
Donald Trump won't change his personality nor how he leads America.
Thank you Emily!
Bruce, I would like to amend your comment, " Republicans in the House, and some in the Senate, STILL will PUBLICALLY deny T***p did anything wrong. "
If these members can tie their shoes, they have to privately acknowledge his guilt, but as a cohesive voice, why should they? He has them bullied and beaten into a mockery of a Congress ( aexcepting our side). The longer a lie stands unchallenged, the more likely it will be accepted as truth. We have all heard the expression Ideas trump Facts, and Beliefs trump Ideas. Here is another version:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20161026-how-liars-create-the-illusion-of-truth
Whether intentional or not, the person on trial mixes truth with falsehood in a way that makes it hard to dissect out one from the other.
Some believe what they want to believe, facts be damned. Just returned from a family reunion in Texas. My almost 70-year old nephew is completely vested in the conspiracy theories: Trump won the 2020 election as did Kari Lake in Arizona - the elections were stolen. Fraud was widespread. His "news" sources? OAN and Newsmax. All the others, MSNBC, ABC, BBC, CNN and more are fake news. (His words.)
Richard, as the words, of the song, by Simon & Garfunkel:
A Man Hears, what He WANTS to Hear, ..... and. DISREGARDS !
The. REST !
GOD! ,...Gave Us CONSCIENCE,
& the ABILITY, to CHOOSE !
BLESSINGS !
Of course it’s a cult and it’s rotten to the very core.
What about Trump mimicking Nixon – “I am not a crook!”
Bruce, it is a cult. And tfg grabbed what there is of the minds of the opiated masses and used their religion to fuel his narcissistic wet dream. And the superwealthy grabbed him as a front man for their agenda of perpetual enrichment of themselves at the expense of those masses.
I wonder when Trump will start blaming all this on AI that's manufactured by Democrats.
Maybe if Nixon had been held accountable we would not be in as much of a mess as we are now.
I doubt that. The citizenry were much more vocal and engaged then than these days. The only ones stirring up the air waves and putting their bodies where their tongues are these days appear to be Trump supporters. Whistle blowers were not thrown in jail then like these days. Corporate media hadn’t swallowed 50% plus of local newspapers across the land and consolidated their power into what ? 5 outfits today? Infotainment replacing various views. Explosion in governmental surveillance of citizens today. No. As Wolins described it. Inverted totalitarianism depends on an apathetic ( read inactive undemonstrable disengaged)citizenry so corporations Can will out their profit making designs on a passive public under a “managed” democracy. Chomsky perceives we have one party today. The Business Party with a Democratic Party tilted slightly leftward and a Republican Party (Cult?) bent Rightward. Seems an apt description. Otherwise why wouldn’t we be crashing the White House gates relentlessly for the actions required now to make a future livable for our children? Do you just sit around watching your home burn down with your children in it?
When Nixon committed his crimes, most of the survivors of World War 2 were still alive, and had watched the McCarthy Witch Hunts on TV and had no tolerance for Nazi dog whistles or nuts with guns shooting children in schools. It is a different era now.
“Corporate media hadn’t swallowed 50% plus of local newspapers across the land and consolidated their power into what ? 5 outfits today?“
Very appreciative you bring this to light. It seems to be one of the very things so many many many peopled have missed. The monopoly ownership of media serves no one but those who are the monopoly owners. They can, and do, decide what you read (also see and hear). It’s one step away from “government controlled media” like exists in authoritarian governed countries and dictatorships.
These countries control the government, control the media, control the courts…..
We’re very very close to this being the case in the USA, but here it will be the Oligarchy, the wealthiest 1/10th of the top 1% wealthiest people running the show. The richest of the rich forming the serfdom for which we will all be submissive (and to some extent already are). And dare I say it’s a “Christian Oligarchy” doing the takeover, or trying to….
Now do Robert E Lee and Jefferson Davis. There’s a whole secessionist “State of Jefferson” made of parts of rural Northern California and Southern Oregon most of America knows nothing about.
I live in Humboldt County, CA & have been aware of the push for the “State of Jefferson” for awhile….it is mostly the northern inland parts of CA & parts of So Oregon and some (lots of parts) of the western mountain states. My county is mostly blue-ish (thank you!), but we rub up against diametrically opposed opinions of governance in surrounding areas. To say that it is a challenge and interesting at the same time is an understatement!
John, it's such little-known California history, but our first senator in California, William Gwin, was a slaveowner from Mississippi who had a hammer lock on California politics for its first decade as a state, and he tried very hard and more successfully than I would ever have thought to either make California secede to the Confederacy or create a separate, Pacific Republic that would enshrine slavery as the law, in perpetuity.
One can see "State of Jefferson" flags when driving through southern Oregon. They fly alongside Trump flags.
So yes, I know those of us who live in the “State of Jefferson” are well aware of it, but I sincerely doubt most of the rest of you knew of this West Coast embarrassment. Thank you Alexandra for chiming in with some of the history. Joining the military remains one of the best ways of getting out of the South, which is also the highest recruiting area, and California has many military bases including the largest Naval base in the world in San Diego (also how I got out), and sadly many bring their bigotry with them.
However, Jefferson Public Radio is broadcast out of Ashland, Oregon which has got to be the most liberal city in the region...
Really it's mostly humor these days, but if Pearl Harbor hadn't been attacked...
And beyond the humor is the very real fact that southwestern Oregon and Northwestern California have been "out of the loop" of their respective state governments, and remain challenged by access difficulties.
When I first moved to “Jefferson” in 2006, I did a lot of rural healthcare lobbying in Sacramento, and the “Jefferson” Assembly members and State Senators were routinely the biggest roadblocks to progress, squarely aiming for their own feet with both barrels.
Yes, south west Oregon county voters have been their own worst enemies too. They were spoiled by years of timber revenue and saw no reason to support their own services.
Exactly. And there were Repugs back then downplaying Nixon’s crimes . . . A social studies teacher even arguing that Nixon didn’t commit the crimes behind Watergate even as the Watergate hearings were being aired. We should have put the hammer to criminal politicians; there should be accountability and deterrence. Instead, we passed flawed laws allowing fascist corporate heads to skew elections and blithely legitimatize the corruption as “Citizens United.” The Repugs have ALWAYS been a corrupt entity and now the party is an outright, organized crime syndicate for neonazi fascists.
I've often thought that same thought Susan.
Susan, that’s an interesting question. The attempt to hold Nixon accountable has fed the “stabbed in the back” narrative the right loves to flog. If he had been convicted by the Senate I’m not sure it would have improved the arc of the right’s slide into collective madness. Too many feeder streams of resentment. The Clinton impeachment was in large part payback for Nixon’s.
I was furious when Ford pardoned him which he certainly didn't deserve. I wonder if he ever privately acknowledged that what he did was wrong. If nobody is above the law, then even presidents should be held accountable.
The Biden administration yet again deserves praise for sweeping improvements to the U.S. infrastructure. It's long overdue. I suspect many Americans, who can't afford to travel abroad, have no idea how far behind the country is compared to many other nations.
We're also way behind in regulating what companies can charge for basic services, which high-speed has become. It's so essential to living, yet the price gouging is obscene. Which is exactly what the Republicans and their monied handlers want.
You are so right about how bad we are on this subject.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/227082/countries-with-the-highest-internet-penetration-rate/
High speed (normal) internet is as essential as electricity and water to survive and possibly thrive in this nation. Most towns have only one provider. If they have two, they collude to rig prices. It's a complicated problem that could be solved if we took the power from the money grubbing oligarchs.
The good ole free enterprise way would be to require towns to employ additional options. But that doesn't work, because the wires are owned by the single provider. That would require a new company to spend enormous amounts to wire the town. It ain't happening.
So what's the simple solution? Create regional independent government sponsored and regulated internet systems. Just like water. Take over the wiring. And expand it to all.
In a neighboring affluent town, there is an internet service from the town itself. Most towns couldn't afford to do that. But it is inspiring.
So hats off to this administration for attempting to bring this country up to speed on an essential of life.
In North Carolina, the GOP-controlled legislature has made it illegal for municipalities to provide internet service when the for-profit-companies refuse to do so. So, even when the municipality can afford to do it, the GOP makes it impossible.
So the GOP is so afraid of "socialism" and protective of a POSSIBLE private enterprise effort, they say to their constituents: "Frack You"?
Talk about bought and paid for puppets of oligarchy.
Wow
Bill, it would seem that we are ripe for congress (the president?) to do what was done back in the 1930's and declare high-speed internet a public utility serving all citizens. The government (state governments) could regulate what can be charged and how much and how often prices can be raised to cover the costs of maintaining the infrastructure much the same way we have managed electricity supply (except, I suppose, in Texas).
VERY IMPORTANT observation, Michael Bates. High speed rail in France (TGV) takes EVERYBODY. And I hear from friends who just flew there that Air France doesn’t do internal flights, but is using high speed rail instead. (Did anyone else read that flights release jet fuel as they fly or did everyone but me know that?)
Trains, at least good ones, are a joy. And besides the environmental benefits, train travel is free of the stress of air travel. Last week, we took a seven-our train ride from Oslo to Bergen on the Norwegian coast. It traversed dense forest and snowy mountains but was smoother than a recent trip from Portland to Seattle on Amtrak.
Stop! Stop! As one who has ridden the TGV in France over most of the country (my husband was the grandson of a PRR engineer, HOscale models from 1934-44, a member of the PRRT&HS, and a rider of any train he could get on), I have learned European trains in several countries, including Poland’s version of the TGV from Bialystok to Warsaw (excellent). My last big train trip, thanks to Covid, was a Paris-Warsaw jaunt about which I shall laugh forever. Have you tried provincial trains in France? Not bad. Single or double cars often. Smooth rides on cement tie tracks.
Thank you for Scandinavian recommendation.
Not surprised that Oslo-Bergen was smoother than Amtrak. The track upkeep, like that of public transport in Chicago, is terrible. Why can’t we have concrete ties?
Virginia, I understand that Aircraft Release Their Fuel, IF!
Coming in, on a POSSIBLE, Crash
Condition, or OTHER hazard. situation, to NOT, have the Flammable Fuel , ON BOARD!
CORRECT ME, ....IF I'm Wrong...,....
I wasn’t thinking flammable, just diesel in tiny drops as planes fly over. Where can I get an answer on this one?
Virginia, as per My previous post, .....
YES ! Your right ! IF IT IS Released,
It Disperses, the RAW JP -3, or JP-4
KEROSENE ! ...ALL OVER the Area Below! (Environmently ! NOT GOOD ;
mark cramer, thank you! Knew I had read that, but didn’t remember where or when. (Too much information!) Wwondering today while living in Canadian forest fire smoke, whether it aids the forest fires.
Scientists CAN give us so much help surviving environmentally until we can get our minds around gently reducing population and learn to live with Mother Nature.
Thank you again for knowing about kerosene droplets from above.
Australian TV asks: Does doddering, confused Biden belong in a nursing home?
https://youtu.be/wqwrjJLGYd0
You are always so funny with your dumb comments. You remind me of Gollum......your last name even sorta sounds like Sméagol
So you would use my surname to mock me.
The point underlying my post is here:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
Would that be Rupert Murdoch TV?
I don't know. But if it is, Biden is sure giving them a lot of material to work with. I mentioned the underlying problem, for the Democrats, here:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
With so much going on, its hard to process it all. But you seem to make it all make sense. I love the connection you always make to history: it gives me hope.
"...while millions more have limited or unreliable options (like me!)."
I never imagined that someone in your position in teaching and with your massive presence on social media would have that issue! In my area there are many children who don't have reliable access to the internet, despite living in the Silicon Valley area. Joe Biden has enabled so much good for our country. Perhaps in history years from now, he will be much more appreciated for his accomplishments during his term as POTUS.
I suspect HCR was referring to the coverage, or lack thereof, halfway up the coast of Maine in Round Pond, where she seems to spend a lot of her time. I'm sure the coverage at Boston University is just fine.
But I'm shocked to hear that internet coverage isn't all that reliable in parts of Silicon Valley.
As for President Biden, I keep saying! He's the best president of my lifetime, which began early in the Eisenhower Administration, or if you count in utero, in the Truman Admin. He's doing the kinds of things that Roosevelt did, and I can't help thinking, especially during his second term, that a lot of middle and lower class GOPers are finally going to realize how much better things will be getting. Since LBJ, all the Democratic presidents have disappointed me until Biden, who is putting the wind at our backs!
I admire Biden for leaning in and getting the job done w/out fanfare or accolades (even tho he deserves them) for the benefit of ALL, regardless of party affiliation. He does not need to stand on a stage an holler “me me me me!” again and again…he just does the work that needs doing. I am SO tired of the partisans picking at illusory scabs just to present opposition talking points.
I'm so with you on this. Biden is a very decent man. This piece shows his humanity.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/24/opinion/hunter-biden-addiction.html
He just loves his kid. He doesn’t want to lose him.
Australian TV asks: Does doddering, confused Biden belong in a nursing home?
https://youtu.be/wqwrjJLGYd0
Dave Fake News asks “Has John watched Wayne’s World”?
https://youtu.be/RJRvPmONjVY
DFN, John has been reported to Substack Inc per defined 'Reader' contract.
LOL, “uh oh, its Stacy!!! Don’t make eye contact!!!”
DFN a telltale sign that an account is a bot and/or posting from an IP addy in St. Petersburg is when it repetitively peppers threads on HCR's posts with the same comment.
In seriousness, though, Biden may be 80 but he works more in a month than TFG did in 4 years. TFG is only 3 years younger, in worse health, is more clearly suffering the onset of dementia, and (unlike Biden) is a serial, compulsive liar and a criminal.
Biden may end up with professional nursing care in his own home in Wilmington or Rehoboth in a decade, but it's likely to be much less time before TFG is getting care for his failing health in a federal correctional institute.
Yeah, I realize the bot potential from John. Catnip
Biden is as sharp as I can hope for. His rudder skills keep me sane
Plop
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
I think a lot of people tend to assume that the Bay Area as a whole is some high tech nirvana but the reality is that it's three large cities with a lot of small cities and towns and suburbs and even rural areas in between. A couple of large, unfriendly corporations pretty much have a stranglehold on Internet access here, one of whom is seriously price-gouging (Comcast/Xfinity). It took many, many years for AT&T to finally come good on their promise of fiber to my neighborhood. And cell phone coverage is also pretty spotty in many parts of the Bay Area so your chance of 5G Internet is low too.
Two hours north of San Francisco, and our ISP transmits via baling wire and duct tape, when it works at all, but the bills go out at high speed. Good luck with that, Joe. Don’t have a car problem or health problem or try to report a drunk driver in many of these parts, because 911 is hilarious. If you even have a signal, you’ll get connected to Sacramento, where they have NO idea where you are calling from. And yeah, you can get the kids laptops here, but they can’t connect, so guess how education fared in the pandemic in the rural areas of America? Yup, stupider than ever. At our first active shooter drill last year, we were warned it would take at least an hour for law enforcement to SHOW UP. Guess they’ll have to upload our videos later from the phones they take from our dead hands, once they get signal (we probably have more guns per capita, or, as I once heard it pronounced, ‘purr caPEEta’). To Jeff Foxworthy this whole thing, you can tell you’re in the country when you have zero bars and empty beer cans every ten feet along the road. It’s kinda funny, but it’s also not funny because you’re laughing at us, not with us, and it doesn’t have to be this way.
Bridging the city/rural infrastructure divide is going to take a huge $$$ investment in this country because of the sheer land scale... and a lot of those rural areas are still voting against that sort of investment and pushing back on the sort of government programs it takes to make it all happen. It's a really difficult economic AND social problem to solve.
I agree Sean. I live in Sacramento Metropolitan area, not as populace as the Bay Area. We too are strangled by Xfinity and AT&T. No, we don't have fiber optic they flat out lie and charge us for it but when pressed admit it is "years in the future" away, The problem in both areas is a few years ago our then politicians sold us out. They gave Comcast and AT&T exclusive rights on the promise of "future fiber optic" with no set date. I'm not accusing bribery, I think the politicians were just duped into thinking those companies would do the right thing.
I lived in the Bay Area 1970-71, and '73-'75 (Stanford and Berkeley respectively), I visit 2-3 times a decade, and I have probably my second highest concentration of good friends in the Bay Area. But I'm surprised that corporations are able to price gouge in such a sophisticated area. And yet, as I think about it, I'm being naive. Thanks for giving me the perspective.
I live in a very rural part of a state in the northwestern US, red enough that I never reveal my location. But it's probably as isolated as Heather's Maine residence. As a retired technoid, I thought I might jump in and share my experience with internet coverage over the past ten years, for what it's worth. I've tried it all, from satellite (which kills video streaming due to transmission latency) to fixed point microwave based ISPs to the newer cellular coverage being offered by AT&T, T-Mobile and others (I've tried both of the former). In my opinion the best internet coverage, at least here, is available through T-Mobile's Home Internet service. They have been very aggressive in building out their infrastructure, charge a reasonable rate ($50/month with no contract and a no price hike guarantee), provide a free gateway (wireless router/modem) and have been very reliable. I'm able to get a minimum 15 mbps download speeds (frequently 30 to 100) which is sufficient to have allowed me to "cut the cable" - and cable isn't even available to me - and stream all my TV from the internet. Full disclosure, I've had to employ high gain directional diversity antennas and amplifiers to achieve this, and at significant cost, but the point is that it's doable. Of course, every situation is unique, but I offer this in the hope that it may benefit someone that has fought these connectivity issues in rural areas. For the record, I'm not connected with T-mobile or being compensated for my commentary in any way. Just sharing my experience. Good luck.
I live in the East Bay in one of the most expensive counties in our state...for 47 years now. Dropped Comcast like a hot potato about 4 years ago. Can’t stand AT&T but there are so few options as my husband is a sports fanatic. I live in an old part of town where the homes were built in the 20’s. Without Netgear’s wifi extender, no rooms in our home would have Internet.
Those of us with a couple of alums from Boston University would agree with you that there is perfectly fine coverage at BU. It’s Boston College, where HCR teaches, where there might be connection problems.😜
When HCR does her weekly video chats from home in Maine, she sometimes goes to a neighbors' house for better connectivity, as she notes at the outset of her chat.
Oh right. Well, I'd be surprised if any Boston area university has connection problems .
Agree, sadly though. Huge letdowns as I feel.
Trump is a symptom of dreadful problems: some of them come from a profit by any unethical means with part of the press and similarly with social media. Plenty of others are just about profits and then there are the culture wars. Grist for historian's mills for years to come.
Who remembers that at the time it was said that candidate Obama chose Senator Biden for his experience abroad? I watched Biden’s leaving the Senate speech late morning (CST?). It convinced me, who knew little about him, that Obama had chosen well. May he continue!
Okay. Let’s not hear anymore complaints about Democratic messaging. Democrats are messaging the hell out of it. The problem is message reception. As Faux found out, if the message differs from what the willfully ignorant want to hear, they refuse to listen. The key is voter turnout. More important than candidates, message, policy, or any other factor. Join a GOTV project that you believe is effective, and put your heart into it. And your pocketbook, to the extent possible.
I agree, but why make people have to work to understand the point you’re making: GOTV project = Get Out The Vote project.
I'm encouraging our daughter at university to make sure all her friends are registered to vote, and spreading the same message to their friends. Regardless of messaging, Gen Z seems to understand better than any other age group that it's in their best interests to vote against MAGATs.
Yes, that’s why Republicans are doing everything they can (and some things they can’t, legally) to prevent GenZ from voting.
Call me naive or call me crazy...but how in the f... is trump walking around a free man?? Any of us would be wearing the orange jumpsuit. Sorry just have to vent once and awhile. I completely trust Jack Smith to do the right thing. It’s just very frustrating that it takes so long.
I fully agree, Karen. IF any of us had bern charged federally with the crimes he’s been charged with, do you think fir one second that we would be walking out of that courtroom to go home? Not no, but HELL NO!!! There’s no way in two hell’s that ANY Federal Judge, or Prosecutor, would allow a citizen charged with 31 counts of the Espionage Act to leave that courthouse in anything except handcuffs, headed to the local jail for safekeeping until trial.
Thanks for the validation Daniel. We need it sometimes.
I also agree with you, but perhaps it was done on purpose so that they could get more evidence from the horses mouth, tightening his own noose, and using his way with words against him........
Daniel I couldn't agree more wholeheartedly, however, I imagine Jack Smith is aware he has been hired to lead the UXB team to defuse the Orange Human Bomb which by now should be obvious is a rather sensitive and complex task with large repercussions if handled entirely as if it were "any of us."
At a minimum, he should be under house arrest. Ankle bracelet. Oh...wait...he is campaigning to become President. "That would be so unfair!" Sorry, aren't we responsible for our actions?
What's unfair is that a person who has betrayed his nation is allowed to even consider running for director of parks and recreation.
But the Founding Fathers were basically honest men who never envisioned Developers.
I’m just saying that if a common person had committed 31 counts of Espionage, there’s no way in hell that person will walk free. There’s no way that person would be allowed to “turn himself in” at a scheduled time and date.
Case in point, the Air Force man that was just arrested. Wasn’t that for Espionage? They sent the SWAT team to his home and drug him out in his skivies! There’s several that have recently been arrested for one count of the Espionage Act, and they have been sitting in jail awaiting trial since they were picked up, and arrested. Not one of them were allowed to report to the courthouse on such and such day to turn themselves in.
And, you ate correct. “No one is above the law.” And “Nobone should receive preferential treatment”. But Trump is receiving all kinds of preferential treatment, and allowances none of the rest of us would ever get.
We all wonder exactly that, Karen.
Of the two main "razors" I use to determine if an activity is appropriate for government action, the easiest to use is also the simplest: "The Government's job is to remove barriers to work." The most obvious example is infrastructure improvements, and many thanks to the Biden Administration and the Democrats in Congress for making them a top priority.
And as a side note, I still don't understand the argument that if you give rich people free money they will somehow "invest" it in their existing or new businesses. If they want to expand or start a business, why in hell do they need tax dollars? I thought that's what banks were for -- you propose a business plan and if it's a good one, the banks will loan you money. If you give rich people free money and they don't have a good reason to expand their businesses, they just keep the money with scarcely a "thank you." How anyone could think otherwise is a mystery and I wish someone could explain it to me.
Nothing to explain. It upside-down-think. Nobody hires for the fun of it; perhaps they might pick up a servant or two, but the incentive favors hiring as few non-domestic employees as possible, as we have seen with mergers and downsizing, offshoring, "gig" employment, automating, etc. Employers hire because they need help to engage with customers who have money to spend. The complication is that the employed and customers are, for the most part, the very same people, and holding down employment and wages tends to cook the goose that lays golden eggs. No matter. Those obsessed with unfettered gain seem to care little about the health of a society, so long as they are clearly and excessively dominant.
Yet, while I certainly don't run across may mega-rich people, much less the uber-rich, the wealthy ones I have met socially (probably in the $10-50 million range) have been among the nicest, most educated, and the most socially curious people I've ever met. There's a disconnect here between who they seem to be and how American business operates. I guess I just never get invited to the devils' parties, for some reason.
It's as if our society has a mind of its own.
Again, propaganda comes in handy
The richest person I know,($23 million in the bank) ran a franchise across Canada, worked 18 hour days his whole life, was best friends with one of the people running one of the franchise outlets. Many of the people you mention probably did something similar. The tech and corporate billionaires have a different relationship to their holdings, their employees, and the world in general. Humility and gratitude are not in their vocabulary.
One of the wealthiest couples I've ever met came from tech (badge #2 at Intel). They're also among the nicest and most socially responsible, using their wealth primarily to support K-12 educational programs in schools and in communities after school.
I've found that lack of humility and gratitude affects about 25% of the population across all socioeconomic strata. The wealthy ones just get more public scrutiny.
The Bible condemns the "love of money", which makes sense to me if I think of such "love" and what one will sacrifice anything else for. Also that money is a form of power, and that a "love of dominance", using any of the means to force one's will at the peril of others, is a pretty good definition of evil, as well as aggressive sociopathy. We can take a harder look at the over-all impact of economic inequality on others (and I have more assets than most) but there is something unique to the problem of be willing to harm anyone and anything to gain personal advantage, be it by offering "perfectly legal" "payday loans" or taking people's money at gunpoint. Some of the wealthiest people on the planet seem to resent the hell out of any sort of break for the common man or woman, and many use their money and position to short-circuit rule of law and democracy. There are always those who aspire to rule the world. And also those who aim to empower. Note that a fair number of those who are effective in the latter category have been assassinated, although those who live by the sword have often been killed as well. Social-minded George Soros is portrayed as a preternatural Bond villain by the right, when in fact some of their most substantial patrons are far better fitted to the role.
Exactly!
That’s where propaganda comes in handy.
Will Rogers knew this in 1932 “Mr. Hoover didn’t know that money trickled up.” Yet, republicans keep pushing “trickle down. And the sheep BAA
Dirk,I suspect you KNOW the "reason" already. This "trickle-down" theory is merely a diversion to distract from the central purpose of financial self-interest (aka: capitalism, for-profit business, privatization) demonstrated year after year by the R's. It would be interesting to see figures on the average net worth, or yearly income or amount invested in the stock market of R's in Congress compared with D's. What we have lost ios an ability to balance capitalism with the public welfare.
When I finally understand why it is that "you simply can't find good CEOs unless you pay them millions", but at the same time "paying a living wage to working stiffs will just ruin their incentive to work", then I might be able to try to explain! /s
I have been wondering the same thing for such a long time. Give 100mil dollars to one person, or 100mil divided between 10 people and see how it is spent and how it gets pumped back into the “economy”...........
Australian TV asks: Does doddering, confused Biden belong in a nursing home?
https://youtu.be/wqwrjJLGYd0
There you are again Sméagol
John S is such a pain and a nuisance!
Sorry, John, but it's a bit irritating to see someone, who just yesterday directed me to an excellently written, Russia-Ukraine analysis by "Big Serge," then turning around and offering me Australia's version of the National Inquirer (it looks even seedier than Fox, although I don't watch Fox enough to compare very well.)
Note that for all the blather, the producers of this 18:36 minute waste of this board's space to use about 10 seconds of Biden's hundreds of speeches to make this unattributed gag reel, complete with 18:26 minutes of self-satisfied, unsubstantiated, snark.
Perhaps as an exercise you could send me several hours of your public appearances -- I'm sure I could generate, without AI or any other aid, a segment even more nastily hilarious (at least to certain minds), just as I could with a similar amount of footage from me.
Why did you post this link? What do you think it actually demonstrates? Do you really think this constitutes evidence of Pres. Biden's mental incapacity? If so, how so?
I responded to some of your questions in a response to someone else, here:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
Beyond that, do you recall President Obama or President Clinton or President Carter struggling in the way that Biden does?
In a word, yes. And again, please show something better than a low-rent version of a right-wing Saturday Night Live skit passing itself off as "op-ed" as evidence of mental decline.
I have to question the accuracy of your response. I recall that the elder President Bush had a reputation for mangled syntax, and the younger President Bush was well-known for moments of incoherence. But Obama,, Clinton and Carter did not have a reputation for struggling with the delivery of their message in the same way that Biden now does. (And Biden, earlier in his career, did not appear to have this problem, at least to this extent.) Furthermore, none of the above-mentioned Presidents had Biden's set of incidents involving slips, trips and falls. As I said in the link that I posted above, Biden's declining state is putting the Democrats at risk in 2024.
Are you really asserting that neither Barack Obama, Hilary (or Bill) Clinton, nor Jimmy Carter made any goofs, trips, fumbles, misstatements, stumbles, or embarrassments during their thousands of hours of public appearances?
No, you aren't. Instead you are relying on something you refer to as "reputation," as nebulous and attribution-free a statement as I have ever heard. Is this a "reputation" that you just carry around in your head? Did you hear about it from someone, or is this something that "everybody" knows? Would a court take judicial notice of it, or would an honest, competent fact-finder roll their eyes and scornfully laugh at someone foolish enough to represent an un-sourced "reputation" as some brand of truth?
I see nothing to distinguish your "reputation" evidence as anything other than your own vague opinion, sourced from nothing more probative than a 5-year-old's schoolyard taunt delivered by a television entertainers masquerading as a journalists. Worse, and quite telling, you assert this foolishness without any reference to how Biden and his administration are actually performing their jobs.
Oh, yes, I too am certain that the Biden gag reel will be a prominent feature of the 2024 election, simply because his opponents will have nothing else to offer beyond culture-war crap and malicious innuendo. Are you going to help them spread it?
Great read tonite Dr Richardson!
Ditto !
The Commerce Department has worked for several years on rural internet. It was to be part of the First Net program started more than five years ago. It’s good to see that funding has finally come through. Of course, on balance, now all of rural America will have access to the social media echo chambers.
Excellent point. But perhaps they'll be able to stumble upon the Trump recording, which they otherwise would never learn about on Fox etc.
We can only hope.
Gina Raimondo is doing an excellent job. She and her department are making Biden’s come to life. 👏👏👏
Correction - Biden's plans
Marg, you can correct your own earlier comments by clicking on the three dots (…) below them (next to REPLY). Took me a while to figure that out 🙃
Thanks! I can correct with the three dots on my phone but not on my tablet for some reason. Ugh, technology!
Bummer! Snd yes, technology can be frustrating sometimes.
Will they give up their talk radio and Alex Jones and Steve Bannon?
They already have it through their smartphones.
“Journalist Garrett Graff, who wrote a history of President Richard Nixon’s Watergate scandal, the one that led Nixon to resign under threat of impeachment and conviction, listened to the tape and tweeted: “Speaking as a Watergate historian, there’s nowhere on thousands of hours of Nixon tapes where Nixon makes any comment as clear, as clearly illegal, and as clearly self-aware as this Trump tape.””
But... need we say it?
Yes.. we must, again and again...
Lying Watergate criminal President Richard M. Nixon, a neofascist of the first water that led over 70 criminals to sentencing and to jail, resigned in disgrace following lying criminal Vice President Spiro T. “Ted” Agnew, making room for twice married cocksman former governor VP NELSON ALDRICH ROCKEFELLER. President Nixon was soon pardoned by the weak former GOP Speaker, President Gerald Rudolph Ford, a boring, heavy drinking congressman from Michigan, married to an alcoholic. That pardon excused Nixon from criminal charges and certain sentencing.. while the Watergate burglars and White House plumbers and enablers were charged and served time... that pardon cost Ford his career in the White House as he lost his last election... setting the course for tonight’s liar in chief.. that lacks the courage to leave politics and will be charged, tried, convicted and sentenced, hopefully without pardon... slamming the door on such behavior and the Party that supports fascism today... and the millions of enablers that find the lying pathological legacy brat, fascist President TRUMP, suitable for the White House one more time..
You speak for me
I try.
Though, with Latvian parents, the Wagner/Putin thing worries me deeply ( and I was outraged that Obama’s response to the annexation was pretty much a symbolic appeasement) the rural internet thing MIGHT be the thing that turns some of my neighbors into re-thinking “some stuff.” We all know here, in the rural Great Lake lands of our difficult access ( boy, do the tourri get pissed) and we’re aware of the damage that does/has been done (especially) to our students in the last few years.
Now we need to make sure students and the elderly have the personal technology to access education and emergency services when needed I rural areas.
Trump 2024 flags notwithstanding. ☹️
With algorithms that feed us only what we already believe, faster internet may only feed the conspiracies faster.
Forgive me, but I don't think all of Biden's successes will cause his approval rating to go up to any significant extent. I'm afraid that the negative attitudes of many voters about Biden have been baked in. I hope HCR's readers can convince me I'm wrong!
Trump's MAGA supporters will never stop following him blindly, but most of the voting public will be understanding the seriousness of Trump's offenses as they learn more about them. And hopefully, how completely unfit he is to be near the Oval Office ever again.
David, I'm worried that a third party group like No Labels will siphon off votes from those who don't like Trump, but don't want to vote for Biden. I'm also uncertain if RFK, Jr. will pull votes away.. And then there's Cornel West running as a Democrat.
Bottom line? Biden's margin of victory over Trump might not be large enough to overcome the above challenges.
Mina, I don’t think we have to worry to much about RFK, Jr. and these others running in the Democratic primary. I believe Biden will defeat them. None of them are the debater that Biden is, and they surely can’t compete against him with the hot topics of the government/countries issues.
Just spoilers, but spoilers should not be dismissed in a close race. How much more proof do we need
Yesterday I stopped into a store for the first time thinking it was for service to vets and military issues. I did not realize that the store was for vet entrepreneurs. The girl approached and I asked what was happening to the stalling of promotions of military officers…..she gave me a blank stare and said she never listens to the news. That sent a chill down my back. Was this gal representative of many Americans? They don’t care enough to listen?
Linda. Yes
I wonder if it was the same bunch as set up a table yesterday outside a local Kroger selling cheap merch under a sign proclaiming that their work was supporting "veteran housing." But all the merch was the usual right-wing, 2nd Amendment crap, as if all veterans really approve of gun-totin', "Don't Tread On Me" bullshyte. I'm still undecided whether I want to ask the manager if that's a group he wants Kroger to be associated with.
Ask.
Then report back here.
You're right, I should ask, although I'm not sure how to report about it here without just dropping it in without context. Here, the "moving finger" not only passes on, it vaults to five different pages, contradicts itself twice, and forgets what it was just thinking about.
Certainly not in a class by herself. I have a relative, an intelligent and hardworking 40yo woman, who clearly knows nothing about news, government or history -- nor does she have any interest in learning. I suspect she is caught between two warring factions of her family: far right and far left. So she has bowed out. I love her but can’t help being so disappointed.
Much too early in the game, Mina. And please take into account that ultimately the question is which candidate do you vote for as compared to the other candidate or candidates? Joe wins! Moreover, we are yet to hear evidence in the MAL criminal indictment, the Jan6 indictment to come, etc etc --- so Joe's rating will go up compared to his opposition!
Adore your optimism Ira...
Dan: the numbers are there! As many as 8 Million new young voters in 24 and more in 26. Unquestionably they bring a more progressive point of view particularly on reproductive health, gun control and climate change. Polling shows that even conservative women 35 to 44 in suburbs do not accept Republican abortion bans because they are worried about their teenage and young twenties daughters. These issues will dominate 24 and set up the potential for massive gains particularly because T freezes all of their candidates including incumbents into fealty!
No need to convice you of anything just make a responsible read of valid data. The French president was re-elected with a 32 percent favorability rating. Obviously a social scientist wants a "likely voters" cohort or catch one hour straight of Steve Kornacki read outs.
Key data point this week is the stability of Biden's 42-44 percent.
Mina, Biden is growing. One thing I learned years ago was to not change horses in mid stream. I was pulling a pack string in the Bob Marshall when I came to the South Fork of the Flathead river trail crossing. I knew that my boots would fill with water as there was a small segment of deep water near the opposite bank. Usually it was a relatively easy crossing. On that day I was pulling only four loaded packhorses. I opted to be lazy and stand up in the saddle rather than to stop and stow boots. We had already pulled ten miles and the horses were hot as it was about noon. As the last horse hit the river he decided to roll which daisy chained up to my lead rope pulling me off and landing me on the packhorse behind me. The wreck was monumental. Fortunately there were no witnesses. Cargo floating off down the river, saddles on bellies, horses headed off in opposite directions. Me sitting in the middle of the river. I managed to get the show on the road again but like I said we ain’t never gonna change horses in mid stream again.
Pat, I loved your comment! I'm a city girl and I didn't have much contact with horses let alone ever hearing about "pack strings" or even the "Bob Marshall." However, I agree that it's usually best not to change horses in mid-stream! Thanks for making my day!!
President Biden’s performance is stunning and well understood by our most informed, experienced, professional and intelligent.
We must pray for the president’s health and wellbeing. Neither party today can offer a candidate with President Biden’s skills, quiet genius, patience, maturity, decency, empathy, warm humor, modesty and cool.
Running the executive branch today looks easy when a brilliant humble master is president.
Our people must hope and pray for continuity. It takes decades of hard work to acquire what President Biden brings to the Oval Office.
We are most grateful and fortunate.
S.B., you and I agree. Now we need to find the ways to convince millions of other voters!
Mina I agree. But could someone develop a link to an expansion of those negative attitude in text form so we can talk about them specifically?
Australian TV asks: Does doddering, confused Biden belong in a nursing home?
https://youtu.be/wqwrjJLGYd0
Is there an echo in here? Oh. It’s the “Look at me me me” Schmeeckle again. Give it a rest, John.
I've reported him for this trolling and encourage others to do the same. Click on the three dots under his comment and then click "Report."
Personally, I'd rather not report Mr. Schmeeckle, since I've yet to see him do anything actually offensive beyond just showing lousy judgment as to probity. I don't want him to leave, I just want him to STEP UP HIS GAME.
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
It’s Sméagol.......most folks know him as Gollum.....
I explained my thinking behind that post at the link below, and you are welcome to respond to the legitimate issues that I bring to the table:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
I have no intention of allowing a troll to tell me which issues are "legitimate" --and I'm reasonably sure that goes for many others who are as bored as I am with seeing this "Schmeeckle" account repetitively post the same garbage on this thread.
Perhaps Harmless the Troll shouldn't have had that second bottle of wine before he started typing. Otherwise, he might have avoided bloviating about which issues are "legitimate."
Perhaps he is hoping to make an impression on the I.M.F. Holocaust deniers...
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-15-2023/comment/11967315
What tripe. If this account was a real person and not a bot, it would be a boring, unintelligent, pompous ass
You've posted this twice? Really? Please adjust your standards upward.
Once again, I explained my thinking behind that post at the link below, and you are welcome to respond:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/june-26-2023/comment/17806911
What an incredible contrast in tonight's letter between what a functional presidency and a totally dysfunctional presidency is!
My admiration of Joe Biden continues to grow as he keeps his focus on governing for the benefit of all of the American people while supporting his son in the most loving way possible as Republicans keep up their sniping. With Watters taking over Carlson's old prime time slot at Fox I am sure there will be more to come.
Remember the mantra for Joe, Savvy, Seasoned and Sane!
Australian TV asks: Does doddering, confused Biden belong in a nursing home?
https://youtu.be/wqwrjJLGYd0
Trump’s bluster is like that of a cornered bully. Every time he speaks, he digs his hole deeper and gives Jack Smith more ammunition in his already airtight espionage case against him.
ProPublica published the White House’s four-page Bidenomics document.
https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000188-f52b-d32e-ada8-f5bf90ca0000&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email&fbclid=IwAR3s-mRVo24kbZNSxiuAk9xDzd8gsyNzHwOSUuhRI5-9oUkTUZE0L0il3y0_aem_ATjw-GYOmYO4HexGj1dWcog7F4kHn8TGDemuPnQI13yRt_69qphjAKDeEiSHq4_3qsE&mibextid=Zxz2cZ
Thanks Mim. I just printed it out and will talk about it tonight at a current affairs zoom Alum group [University of California, Berkeley]. I am a native of San Francisco and then later moved to Berkeley. Right now I’m near D.C. – came for a job. But every time I go out, I see construction crews repairing roads/bridges like I-95 which extends from Maine to Florida. And I see cargo trucks jamming the interstate. What this tells me is Bidenomics is working in real time.
Thanks, Linda.
And how about how amazingly quickly the Feds got that collapsed bridge in Philadelphia fixed? Two weeks instead of many months!
Thanks for this link, Mim!
Thanks!
'Kari Lake Declares Herself New Leader of the Wagner Group'
'PHOENIX (The Borowitz Report)—The situation in Russia descended into further uncertainty after Kari Lake stunned geopolitical experts by declaring herself the new leader of the Wagner Group.'
'Speaking from the mercenary force’s new headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, the former anchorwoman claimed that she won the leadership of Wagner by a landslide.'
'She warned Russian state media against questioning her claim to the Wagner helm. “I will be your worst frickin’ nightmare,” she said.'
'Wagner troops expressed surprise at Lake’s sudden elevation and reservations about whether she would be an improvement over their former leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin. “She seems really mean,” one said.' (Satire, NewYorker)
🤣
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