It's sad that he can get away with all this. It sometimes seems hopeless. Congress and Senate Republican own this. They can put a stop to this at any time. The corruption is so obvious. One can only hope that if and when we get through this that there are laws passed to prevent all of this from happening again and that all these starting with Donald stand trial for what they have and are continuing to do to us.
I think until the US (and Canada and most of the Western world) does something about the dissemination of lies, misinformation and disinformation (in print, web and radio), situations like this will continue to flourish. Most of the GOP base doesn't have a clue how corrupt DJT is. They only listen to hate radio and Fox. They aren't getting NEWS anymore, but they think they are. Truth, especially when sharing information needs to be protected from distortion, lies and obfuscation. It needs to rank above the protection of free speech. That is just being used as an excuse to lie at the top of your lungs.
Donald's MAGA cult are delusional. The definition of a delusion is: "holding on to a belief when all evidence is to the contrary." Enough said. They truly are hopeless.
Great point. Free speech refers to the ability to criticize the government, not go about telling lies. Men used to have a method to deal with that. It was called dueling.
This history buff likes the idea of dueling and thinks of it often, ha ha. Lucky for some it is now an unacceptable way to settle grievances. Some antiquated punishments would be enjoyable to witness like the pillory, tar and feathering, a nice trebuchet launch. I could go on, like the mean brat that I am, but I might have to undergo a public stoning and run the gauntlet.
Actually, I would like it because it would prevent trouble. Surely in nearly all cases, whichever person had done something bad enough to get someone to challenge them would admit what they had done on paper and rectify the situation. The sort of thing I would do it over is the fellows who shot a deer within 200 yards of my house, at night. Half the "men" in town know exactly who did it, yet when I went to a community leader's place of business, they refused to help law enforcement. The real truth is that bullet would have had to go through a small hill to hit my house, but could have hit the chief of Police's home, but since he goes to the same church as my old friend the bishop, nothing happens. So being able to call a duel would blow things out into the open. Ancient mechanism like a blood price to maintain social order in the abscence of standing law enforcement. If the sheriff of your county is a member of the proud boys, and you cannot call a duel, lawbreakers will be protected.
Agree! It feels like we are being gaslit every day by some news channels. You can’t have an open and honest conversation with some as they are so brainwashed NOTHING will penetrate. I am 70 and never would have believed this would happen in America. It’s a true tragedy.
I agree with you that truth needs to be protected from distortion, but to say that it needs to rank above protection of free speech is something that I don't know how to process. Just as one man's "terrorist" is another man's "freedom fighter", the lens of truth can be used by bad actors to help or to harm. - The bad actors in our society are using "free speech" protections to lie, but I'm not convinced taking away free speech is the solution. One solution is education - teaching the public how to differentiate truth from lie by examining the argument and evidence being presented - but educating the masses isn't something that is done easily or quickly. Maybe if we required a certain education level in order to vote? But that's been done before and presents it's own problems of inequality. The only thing I'm sure of is that I don't see a simple solution.
Agreed, I would also like to add--education to help recognize (not discriminate) the mentally ill and effectively manage it. Our law enforcement people included.
The mass population should have never quit shaming, publicizing, reminding all, listing all the amoral, law-subverting, corrupt acts committed by the unfit, unhinged beings in all 3 branches.
Just remember that we have laws that prohibit this financial corruption.
No matter which laws are on the books, they MUST be enforced. We're seeing the cowardice and greed of the money people, and the entire Republican Party in the light of day.
Yet most of us are sleepwalking, expecting nothing to change.
It's a great question. Unfortunately, I believe someone would need to bring a suit against the guilty parties in the government, and you have to have big money to go up against the government. That's why it's been groups of nonprofit accountability organizations like the ACLU, CREW, and many others, operating on donations to sue for these 150+ illegal actions, even before the market manipulation.
Other than that, it is up to the House Oversight committee, which is controlled by Republicans, so they won't lift a finger. We can retake the House in 2026 and then launch a massive number of investigations. And what's the most important responsibility Congress has when a president goes off the rails like this? Impeachment and conviction. It will not happen with Republicans in charge. And we won't be able to win enough seats in the Senate to convict him, even if we could impeach him in the House. So we keep organizing a massive pro-democracy movement. It's getting bigger all the time. I favor indivisible.org for their huge grassroots actions. Keep the faith! We will nail these criminals and turn the tide. But we are in it for the long haul.
You may be right. But I think even without that, this regime has broken everything so thoroughly that when we take power back—and I believe we will, because the grassroots opposition just keeps getting stronger—we will need to rebuild something very new. And we will have to prosecute every last official in this regime who has broken the law or egregiously slow-walked justice. For those who enabled it, there also must be consequences.
At that point, I see us having an opportunity to make big changes in our system. We can't just go back to the old system. Just a few priorities: eliminate money from elections and governing, set term limits, more robust laws limiting executive power, a revised or rewritten Constitution, full racial equity, strong protections for minorities of all kinds including LGBTQ and trans communities, possible switch to a parliamentary form of representation with a more nimble ability to replace a corrupt or inept president, eliminate the electoral college and replace it with the popular vote, ranked choice voting, some means of enforcing judicial decisions, a total overhaul of immigration law, universal health care, fairly funded public schools that don't rely on property taxes (inherently unjust), tight gun safety laws with ownership and sale restrictions, and so much more.
Our priority right now should be to forge a broad pro-democracy coalition with no purity tests; continue pushing back on this authoritarian and fascist regime with a resounding message of "NO to everything"; and strengthen our civic ties by building communities where people interact with each other in person.
I'm sure I'm not right about everything here, but I stand behind the core principles.
Only problem is that was a way even regular "gentlemen" could hold even the most powerful to account. President Jackson suffered from a dueling wound. Now the powerful can simply hit you with huge lawsuits and notices of claim and get money from you when they did wrong.
Pick one or two issues/actions. For example, making phone calls on a specific issue to your reps. Action is an antidote to this paralysis. A little self-care, then pick one more action.
I know - but they DO count them and follow the trends. It's tough to feel positive but celebrate small gains.
Some folks might prefer go to a Tesla Takedown protest.
Or join people at a coffee shop to write postcards for upcoming, critical elections regardless of where you live. Indivisible chapters organize these in many cities.
A friend flew across the country and canvassed in Wisconsin - there was a positive, immediate outcome in that case. This was done via a local group that supports elections nationwide and which subsidized her travel.
Yup, the reason they have become so blatant is they think laws will not be enforced enough to stop them. Time to roll out the guillotines. They've been allowed way too much leeway.
Brit here. In 4 years no matter how hard he tries to steal power he will be gone. At this juncture when he & all the minions no longer have Presidential mob power, at that point can the Democrats & the general public go for them? Immunity only counts for the President in legal
actions for the country. His aren’t.
I just feel like that will be the plan / well I hope so. I have many US friends & family there - some who are already in his actual witch-hunts. I worry for them. Especially the couple of folk in red states. So my concerns are more for the citizens of the US.
Here we can force Parliament to discuss issues the public feel strongly about. We need 100k signatures on a govt U.K. official petition but on serious issues that’s easy to get.
Do you have similar in the US? I am heartened to see the protests starting in full earnest.
Also can citizens take the admin/govmt to task? Legally? Could say (hopeful here) 1000s of prior file a case together? That would decrease costs per person.
I’m avoiding all US government sites until he’s out as I find them abhorrent. The WH looks like a flyer for a frat party. And I’ve noticed many pages were missing (a reputable MSM op piece led me to check what they were saying - but they can check historically what was there how I know not!) that had any decent or helping info.
I shared NHS links on twitugh as some info on infections such as chlamydia was being removed! Dangerous games being played by dangerous morons in US.
In short. Could many sue or take to task the present government? I’ve seen cases where hundreds have taken corporations to task, can the people take the US government to task?
I should have asked this on the main post instead of a reply huh?! Oh well. It’s done now!
Other countries are with US citizens (in the main only the decent ones like you lot!), we despise your ill-equipped government. I stopped watching the news as the impact on US citizens and the very visual onslaught of fascism & I have to say communism tipping through the main powers that be, sickens & angers me.
All of can do is share unbiased news and links etc. I’m a minnow online but I feel I’m doing something. I can’t write to your reps (well I don’t think I can I’ve never checked!) as I live in the U.K. I will check that now I think about it.
I did want to retire to the US to New England (this old house sold me on it 20 years ago!) - a blue area consistently but DJT has put me off. And I won’t be the only one. Which is sad.
I am whittering on. I do. Apologies! But if I don’t ask I won’t ever know! I could ask my US folk but I’m trying to avoid all country politics in convo with them to give them a break! Goodness what a monologue.
Stay safe. Stand together. Form positive channels. Take care of yourselves so your sanity remains intact! Join groups. Protest even if it’s a tiny one. The world is watching. That has an impact, when the govmt realises it’s on global news networks!
And lastly take joy in the tiny things. Once the protests etc start to tighten the vice, progress will happen.
And remember, he stabbed SCOTUS in the back. They won’t forget that. No matter how twisted some are. Peace.
It's very good of you & means a LOT that you care. I always think how much smarter, or maybe more experienced, the UK & Europe are at not letting a ruling class take over. That's always been an element here, but I don't think most of us were aware how much, for so long. We took democracy for granted & didn't stay on top of things as we should have. And, now we a faction that has been working for many decades & pouring enormous amounts of wealth into 'think tanks' to figure out every possible way to manipulate, block, & undermine the systems we have in place for democracy. Plus all the psychological, technological, & war tactics used throughout history. There are tools of democracy, the laws our country is founded on, people with a good understanding of those & a willingness to do what is needed. But, we've never been up against so much corruption, on every level, from every direction. I don't know what it's going to take & I don't know when enough people will get clear enouh to pull together. A lot of ideas we have been told all our lives, ideas of capitalism & "independence", it's really hard to see how we've been lied to & how that has been turned against us. But, there are things other countries know & hopefully we can figure it out. It helps a lot that not everyone thinks we're stupid & immoral. I hope we pull out of this & do what is needed to never let it happen again. I never thought the U.S. was some global superpower, there's been a lot of things that have been wrong, but I never thought to be so humiliated by the leadership that represents us. Thank you for your understanding & encouragement. 💖
It was a sad day indeed when dueling was outlawed. Once you make it where suits of law are the only way to redress grievances between men, whoever can hire the best lawyers can get away with anything. tRump would have been taken out by the first air conditioning contractor he stiffed back in the 80's. If he somehow survived the men he stole from, he would not survive the father's and brothers of the women he sexually assaulted. Of course, if there were still a legal way for civilians to use violence, he would have been glad to write out that he was a thief and abuser right on paper, and gladly traded all credibility and reputation for his pathetic little life.
Don't give up hope! People are rising up- esp people who finally realized they have been betrayed. And they are mad! DT stabbed a large segment of his loyal voters in the back. And he doesn't care. This is a huge betrayal for them! We need to support and welcome them. Sure, they were no fun at times, and downright mean. Their guilty of believing their President and thinking he considered them special. They were sure he would shield them and he just tossed them out with the trash. WE get that- but to them it's still a shock. People are starting to realize that Bernie Sanders want just spouting fantasies. EVerything he said came true so far. Some of them are recognizing they got swindled, and what they thought was lies, is really true! It's a lot for people to take in. But betrayal breeds anger, and anger breeds action. It is on US to be examples of what to do with that anger constructively. To show there's another way. I know thing a look bleak, but if you look at the opportunities- they are endless. A few Republican politicians are getting a bit braver and are starting to wake up and take small stands. We need to be supportive of them also. Of course this is al just my opinion, but I see HOPE. I still believe overall that good conquers evil. Someone can start a comic book about politics! I'd buy it!
having handed over unlimited power to Mad King unlimited power, it is not at all certain that the old playbook tactics of litigation, legislation, elections or public outrage will work at all. Good to do, but expectations should not be very high. A whole new species of tactical weapons against the Destructionists is needed. We're in the Dark Ages now, and candles don't help much. Imagination is what we need, lot's of it.
Trump will never be punished for his crimes in office. SCOTUS saw to that. But anyone else who assists him in committing crimes must be made to pay. Trump 2.0 is the worse than anyone could have imagined and you’re only 11 weeks into this nightmare (I’m thankfully watching this from Canada). No one’s ever seen so much overt corruption, ineptitude and racism in all three branches of government. Despite this, the MAGA faithful still support him. The US is fundamentally broken if so many of its citizens can support such a despicable monster. If only one good thing has come from Trump 2.0, it’s how he’s managed to unify Canada against him. Elbows up!
Yup, the Key to the Kingdom of America. That's what they handed him. So all that talk about what the "law" says, or what the "Constitution" says, is all so much blah, blah, blah. We need to climb out of that box and rethink it all. The old playbook is obsolete.
The open secret that few are willing to confirm publicly about Donald Trump is that every psychotic and outrageous move that he makes -- financial or otherwise -- is backed not by the full faith and credit of the Federal Government but rather by the unswerving, equally psychotic fealty of his cult members who threaten and are prepared to effect, vigilante-style, his overweening, implicit threats to deploy of violence and death against anyone, including a fellow Republican, who tries to thwart him.
I shared this on my BlueSky account. This article is so on the money and I love how Mary Trump just basically tells it like it is! She has more gumption (known more by another word!) than all of the GOP!
As a veteran of the stock market industry and trading securities, I see clearly how Trump operates. People like Trump should serve time in prison if insider trading can be proven. I hope the powers that be are looking into it.
He should already BE IN prison! He is a felon. Yet here we are, saddled with him for another term because of a lackadaisical electorate, many of whom believe his lies.
Help formulate charges and relate them back to forums like these in formal, legal language. It's not enough to say this is illegal, that it's blackmail or extortion. Give the non-legal entities a hand here and name the charges. Other such persons and relevant lawyers can jump right in. Then we can be specific and direct.
Sorry, but unlimited powers, a grant of immunity from any crimes, and instant pardons for anyone else who gets tapped for prosecution (by whom, the DOJ?). It would appear they've got things pretty well sewed up.
Sorry, but unlimited powers, a grant of immunity from any crimes, and instant pardons for anyone else who gets tapped for prosecution (by whom, the DOJ?). It would appear they've got things pretty well sewed up.
Trump's professor at Penn's prestigious Wharton School, William T. Kelley, stated "Donald Trump was the dumbest goddamn student I ever had."
Trump traded in a formal education and even the development of a vocabulary beyond the 4th grade for the life of a morally dissolute playboy after his father arranged for him to evade the draft to join the family's real estate firm.
Over the years, Trump hungered for more and more publicity and constantly appeared in the tabloids surrounded by fawning women. We now know that along the route, he bragged about grabbing women by their genitals, one of whom successfully sued him for sexual molestation and defamation, cheating on his wives and cooking his company's books to "catch and kill" the revelation of his sexual forays with a porn star.
He also managed to set up a self-glorifying university which turned out to be a fraud on its students, as did his applications to numerous creditors whom he swindled out of hundreds of millions of dollars by vastly overvaluing his assets.
So how did Donald Trump get to go from being a rich dissolute playboy with the morals of an alley cat to being a rich dissolute President with the morals of an alley cat?
The closest explanation I can think of is by means of a riff on a comment made by Samuel Johnson to his biographer James Boswell about an acquaintance: " Sir, he was repugnant in his company, he was repugnant in his style, he was repugnant everywhere. He was repugnant in a new way and that made many people think him great."
Yes. He was repugnant in a new way. Paying a ghostwriter to write "The Art of the Deal" in Trump's name and with his wealth, swagger, ego and bluster, this blowhard and clown came to be the perfect sitcom attraction for prime-time t.v. And the more he growled, grated, gloated, grimaced and glamorized himself on t.v., the greater his audience swelled to be entertained by his bloated ego, bombast and put-downs.
In short. No one had even seen such a pompous, obnoxious and egotistical blowhard before, with the possible exception of Don Rickles's onstage persona. He was novel and refreshing, and offered a new face and style to enter the political arena with the support of right-wing conservatives, along with wealthy and influential friends, domestic and foreign, who learned how to manipulate his insecurities through flattery, money and promises of power.
During his first term in office, the dark side of him palpably emerged, in which he revealed his insecurity and desperation and lust for power and admiration, relying on lies and self-delusions to sustain his mental equilibrium. Over time, even his staff openly admitted that he relied on conjuring "alternate truths " and "alternate facts" to hold his world of illusions together. Even Mary Trump has openly referred to his serious mental unbalance and delusions of grandeur.
As we all too painfully know, his unwillingness to accept reality and to accept defeat in the 2020 election led to his desperate lies to his gullible cult followers that he actually won the election, though he was unable to convince a single court among the 80+ law suits he filed that his election was stolen. To this day, he is mentally incapable of letting go of his delusion that he won the 2020 election.
And while his victory in 2024 was more a repudiation of Joe Biden than a vote of confidence in him, he still cannot let go of the fact that he was a loser and that most people know he was and may still be.
I believe that it this obsession to crush his perceived enemies and non-believers through promises, threats, manipulations and extortion, and blackmail that drives his every waking hour.
And though Donald Trump now believes that he is on the verge of dominating every facet of life in the United States, it is not enough to satiate his unquenchable ego.
It is the entire world to which he now looks to become the Master of the Universe by turning upside down every country's economy and evoking the fear and admiration of every human being on this planet, all of whose lips will now be talking about the mighty and powerful Donald Trump.
So at what price to all of us does Trump aspire to be top of the world?
It conjures up visions of Jimmy Cagney's "White Heat" movie character's self-immolation at the top of a tower screaming:
I saw that quote from his professor who actually had been forced to sign a non disclosure agreement but his conscience was bothering him so he went on record saying that Trump was indeed his dumbest student 💥‼️😳
One thing I am compelled to correct ... many voters were not voting against Joe Biden, but rather refused to vote for a mixed race black woman from California, despite she being the qualified candidate. Racism and mysoginy to the nth degree.
A factor for some, unquestionably. But I would like to see some credible figures on how many were really persuaded for those reasons. And then, there is the other side of the same question, 'How many voted for Harris based on her gender and race?' An equally bad reason for selecting a President. I don't know the answer to either question. I do know that assertions based on feelings, no matter how strongly held, are still not facts. I'd like to know what the real numbers were, based on credible research.
Good luck finding those stats. The number of people who will admit they are racist is slim to none. Men who are misogynstic do not think they are (while talking down to women all the while they claim to not be misogynistic). Same is true with homophobic people too (often men as well).
You would be surprised at what competent social researchers and modern tools can find out these days. The point being, if we don't have any factual basis for making certain assertions, we shouldn't make them.
on the other matter you introduced, labeling people as 'not thinking they are something that one asserts they really are' is an old game the right used to discredit (refuse to listen) to reports by victims. Then the left played their own version called, "You're in denial," and applied to an accused (but not established) perpetrator. Same game. Anyone who challenges someone's position or prejudgement is marginalized and discredited with disbelief. There is no answer to that rhetorical technique because, whatever the target might say is automatically disbelieved in an endless invocation of "You're in denial" or "they don't think they are, but they are," blah, blah, blah. Sorry, but I refuse to play that game. It's dishonest and destructive. No facts are presented, no truth is to be found. None.
You're probably right. At my age that is likely more often the case than not. It is why I like to consult credible sources, rather than anecdotes and personal experience about who knows "people better than they know themselves."
I loved JC in my teens (90s) (Madonna lead me to him!) in my early 20s my ex (also a JC fan) commissioned an artist friend for a JC painting. He wrote ‘top of the world, ma!’ on the back. And etched my nick name into his tie! It remains one of my favourite gifts of all time. Even though the writing couldn’t be seen, I knew it was there. Happy times.
I think you hit the nail on the head, Kathy. He has excelled as being the most despicable human being on the planet, and that, in some people's minds, has made him great.
L.D. well studied, well said, well cited. I'd like to add your comment to my Mad King gallery exhibit of the work of Jerome & Sadie Rothenberg's "In the Shadow of a Mad King" (www.poems4change.org/madking/mk-gallery.html) Message me if it will be ok to include your comment there.
In my own version, 'War of the Trumps', I look back a little further than his early education. At the end of Act One, I changed the line in Orson Welles' masterful radio broadcast of 'War of the Worlds', from "...writing down this last chapter of the record begun in a deserted farm at Grover Mills." to "writing down the last chapter of the record begun in an incubator in Queens." (http://poems4change.org/wot/wot2022-act1.html#orson1938) [4:35] If someone had the presence of mind to pull the plug on that incubator, well...?
as you wish, but I cannot use anyone else's material unless I receive a more formal permission by email. That's just the way I work. I respect the rights of other writers. I also like to have bilateral communications with them.
I remind myself on a regular basis that the same psychology that allowed a huge group of cult members to drink poison in Jonestown, Guyana is the same psychology that allows Trump's cult followers to blindly support him even if it means allowing him to destroy their lives.
It is obviously a cult of Trump-voting zombies manipulated by a culture war that was manufactured by Fox since before 2016. There is only one way to end a cult, without taking the whole population down with him.
The cult members of Jonestown didn't just drink the poison, they forced it on those whose self-preservation instinct took over. What most had in common was desire to be part of something really important (like making America great again?) and feeling secure (which realDonald and his disciples preach regularly: Trust Trump. Trump will fix it. etc.).
Jim Jones himself was depraved and insecure -- a loser who pretended to be god.
Check out an article I linked last night, which I found while contemplating a Jonestown syndrome and the MAGA cult. The article was published in Psychology Today in March 1992.
Jim Jones had an armed guards with guns drawn surrounding the compound to keep people from escaping when the Kool-Aid was brought out.
He tricked them with lies and false promises into following him but when the end came he didn't give them the choice to leave because his ego needed to take everybody down with him.
not sure about that. The Jonestown mass suicide was the result of overcoming instincts for self-preservation with (irrational) nonsense about "higher purposes" (though some were also just duped and unaware they were killing themselves.) The Destructionist cult is more the result of reactive impulses which are given no thought at all. The reactive-brain (which is separate in location and function from the 'contemplative-brain') does not employ thoughtful processes. It is purely reactive and self-preservative. A provision of evolution which was meant for responding to "immediate" threats, but now extends the meaning of 'immediate' to include all kinds of abstract and non-threatening matters. It just reacts. Psychologically, the two subjects are quite different, though both are tragically self-destructive.
Mary, honey, nobody cares !!! There are those out there who will go to the mat to defend your uncle and his grand plans for chaos including Mike Johnson and almost all the Congressional Republicans. There are laws against insider trading and market manipulation but your uncle has immunity from the Supreme Court so he skates again.
No one likes to be called honey, or be patronized and YES we do care, even if right now DJT enjoys a certain amount of immunity. So did Nazis. So did Nixon. So did the bankers that got huge bonuses when all of us bailed them out in 2009. So did McCarthy. But all of them ended eventually and we need to remember the past so we don’t repeat it. Speaking up and telling the truth so it doesn’t get buried is more important than ever right now. Mary please keep shouting from the rooftops!!! We’re listening, we’re reposting, we’re sharing your story and talking about what you write and keeping the truth alive til the day comes when this is in the rear view once and for all. The worst thing we can do is stay silent. Last weekends peaceful Hands Off protests across the nation and even globally were just the beginning! Grass roots is exhausted, but alive and well. We the people don’t always get it right at first, but we will get there in the end and Trump will be remembered in disgrace, as were/was Nazis, Nixon, the bankers, the McCarthyites and every other thug or charlatan that thinks they are above the law. We have 400 million people in this country …. You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Trump MAGA world is on its way out. People get it now… it was only ever meant to make billionaires even richer while middle class and minorities once again pay the price.
Dear Lesley, please believe me that I was not trying to belittle Mary Trump. I know she is distressed as I am over her uncle. I call everyone “honey” because at 85 I have to pause over people’s names and it sounds friendly to me. I am sorry that you took offense as none was intended.
Thank You Lesley - well said! Mary was the first one I wanted to hear from on these recent antics from the orange petulant clown. Things are exhausting but I for one am NOT going to just roll over and accept this BS. So to Mary: 💯 what Lesley said! Keep shouting from the rooftops and much gratitude to you!
Here’s some more inspiration to keep you going… excerpt from Heather Cox Richardson April 9,2025 Letters from an American. I listen to/read her posts daily.…she’s amazing, too!!
“As more than $50 trillion moved from the bottom 90% of Americans to the top 1% between 1981 and 2021, Republicans deflected attention from the hollowing out of the middle class by demonizing racial, religious, and gender minorities. By 2012 they were talking of “makers” and “takers,” and by 2016 they were feeding voters ideas and images straight out of the nation’s white supremacist past.
By 2021 the idea that some people are better than others and have a right to rule—the same ideology that had driven the Confederates—created a mob determined to end American democracy. The rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election believed they were writing a new history of the United States, one that brought to life the hierarchical version of American history claimed by the Confederates before them. On that day, one of the rioters accomplished what the southern troops during the Civil War had never been able to: he carried the Confederate battle flag into the United States Capitol.”
Heather Cox Richardson posts daily (i view on substack) and is one of America’s greatest historians of this moment!
It took Russia. That was the error Hitler thankfully made. The US joined in when Japan forced their hands. It remains insulting to all the allies & the once upon a time & no doubt dead now Russias to indicate that the US stopped them.
The mistake was when the US let them go back to their own countries. Where they took positions in the police force, town governments etc. Russia killed them for the war crimes.
The vile irony is Russia has become the Hitler of the east. It’s abhorrent. It stems back to the border making after WWII. Which is why he wants Ukraine. Which isn’t his. If Ukraine could join NATO this nonsense would stop. Any peace now will be broken.
In short, no it didn’t take the US on its own to stop the Nazis. It took allies.
That DJT has managed to erosive the relationships of perhaps irreversibly.
But. It also took many brave volunteers. That were not in the forces fighting. They were gleaning info. Making sure the truth was being distributed. Sharing said info to the forces in effect as unpaid spies.
You can recreate that. You can protest. They’re gaining traction. They’re on global news networks now. Have faith in them. Help out positive channels. See if there are any groups in your community or towns cities etc. and join them. Volunteers are underestimated in the power that they have. Unsung heroes. Anything you feel will help do. Even the smallest action IS action. It’s appreciated.
I note from another sharer that even if you only get back the generic ‘thanks for your concern letter/email’ from reps the concern is registered by number. They see the pattern form & they can then utilise that. Politics huh? What a crazy time.
My point - it took many from world leaders to unknown workers in cafes, offices etc to win both WWs.
Fascism remains detestable. And beatable. History shows that time & time again.
Have faith, stay safe, join positive groups and take care of yourself. Peace. ✌🏼
Actually, Russia and England were complicit in emboldening the Nazis, just like American conservatives who wanted to keep the U.S. out of the war. Once they became the victims of operation Barbarossa they did become excellent allies. They and the Western allies would have had a much harder time containing the Germans without the industrial might(money) and food from America. It's almost like the allies used the Russians as cannon fodder to bleed the Germans out from the East.
And no, protests are not going to help. In fact, I suspect the plan is to cause enough pain to create large protests so martial law can be declared, and the constitution, our protection against the government suspended forever. The time of non-impulsive men is over. There are only a few of us out of a hundred, and now with educated women and empowered men who follow their base instincts and then make up an argument that sounds so good to average folks as to how they can subvert their long-term happiness and goals for some short term pleasure and still have a good life(sophistry) we are considered just unenlightened and backwards. As a rural man who does not have that threat based mind, can't fit with the MAGA folks, yet those women are the only ones ever friendly towards me, and that's only because they do not know that yes, I was a Republican, but voted for Hillary and Kamala. Freedom without responsibility is not just a false value, but a deadly sin, it will separate you from your higher purpose and best life. As for me, the only freedom I have found is being a slave to the law (that's from Aristagorus). I would leave the country but I had some medical trouble and they made me wait until I was old to fuse my lower spine into one piece. So now I'm poor again without the ability to be affluent for a second time. It will be the responsibility of civilians to respond if the government does declare martial law(per the second amendment) , and that will be the end of me.
Maybe we should question and make inquiries within the security forces. Certainly, there may be generals et. al. that lean toward trump, but I really down if that saturates all the way down. However, they have been quiet so far, so we don't really know except for their statement 'we will not follow illegal orders.'
I’ve been thinking a lot about this as well, Don. I wish I had a better answer, but I think it’s still us! Just like civilians in Gaza were not responsible for Iran backed Hamas, we are not responsible for the vacuum of leadership that exists in America. We have to tell our senators and reps ON A DAILY BASIS IF NECESSARY that they must reject deportations with no due process and that this admin cannot be deporting residents, visa holders or citizens bc they exercise free speech. Violent criminals are not the same thing as people seeking asylum. This is so very wrong that they are targeting people for speaking out and expressing an opinion. It really is Gestapo tactics. Oh and btw… I have a green card. So this really matters to me. I’m pretty partial to free speech and being locked up for saying I denounce both 10/7 and carpet bombing of Gaza civilians and denying aid while they starve or succumb to disease is outrageous. But I’m not going to stop saying it. If it costs me my green card so be it. If i have to leave so be it. I’ve been here for 40 years. I have literally built my life here, married a Jewish American and raised an American son. I am also a dual Canadian-British citizen and I know when I’m on the right side of history!! Stay strong, use your voice, not violence! And stay in touch with your elected officials so they know where you stand.
I care and I am not alone! I still believe in the rule of law, even when the Felon has escaped the consequences of his illegal behavior. I do not give in just because people are getting away with things. I believe in accountability and I do continue to fight for social justice and equity. If we all succumb, then we will become the serfs in an uncaring autocracy. As long as I am breathing, I will resist 🤬
Via the Robert's court, trump has immunity from 'official' acts committed as President. However, via the Nixon era OLC opinion, the president should not be liable for prosecution for minor acts. But this implies he is liable for criminal acts - felonies - while in office because he still retains the liability as a regular citizen responsible for his own actions.
So, you see the rub: what's official and what is not?
If an official act happens to also be a criminal act, one for which the normal citizen would be prosecuted, does the 'official' act become unofficial or does it actually carry the liability of a criminal act? The OLC opinion would consider the felony a criminal act and thus liable for prosecution. The Roberts Court gives the president an exclusion from liability, one that I consider paper thin if not actually invisible. A felony is a felony, and I think the Roberts Court made a grave mistake.
What we're seeing in trump's presidential behavior seems to directly reflect the Roberts Court decision. That he is untouchable. That is not in the best interests of the United States...it can be the basis for widespread criminal behavior within the domain of the USA.
Does anyone see that? The Roberts Court has taken trump's mantra of "I am not responsible" to the nth degree and made it the law of the land. Nothing good can come from this, especially from a criminal state of mind. The political remedy is impeachment, but that remedy also suffers from the political imbalances within Congress itself and is flawed in that respect; the public is frozen out of any corrective action. So, as a result both political and criminal remediation are in states of duress and not easily accessed even if the situation begs for serious and immediate resolution.
So, your answer is correct, as you stand on the tracks with the train coming head on. Good luck.
I’m torn here. Yes, he is a profoundly stupid, immoral, narcissistic man, easily manipulated. And the scenario you describe is plausible. On the other hand, it does seem that he is a Russian agent and that Putin is pulling his strings (though I doubt he would stoop so low as to actually handle Trump). And Putin’s goal would seem to be to dismantle the post-WW2 global order to give him room to expand his political and economic power. Either way, Donald started a game of chicken he couldn’t win. And everyone is on to that.
Just yesterday I said something to the effect that the most important thing Congress could do immediately would be to pass a law banning governing by tweet.
And, of course, even if the complicit Republicans did pass a law banning governing by tweeting, it would stop the despot. Thanks to Chief (in)Justice Roberts and his court of traitors.
Mary Trump just said everything I’ve been thinking and then some. She gets right to the heart of the matter! Now, what do we do to fix this mess? In DJT’s first term, innocent me thought he would be inspired by the gravity of tradition and the magnitude of the job to “Be Better.” But DJT is not going to get better and very likely is going to do much more damage before mid-terms, which I expect he will try to spike somehow.
Was just thinking about ‘f..ing Xmas former ( oh, wait, again?) 1st lady. Not that I care, (I actually click on the thumb down button every time I see any headlines about her or his children and in-laws on my phone- soon I’ll only be reading about travel and food) but does anyone know what his wife is doing? How much money is she making this time around? How come no journalists ask about her? Are they afraid of pissin’ him off? They would be driving any other FLOTUS crazy if it were another Prez… They’re trying to drive Michelle O crazy with those stories about a divorce to turn the attention to someone else. THEY are the ones spinning the narrative! All the time! That’s why these voices here are so important.
Thank you, Mary. Every time I read your pieces, I emerge at once wiser and gasping for oxygen because djt tries every day to steal even that. Deep breaths.
Hey Mary, nicely done. Here is my analogy to what His Heinous is doing:
-An arsonist sets fire to a house because he’s mad at the owner.
-The fire explodes the gas tank, destroying the house and setting fire to all the other houses around.
-There is no fire department because there is no funding for the fire department.
-The arsonist announces the next day that “We’re gonna have the biggest, most beautiful fire department you ever saw. Nobody has ever seen anything like it.”
Total looser...? The tariff and Stockmarket selloff was a case of market manipulation so billionaires could make a huge profit when they bought cheap then sold when it started coming back. He's a fucking crook and always will belong in the fucking clink!
Use this spreadsheet to call/email/write any of our representatives as often as possible. Not just your own state reps, reach out to those in other states. Be as loud as you can and share this. Use your voice and make some “good trouble.”
It's sad that he can get away with all this. It sometimes seems hopeless. Congress and Senate Republican own this. They can put a stop to this at any time. The corruption is so obvious. One can only hope that if and when we get through this that there are laws passed to prevent all of this from happening again and that all these starting with Donald stand trial for what they have and are continuing to do to us.
I think until the US (and Canada and most of the Western world) does something about the dissemination of lies, misinformation and disinformation (in print, web and radio), situations like this will continue to flourish. Most of the GOP base doesn't have a clue how corrupt DJT is. They only listen to hate radio and Fox. They aren't getting NEWS anymore, but they think they are. Truth, especially when sharing information needs to be protected from distortion, lies and obfuscation. It needs to rank above the protection of free speech. That is just being used as an excuse to lie at the top of your lungs.
So true! It's astounding how ready people are to believe misinformation and lies over reality. Even when it's staring them in the face.
Donald's MAGA cult are delusional. The definition of a delusion is: "holding on to a belief when all evidence is to the contrary." Enough said. They truly are hopeless.
There are no right wing intellectuals.
The above definition also fits the diagnosis: Psychotic--The mindset of the MAGA is truly frightening.
Great point. Free speech refers to the ability to criticize the government, not go about telling lies. Men used to have a method to deal with that. It was called dueling.
DJT would cheat by turning on the third step and shooting the other person in the back.
😀😀
His whole life has been cheating. He probably doesn't know how to tell the truth
But the bone spurs…!
Ha ha
😄 😁 bone spurs. What a coward
Correct!
This history buff likes the idea of dueling and thinks of it often, ha ha. Lucky for some it is now an unacceptable way to settle grievances. Some antiquated punishments would be enjoyable to witness like the pillory, tar and feathering, a nice trebuchet launch. I could go on, like the mean brat that I am, but I might have to undergo a public stoning and run the gauntlet.
Drawn & quartered publicly after a god dose of laxatives….
😂 😝 😂 I'd pay to see that! Will each ¼ of him continue rallying? Of, course he won't be able to space out and dance for 30 minutes on one leg.
Actually, I would like it because it would prevent trouble. Surely in nearly all cases, whichever person had done something bad enough to get someone to challenge them would admit what they had done on paper and rectify the situation. The sort of thing I would do it over is the fellows who shot a deer within 200 yards of my house, at night. Half the "men" in town know exactly who did it, yet when I went to a community leader's place of business, they refused to help law enforcement. The real truth is that bullet would have had to go through a small hill to hit my house, but could have hit the chief of Police's home, but since he goes to the same church as my old friend the bishop, nothing happens. So being able to call a duel would blow things out into the open. Ancient mechanism like a blood price to maintain social order in the abscence of standing law enforcement. If the sheriff of your county is a member of the proud boys, and you cannot call a duel, lawbreakers will be protected.
Agree! It feels like we are being gaslit every day by some news channels. You can’t have an open and honest conversation with some as they are so brainwashed NOTHING will penetrate. I am 70 and never would have believed this would happen in America. It’s a true tragedy.
So sad 😞
I agree with you that truth needs to be protected from distortion, but to say that it needs to rank above protection of free speech is something that I don't know how to process. Just as one man's "terrorist" is another man's "freedom fighter", the lens of truth can be used by bad actors to help or to harm. - The bad actors in our society are using "free speech" protections to lie, but I'm not convinced taking away free speech is the solution. One solution is education - teaching the public how to differentiate truth from lie by examining the argument and evidence being presented - but educating the masses isn't something that is done easily or quickly. Maybe if we required a certain education level in order to vote? But that's been done before and presents it's own problems of inequality. The only thing I'm sure of is that I don't see a simple solution.
Agreed, I would also like to add--education to help recognize (not discriminate) the mentally ill and effectively manage it. Our law enforcement people included.
The mass population should have never quit shaming, publicizing, reminding all, listing all the amoral, law-subverting, corrupt acts committed by the unfit, unhinged beings in all 3 branches.
It only works if they feel shame. They have no shame.
Sad but true
The orange felon and muskrat belong in prison. We must hold them and their minions accountable. Cory Booker should run in 2028 - I wrote this poem inspired by his record setting filibuster against fascism: https://democracydefender2025.substack.com/p/cory-booker-is-senator-spartacus
Beautifully written, thank you!
Just remember that we have laws that prohibit this financial corruption.
No matter which laws are on the books, they MUST be enforced. We're seeing the cowardice and greed of the money people, and the entire Republican Party in the light of day.
Yet most of us are sleepwalking, expecting nothing to change.
Where are the enforcers ~ lots of laws are being broken and no one is stepping up 💥🇺🇸‼️
They own the DOJ, the FBI, and the Supreme Court. That's your answer.
Not democratic
It's a great question. Unfortunately, I believe someone would need to bring a suit against the guilty parties in the government, and you have to have big money to go up against the government. That's why it's been groups of nonprofit accountability organizations like the ACLU, CREW, and many others, operating on donations to sue for these 150+ illegal actions, even before the market manipulation.
Other than that, it is up to the House Oversight committee, which is controlled by Republicans, so they won't lift a finger. We can retake the House in 2026 and then launch a massive number of investigations. And what's the most important responsibility Congress has when a president goes off the rails like this? Impeachment and conviction. It will not happen with Republicans in charge. And we won't be able to win enough seats in the Senate to convict him, even if we could impeach him in the House. So we keep organizing a massive pro-democracy movement. It's getting bigger all the time. I favor indivisible.org for their huge grassroots actions. Keep the faith! We will nail these criminals and turn the tide. But we are in it for the long haul.
Only a transitional military coup to get all this rot out would be effective.
You may be right. But I think even without that, this regime has broken everything so thoroughly that when we take power back—and I believe we will, because the grassroots opposition just keeps getting stronger—we will need to rebuild something very new. And we will have to prosecute every last official in this regime who has broken the law or egregiously slow-walked justice. For those who enabled it, there also must be consequences.
At that point, I see us having an opportunity to make big changes in our system. We can't just go back to the old system. Just a few priorities: eliminate money from elections and governing, set term limits, more robust laws limiting executive power, a revised or rewritten Constitution, full racial equity, strong protections for minorities of all kinds including LGBTQ and trans communities, possible switch to a parliamentary form of representation with a more nimble ability to replace a corrupt or inept president, eliminate the electoral college and replace it with the popular vote, ranked choice voting, some means of enforcing judicial decisions, a total overhaul of immigration law, universal health care, fairly funded public schools that don't rely on property taxes (inherently unjust), tight gun safety laws with ownership and sale restrictions, and so much more.
Our priority right now should be to forge a broad pro-democracy coalition with no purity tests; continue pushing back on this authoritarian and fascist regime with a resounding message of "NO to everything"; and strengthen our civic ties by building communities where people interact with each other in person.
I'm sure I'm not right about everything here, but I stand behind the core principles.
@Karen Mortensen Truly a visionary statement--Thank you. We can certainly Hope.
Calling up Seal Team 6!
We can't! Dueling was outlawed almost 200 years ago.
Hasn’t stopped lots of other law breaking!! I’d love to see Donnie challenge someone!!👹
Only problem is that was a way even regular "gentlemen" could hold even the most powerful to account. President Jackson suffered from a dueling wound. Now the powerful can simply hit you with huge lawsuits and notices of claim and get money from you when they did wrong.
Ha ha! He'd crap his pants!
Not sleepwalking just stunned and not sure what to do and where to start 🤔
Pick one or two issues/actions. For example, making phone calls on a specific issue to your reps. Action is an antidote to this paralysis. A little self-care, then pick one more action.
Been doing that, getting form letters back full of boilerplate. Soooo effective and satisfying. /s
I know - but they DO count them and follow the trends. It's tough to feel positive but celebrate small gains.
Some folks might prefer go to a Tesla Takedown protest.
Or join people at a coffee shop to write postcards for upcoming, critical elections regardless of where you live. Indivisible chapters organize these in many cities.
A friend flew across the country and canvassed in Wisconsin - there was a positive, immediate outcome in that case. This was done via a local group that supports elections nationwide and which subsidized her travel.
Hi Mary, I just read a piece that has a terrific list of actions we can take to dissent. I think you'll really appreciate it, because it includes a number of creative ideas. https://open.substack.com/pub/thepeopledissent/p/17-ways-to-disrupt-the-status-quo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=2buqu6
maybe try this, www.poems4change.org/public/lets-get-tactical.html
But alas, enforcement IS the problem we have, not identifying his illegal activities are they are now so blatant!
Yup, the reason they have become so blatant is they think laws will not be enforced enough to stop them. Time to roll out the guillotines. They've been allowed way too much leeway.
Brit here. In 4 years no matter how hard he tries to steal power he will be gone. At this juncture when he & all the minions no longer have Presidential mob power, at that point can the Democrats & the general public go for them? Immunity only counts for the President in legal
actions for the country. His aren’t.
I just feel like that will be the plan / well I hope so. I have many US friends & family there - some who are already in his actual witch-hunts. I worry for them. Especially the couple of folk in red states. So my concerns are more for the citizens of the US.
Here we can force Parliament to discuss issues the public feel strongly about. We need 100k signatures on a govt U.K. official petition but on serious issues that’s easy to get.
Do you have similar in the US? I am heartened to see the protests starting in full earnest.
Also can citizens take the admin/govmt to task? Legally? Could say (hopeful here) 1000s of prior file a case together? That would decrease costs per person.
I’m avoiding all US government sites until he’s out as I find them abhorrent. The WH looks like a flyer for a frat party. And I’ve noticed many pages were missing (a reputable MSM op piece led me to check what they were saying - but they can check historically what was there how I know not!) that had any decent or helping info.
I shared NHS links on twitugh as some info on infections such as chlamydia was being removed! Dangerous games being played by dangerous morons in US.
In short. Could many sue or take to task the present government? I’ve seen cases where hundreds have taken corporations to task, can the people take the US government to task?
I should have asked this on the main post instead of a reply huh?! Oh well. It’s done now!
Other countries are with US citizens (in the main only the decent ones like you lot!), we despise your ill-equipped government. I stopped watching the news as the impact on US citizens and the very visual onslaught of fascism & I have to say communism tipping through the main powers that be, sickens & angers me.
All of can do is share unbiased news and links etc. I’m a minnow online but I feel I’m doing something. I can’t write to your reps (well I don’t think I can I’ve never checked!) as I live in the U.K. I will check that now I think about it.
I did want to retire to the US to New England (this old house sold me on it 20 years ago!) - a blue area consistently but DJT has put me off. And I won’t be the only one. Which is sad.
I am whittering on. I do. Apologies! But if I don’t ask I won’t ever know! I could ask my US folk but I’m trying to avoid all country politics in convo with them to give them a break! Goodness what a monologue.
Stay safe. Stand together. Form positive channels. Take care of yourselves so your sanity remains intact! Join groups. Protest even if it’s a tiny one. The world is watching. That has an impact, when the govmt realises it’s on global news networks!
And lastly take joy in the tiny things. Once the protests etc start to tighten the vice, progress will happen.
And remember, he stabbed SCOTUS in the back. They won’t forget that. No matter how twisted some are. Peace.
It's very good of you & means a LOT that you care. I always think how much smarter, or maybe more experienced, the UK & Europe are at not letting a ruling class take over. That's always been an element here, but I don't think most of us were aware how much, for so long. We took democracy for granted & didn't stay on top of things as we should have. And, now we a faction that has been working for many decades & pouring enormous amounts of wealth into 'think tanks' to figure out every possible way to manipulate, block, & undermine the systems we have in place for democracy. Plus all the psychological, technological, & war tactics used throughout history. There are tools of democracy, the laws our country is founded on, people with a good understanding of those & a willingness to do what is needed. But, we've never been up against so much corruption, on every level, from every direction. I don't know what it's going to take & I don't know when enough people will get clear enouh to pull together. A lot of ideas we have been told all our lives, ideas of capitalism & "independence", it's really hard to see how we've been lied to & how that has been turned against us. But, there are things other countries know & hopefully we can figure it out. It helps a lot that not everyone thinks we're stupid & immoral. I hope we pull out of this & do what is needed to never let it happen again. I never thought the U.S. was some global superpower, there's been a lot of things that have been wrong, but I never thought to be so humiliated by the leadership that represents us. Thank you for your understanding & encouragement. 💖
Blatant and enabling unfortunately this makes him bolder.
Fascists want us to feel hopeless
Biden would have been impeached.
For what? Exactly? He did absolutely nothing that was against the law.
If Biden had done this he’d be in jail right now.
It was a sad day indeed when dueling was outlawed. Once you make it where suits of law are the only way to redress grievances between men, whoever can hire the best lawyers can get away with anything. tRump would have been taken out by the first air conditioning contractor he stiffed back in the 80's. If he somehow survived the men he stole from, he would not survive the father's and brothers of the women he sexually assaulted. Of course, if there were still a legal way for civilians to use violence, he would have been glad to write out that he was a thief and abuser right on paper, and gladly traded all credibility and reputation for his pathetic little life.
Don't give up hope! People are rising up- esp people who finally realized they have been betrayed. And they are mad! DT stabbed a large segment of his loyal voters in the back. And he doesn't care. This is a huge betrayal for them! We need to support and welcome them. Sure, they were no fun at times, and downright mean. Their guilty of believing their President and thinking he considered them special. They were sure he would shield them and he just tossed them out with the trash. WE get that- but to them it's still a shock. People are starting to realize that Bernie Sanders want just spouting fantasies. EVerything he said came true so far. Some of them are recognizing they got swindled, and what they thought was lies, is really true! It's a lot for people to take in. But betrayal breeds anger, and anger breeds action. It is on US to be examples of what to do with that anger constructively. To show there's another way. I know thing a look bleak, but if you look at the opportunities- they are endless. A few Republican politicians are getting a bit braver and are starting to wake up and take small stands. We need to be supportive of them also. Of course this is al just my opinion, but I see HOPE. I still believe overall that good conquers evil. Someone can start a comic book about politics! I'd buy it!
having handed over unlimited power to Mad King unlimited power, it is not at all certain that the old playbook tactics of litigation, legislation, elections or public outrage will work at all. Good to do, but expectations should not be very high. A whole new species of tactical weapons against the Destructionists is needed. We're in the Dark Ages now, and candles don't help much. Imagination is what we need, lot's of it.
Trump will never be punished for his crimes in office. SCOTUS saw to that. But anyone else who assists him in committing crimes must be made to pay. Trump 2.0 is the worse than anyone could have imagined and you’re only 11 weeks into this nightmare (I’m thankfully watching this from Canada). No one’s ever seen so much overt corruption, ineptitude and racism in all three branches of government. Despite this, the MAGA faithful still support him. The US is fundamentally broken if so many of its citizens can support such a despicable monster. If only one good thing has come from Trump 2.0, it’s how he’s managed to unify Canada against him. Elbows up!
Perhaps I misunderstood, but didn't the Supreme Court decide that Trump is immune from prosecution for crimes committed while he's president?
Yup, the Key to the Kingdom of America. That's what they handed him. So all that talk about what the "law" says, or what the "Constitution" says, is all so much blah, blah, blah. We need to climb out of that box and rethink it all. The old playbook is obsolete.
WE CANNOT GIVE UP! FIGHT FOR YOUR COUNTRY!
At least CALL Senate and House leaders:
https://www.senate.gov/senators/leadership.htm
https://www.house.gov/leadership
Good to do, not good to expect anything to come of it. The old playbook is obsolete. Need new ideas, new tactical weapons. Perhaps start here,
www.poems4change.org/public/lets-get-tactical.html
Joe, you are right on.
The open secret that few are willing to confirm publicly about Donald Trump is that every psychotic and outrageous move that he makes -- financial or otherwise -- is backed not by the full faith and credit of the Federal Government but rather by the unswerving, equally psychotic fealty of his cult members who threaten and are prepared to effect, vigilante-style, his overweening, implicit threats to deploy of violence and death against anyone, including a fellow Republican, who tries to thwart him.
yup. There's a good inside look at that here, www.poems4change/madking/mk-gallery.html
turns out the highly educated representatives in our Congress are easily bamboozled by Facebook posts and Donald Trump‘s rants
He’s not very clever but ooohhh so sly!
je
I shared this on my BlueSky account. This article is so on the money and I love how Mary Trump just basically tells it like it is! She has more gumption (known more by another word!) than all of the GOP!
As a veteran of the stock market industry and trading securities, I see clearly how Trump operates. People like Trump should serve time in prison if insider trading can be proven. I hope the powers that be are looking into it.
Martha Stewart did and for a lot less.
He should already BE IN prison! He is a felon. Yet here we are, saddled with him for another term because of a lackadaisical electorate, many of whom believe his lies.
Rupert Murdoch deserves a lot of the blame for that -- 40 years of lies, fear-mongering, and rage-mongering.
Right you are!!!
Right you are Priscilla!!
Help formulate charges and relate them back to forums like these in formal, legal language. It's not enough to say this is illegal, that it's blackmail or extortion. Give the non-legal entities a hand here and name the charges. Other such persons and relevant lawyers can jump right in. Then we can be specific and direct.
Sorry, but unlimited powers, a grant of immunity from any crimes, and instant pardons for anyone else who gets tapped for prosecution (by whom, the DOJ?). It would appear they've got things pretty well sewed up.
Don't count on it
Everyone who is or has worked on Wall Street knows how this works. Hopefully they are looking into it.
Anyone who follows the financials knows what Don the Con is doing.
For sure they do.
I hope so
Sorry, but unlimited powers, a grant of immunity from any crimes, and instant pardons for anyone else who gets tapped for prosecution (by whom, the DOJ?). It would appear they've got things pretty well sewed up.
" MADE IT MA! TOP OF THE WORLD!"
Trump's professor at Penn's prestigious Wharton School, William T. Kelley, stated "Donald Trump was the dumbest goddamn student I ever had."
Trump traded in a formal education and even the development of a vocabulary beyond the 4th grade for the life of a morally dissolute playboy after his father arranged for him to evade the draft to join the family's real estate firm.
Over the years, Trump hungered for more and more publicity and constantly appeared in the tabloids surrounded by fawning women. We now know that along the route, he bragged about grabbing women by their genitals, one of whom successfully sued him for sexual molestation and defamation, cheating on his wives and cooking his company's books to "catch and kill" the revelation of his sexual forays with a porn star.
He also managed to set up a self-glorifying university which turned out to be a fraud on its students, as did his applications to numerous creditors whom he swindled out of hundreds of millions of dollars by vastly overvaluing his assets.
So how did Donald Trump get to go from being a rich dissolute playboy with the morals of an alley cat to being a rich dissolute President with the morals of an alley cat?
The closest explanation I can think of is by means of a riff on a comment made by Samuel Johnson to his biographer James Boswell about an acquaintance: " Sir, he was repugnant in his company, he was repugnant in his style, he was repugnant everywhere. He was repugnant in a new way and that made many people think him great."
Yes. He was repugnant in a new way. Paying a ghostwriter to write "The Art of the Deal" in Trump's name and with his wealth, swagger, ego and bluster, this blowhard and clown came to be the perfect sitcom attraction for prime-time t.v. And the more he growled, grated, gloated, grimaced and glamorized himself on t.v., the greater his audience swelled to be entertained by his bloated ego, bombast and put-downs.
In short. No one had even seen such a pompous, obnoxious and egotistical blowhard before, with the possible exception of Don Rickles's onstage persona. He was novel and refreshing, and offered a new face and style to enter the political arena with the support of right-wing conservatives, along with wealthy and influential friends, domestic and foreign, who learned how to manipulate his insecurities through flattery, money and promises of power.
During his first term in office, the dark side of him palpably emerged, in which he revealed his insecurity and desperation and lust for power and admiration, relying on lies and self-delusions to sustain his mental equilibrium. Over time, even his staff openly admitted that he relied on conjuring "alternate truths " and "alternate facts" to hold his world of illusions together. Even Mary Trump has openly referred to his serious mental unbalance and delusions of grandeur.
As we all too painfully know, his unwillingness to accept reality and to accept defeat in the 2020 election led to his desperate lies to his gullible cult followers that he actually won the election, though he was unable to convince a single court among the 80+ law suits he filed that his election was stolen. To this day, he is mentally incapable of letting go of his delusion that he won the 2020 election.
And while his victory in 2024 was more a repudiation of Joe Biden than a vote of confidence in him, he still cannot let go of the fact that he was a loser and that most people know he was and may still be.
I believe that it this obsession to crush his perceived enemies and non-believers through promises, threats, manipulations and extortion, and blackmail that drives his every waking hour.
And though Donald Trump now believes that he is on the verge of dominating every facet of life in the United States, it is not enough to satiate his unquenchable ego.
It is the entire world to which he now looks to become the Master of the Universe by turning upside down every country's economy and evoking the fear and admiration of every human being on this planet, all of whose lips will now be talking about the mighty and powerful Donald Trump.
So at what price to all of us does Trump aspire to be top of the world?
It conjures up visions of Jimmy Cagney's "White Heat" movie character's self-immolation at the top of a tower screaming:
"Made It Ma !Top of the World!"
I saw that quote from his professor who actually had been forced to sign a non disclosure agreement but his conscience was bothering him so he went on record saying that Trump was indeed his dumbest student 💥‼️😳
Thanks Carol. That makes his comment that much more credible.
One thing I am compelled to correct ... many voters were not voting against Joe Biden, but rather refused to vote for a mixed race black woman from California, despite she being the qualified candidate. Racism and mysoginy to the nth degree.
Unfortunately, you may be right.
A factor for some, unquestionably. But I would like to see some credible figures on how many were really persuaded for those reasons. And then, there is the other side of the same question, 'How many voted for Harris based on her gender and race?' An equally bad reason for selecting a President. I don't know the answer to either question. I do know that assertions based on feelings, no matter how strongly held, are still not facts. I'd like to know what the real numbers were, based on credible research.
Good luck finding those stats. The number of people who will admit they are racist is slim to none. Men who are misogynstic do not think they are (while talking down to women all the while they claim to not be misogynistic). Same is true with homophobic people too (often men as well).
You would be surprised at what competent social researchers and modern tools can find out these days. The point being, if we don't have any factual basis for making certain assertions, we shouldn't make them.
on the other matter you introduced, labeling people as 'not thinking they are something that one asserts they really are' is an old game the right used to discredit (refuse to listen) to reports by victims. Then the left played their own version called, "You're in denial," and applied to an accused (but not established) perpetrator. Same game. Anyone who challenges someone's position or prejudgement is marginalized and discredited with disbelief. There is no answer to that rhetorical technique because, whatever the target might say is automatically disbelieved in an endless invocation of "You're in denial" or "they don't think they are, but they are," blah, blah, blah. Sorry, but I refuse to play that game. It's dishonest and destructive. No facts are presented, no truth is to be found. None.
My factual basis is my own experience as a flight attendant for 37 years. I know people better than they know themselves.
You aren't making any sense!
You're probably right. At my age that is likely more often the case than not. It is why I like to consult credible sources, rather than anecdotes and personal experience about who knows "people better than they know themselves."
Beyond disgusting 😒 😕
"White Heat", GREAT James Cagney film. :D
I loved JC in my teens (90s) (Madonna lead me to him!) in my early 20s my ex (also a JC fan) commissioned an artist friend for a JC painting. He wrote ‘top of the world, ma!’ on the back. And etched my nick name into his tie! It remains one of my favourite gifts of all time. Even though the writing couldn’t be seen, I knew it was there. Happy times.
Love that! The infamous scene when he learns that his mother died -- improvised! He did that off script. Amazing.
Wow, yeah. Maybe at some point when you are no good at anything good, you decide being the most despicable person that ever lived is a big win.
I think you hit the nail on the head, Kathy. He has excelled as being the most despicable human being on the planet, and that, in some people's minds, has made him great.
Nothing fresh about that face.
L.D. well studied, well said, well cited. I'd like to add your comment to my Mad King gallery exhibit of the work of Jerome & Sadie Rothenberg's "In the Shadow of a Mad King" (www.poems4change.org/madking/mk-gallery.html) Message me if it will be ok to include your comment there.
In my own version, 'War of the Trumps', I look back a little further than his early education. At the end of Act One, I changed the line in Orson Welles' masterful radio broadcast of 'War of the Worlds', from "...writing down this last chapter of the record begun in a deserted farm at Grover Mills." to "writing down the last chapter of the record begun in an incubator in Queens." (http://poems4change.org/wot/wot2022-act1.html#orson1938) [4:35] If someone had the presence of mind to pull the plug on that incubator, well...?
Thank you red slider. Of course you may. I'd be honored . I just read some of your work and admired it.
good. I'll see if it fits. If you PM/DM me, we can work out a few details.
We don't have to work out anything. You have carte blanche to use anything you want in any way you want. As you wish-
as you wish, but I cannot use anyone else's material unless I receive a more formal permission by email. That's just the way I work. I respect the rights of other writers. I also like to have bilateral communications with them.
I remind myself on a regular basis that the same psychology that allowed a huge group of cult members to drink poison in Jonestown, Guyana is the same psychology that allows Trump's cult followers to blindly support him even if it means allowing him to destroy their lives.
It is obviously a cult of Trump-voting zombies manipulated by a culture war that was manufactured by Fox since before 2016. There is only one way to end a cult, without taking the whole population down with him.
Don't drink the Kool-Aid" -
My sister and I have our differences,
but we know what poison is.
If Trump is bragging that "the glass is half FULL," just remember that it's full of POISON!
Actually, he would never say that the glass is half full. In his hand (and mind) the glass is always “overflowing like never before.”
The cult members of Jonestown didn't just drink the poison, they forced it on those whose self-preservation instinct took over. What most had in common was desire to be part of something really important (like making America great again?) and feeling secure (which realDonald and his disciples preach regularly: Trust Trump. Trump will fix it. etc.).
Jim Jones himself was depraved and insecure -- a loser who pretended to be god.
Check out an article I linked last night, which I found while contemplating a Jonestown syndrome and the MAGA cult. The article was published in Psychology Today in March 1992.
https://substack.com/@blunderingoracle/note/c-107555537?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=4yoxc5
Thanks for sharing!!
Jim Jones had an armed guards with guns drawn surrounding the compound to keep people from escaping when the Kool-Aid was brought out.
He tricked them with lies and false promises into following him but when the end came he didn't give them the choice to leave because his ego needed to take everybody down with him.
Sure sounds familiar!
Heartbreaking and true, Mary Ann.
So sad 😟
not sure about that. The Jonestown mass suicide was the result of overcoming instincts for self-preservation with (irrational) nonsense about "higher purposes" (though some were also just duped and unaware they were killing themselves.) The Destructionist cult is more the result of reactive impulses which are given no thought at all. The reactive-brain (which is separate in location and function from the 'contemplative-brain') does not employ thoughtful processes. It is purely reactive and self-preservative. A provision of evolution which was meant for responding to "immediate" threats, but now extends the meaning of 'immediate' to include all kinds of abstract and non-threatening matters. It just reacts. Psychologically, the two subjects are quite different, though both are tragically self-destructive.
Mary, honey, nobody cares !!! There are those out there who will go to the mat to defend your uncle and his grand plans for chaos including Mike Johnson and almost all the Congressional Republicans. There are laws against insider trading and market manipulation but your uncle has immunity from the Supreme Court so he skates again.
No one likes to be called honey, or be patronized and YES we do care, even if right now DJT enjoys a certain amount of immunity. So did Nazis. So did Nixon. So did the bankers that got huge bonuses when all of us bailed them out in 2009. So did McCarthy. But all of them ended eventually and we need to remember the past so we don’t repeat it. Speaking up and telling the truth so it doesn’t get buried is more important than ever right now. Mary please keep shouting from the rooftops!!! We’re listening, we’re reposting, we’re sharing your story and talking about what you write and keeping the truth alive til the day comes when this is in the rear view once and for all. The worst thing we can do is stay silent. Last weekends peaceful Hands Off protests across the nation and even globally were just the beginning! Grass roots is exhausted, but alive and well. We the people don’t always get it right at first, but we will get there in the end and Trump will be remembered in disgrace, as were/was Nazis, Nixon, the bankers, the McCarthyites and every other thug or charlatan that thinks they are above the law. We have 400 million people in this country …. You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Trump MAGA world is on its way out. People get it now… it was only ever meant to make billionaires even richer while middle class and minorities once again pay the price.
Dear Lesley, please believe me that I was not trying to belittle Mary Trump. I know she is distressed as I am over her uncle. I call everyone “honey” because at 85 I have to pause over people’s names and it sounds friendly to me. I am sorry that you took offense as none was intended.
Thanks for clarifying! After a lifetime of being patronized I’m a touch sensitive. Please forgive.
Thank You Lesley - well said! Mary was the first one I wanted to hear from on these recent antics from the orange petulant clown. Things are exhausting but I for one am NOT going to just roll over and accept this BS. So to Mary: 💯 what Lesley said! Keep shouting from the rooftops and much gratitude to you!
Here’s some more inspiration to keep you going… excerpt from Heather Cox Richardson April 9,2025 Letters from an American. I listen to/read her posts daily.…she’s amazing, too!!
“As more than $50 trillion moved from the bottom 90% of Americans to the top 1% between 1981 and 2021, Republicans deflected attention from the hollowing out of the middle class by demonizing racial, religious, and gender minorities. By 2012 they were talking of “makers” and “takers,” and by 2016 they were feeding voters ideas and images straight out of the nation’s white supremacist past.
By 2021 the idea that some people are better than others and have a right to rule—the same ideology that had driven the Confederates—created a mob determined to end American democracy. The rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election believed they were writing a new history of the United States, one that brought to life the hierarchical version of American history claimed by the Confederates before them. On that day, one of the rioters accomplished what the southern troops during the Civil War had never been able to: he carried the Confederate battle flag into the United States Capitol.”
Heather Cox Richardson posts daily (i view on substack) and is one of America’s greatest historians of this moment!
There is no way anyone could get me to believe that anyone is better than another! We are all created equal and trump maybe a little less in the brain
Thank You Lesley! I follow Heather but had not seen that piece. Geez… what a mess!
Only problem is it took us to stop the Nazis. Now that we (our police and security forces) are similar to Nazis, who will stop us?
It took Russia. That was the error Hitler thankfully made. The US joined in when Japan forced their hands. It remains insulting to all the allies & the once upon a time & no doubt dead now Russias to indicate that the US stopped them.
The mistake was when the US let them go back to their own countries. Where they took positions in the police force, town governments etc. Russia killed them for the war crimes.
The vile irony is Russia has become the Hitler of the east. It’s abhorrent. It stems back to the border making after WWII. Which is why he wants Ukraine. Which isn’t his. If Ukraine could join NATO this nonsense would stop. Any peace now will be broken.
In short, no it didn’t take the US on its own to stop the Nazis. It took allies.
That DJT has managed to erosive the relationships of perhaps irreversibly.
But. It also took many brave volunteers. That were not in the forces fighting. They were gleaning info. Making sure the truth was being distributed. Sharing said info to the forces in effect as unpaid spies.
You can recreate that. You can protest. They’re gaining traction. They’re on global news networks now. Have faith in them. Help out positive channels. See if there are any groups in your community or towns cities etc. and join them. Volunteers are underestimated in the power that they have. Unsung heroes. Anything you feel will help do. Even the smallest action IS action. It’s appreciated.
I note from another sharer that even if you only get back the generic ‘thanks for your concern letter/email’ from reps the concern is registered by number. They see the pattern form & they can then utilise that. Politics huh? What a crazy time.
My point - it took many from world leaders to unknown workers in cafes, offices etc to win both WWs.
Fascism remains detestable. And beatable. History shows that time & time again.
Have faith, stay safe, join positive groups and take care of yourself. Peace. ✌🏼
Actually, Russia and England were complicit in emboldening the Nazis, just like American conservatives who wanted to keep the U.S. out of the war. Once they became the victims of operation Barbarossa they did become excellent allies. They and the Western allies would have had a much harder time containing the Germans without the industrial might(money) and food from America. It's almost like the allies used the Russians as cannon fodder to bleed the Germans out from the East.
And no, protests are not going to help. In fact, I suspect the plan is to cause enough pain to create large protests so martial law can be declared, and the constitution, our protection against the government suspended forever. The time of non-impulsive men is over. There are only a few of us out of a hundred, and now with educated women and empowered men who follow their base instincts and then make up an argument that sounds so good to average folks as to how they can subvert their long-term happiness and goals for some short term pleasure and still have a good life(sophistry) we are considered just unenlightened and backwards. As a rural man who does not have that threat based mind, can't fit with the MAGA folks, yet those women are the only ones ever friendly towards me, and that's only because they do not know that yes, I was a Republican, but voted for Hillary and Kamala. Freedom without responsibility is not just a false value, but a deadly sin, it will separate you from your higher purpose and best life. As for me, the only freedom I have found is being a slave to the law (that's from Aristagorus). I would leave the country but I had some medical trouble and they made me wait until I was old to fuse my lower spine into one piece. So now I'm poor again without the ability to be affluent for a second time. It will be the responsibility of civilians to respond if the government does declare martial law(per the second amendment) , and that will be the end of me.
Maybe we should question and make inquiries within the security forces. Certainly, there may be generals et. al. that lean toward trump, but I really down if that saturates all the way down. However, they have been quiet so far, so we don't really know except for their statement 'we will not follow illegal orders.'
'...I really don't know if...'
I’ve been thinking a lot about this as well, Don. I wish I had a better answer, but I think it’s still us! Just like civilians in Gaza were not responsible for Iran backed Hamas, we are not responsible for the vacuum of leadership that exists in America. We have to tell our senators and reps ON A DAILY BASIS IF NECESSARY that they must reject deportations with no due process and that this admin cannot be deporting residents, visa holders or citizens bc they exercise free speech. Violent criminals are not the same thing as people seeking asylum. This is so very wrong that they are targeting people for speaking out and expressing an opinion. It really is Gestapo tactics. Oh and btw… I have a green card. So this really matters to me. I’m pretty partial to free speech and being locked up for saying I denounce both 10/7 and carpet bombing of Gaza civilians and denying aid while they starve or succumb to disease is outrageous. But I’m not going to stop saying it. If it costs me my green card so be it. If i have to leave so be it. I’ve been here for 40 years. I have literally built my life here, married a Jewish American and raised an American son. I am also a dual Canadian-British citizen and I know when I’m on the right side of history!! Stay strong, use your voice, not violence! And stay in touch with your elected officials so they know where you stand.
Leslie, honey. STFU. How old are you anyway?
I care and I am not alone! I still believe in the rule of law, even when the Felon has escaped the consequences of his illegal behavior. I do not give in just because people are getting away with things. I believe in accountability and I do continue to fight for social justice and equity. If we all succumb, then we will become the serfs in an uncaring autocracy. As long as I am breathing, I will resist 🤬
👏🙏🙌✊✊✊
I Care💥😎‼️
This is not true. He does not have immunity from major crimes.
He has immunity from crimes committed while he is President. Ask John Roberts.
Via the Robert's court, trump has immunity from 'official' acts committed as President. However, via the Nixon era OLC opinion, the president should not be liable for prosecution for minor acts. But this implies he is liable for criminal acts - felonies - while in office because he still retains the liability as a regular citizen responsible for his own actions.
So, you see the rub: what's official and what is not?
If an official act happens to also be a criminal act, one for which the normal citizen would be prosecuted, does the 'official' act become unofficial or does it actually carry the liability of a criminal act? The OLC opinion would consider the felony a criminal act and thus liable for prosecution. The Roberts Court gives the president an exclusion from liability, one that I consider paper thin if not actually invisible. A felony is a felony, and I think the Roberts Court made a grave mistake.
What we're seeing in trump's presidential behavior seems to directly reflect the Roberts Court decision. That he is untouchable. That is not in the best interests of the United States...it can be the basis for widespread criminal behavior within the domain of the USA.
Does anyone see that? The Roberts Court has taken trump's mantra of "I am not responsible" to the nth degree and made it the law of the land. Nothing good can come from this, especially from a criminal state of mind. The political remedy is impeachment, but that remedy also suffers from the political imbalances within Congress itself and is flawed in that respect; the public is frozen out of any corrective action. So, as a result both political and criminal remediation are in states of duress and not easily accessed even if the situation begs for serious and immediate resolution.
So, your answer is correct, as you stand on the tracks with the train coming head on. Good luck.
But she shared, and tried....she knows his sorry ass. Mary, please watch your back!
I’m torn here. Yes, he is a profoundly stupid, immoral, narcissistic man, easily manipulated. And the scenario you describe is plausible. On the other hand, it does seem that he is a Russian agent and that Putin is pulling his strings (though I doubt he would stoop so low as to actually handle Trump). And Putin’s goal would seem to be to dismantle the post-WW2 global order to give him room to expand his political and economic power. Either way, Donald started a game of chicken he couldn’t win. And everyone is on to that.
What is the status of ceasefire negotiations in Ukraine? Isn’t Putin massing forces for a new offensive?
I guess that Putin firing rockets into a Palm Sunday gathering shows that there is no ceasefire.
Just yesterday I said something to the effect that the most important thing Congress could do immediately would be to pass a law banning governing by tweet.
And, of course, even if the complicit Republicans did pass a law banning governing by tweeting, it would stop the despot. Thanks to Chief (in)Justice Roberts and his court of traitors.
He loves to quote people calling him "sir"......
It’s one of his “tells” — when he tells a story in which people call him “sir,” he’s lying.
... and when he starts a story with "Sir, Sir..." we know he's lying even more... a "whopper", if you will. 😁😉
When is he not lying?
He is "sir" only in his mind!
The "sir" stories remind me of one of my first bosses who said, "Don't call me 'sir' - that's spelled c-u-r."
🤮 it’s truly sickening! All of it.
Mary Trump just said everything I’ve been thinking and then some. She gets right to the heart of the matter! Now, what do we do to fix this mess? In DJT’s first term, innocent me thought he would be inspired by the gravity of tradition and the magnitude of the job to “Be Better.” But DJT is not going to get better and very likely is going to do much more damage before mid-terms, which I expect he will try to spike somehow.
Was just thinking about ‘f..ing Xmas former ( oh, wait, again?) 1st lady. Not that I care, (I actually click on the thumb down button every time I see any headlines about her or his children and in-laws on my phone- soon I’ll only be reading about travel and food) but does anyone know what his wife is doing? How much money is she making this time around? How come no journalists ask about her? Are they afraid of pissin’ him off? They would be driving any other FLOTUS crazy if it were another Prez… They’re trying to drive Michelle O crazy with those stories about a divorce to turn the attention to someone else. THEY are the ones spinning the narrative! All the time! That’s why these voices here are so important.
Thank you, Mary. Every time I read your pieces, I emerge at once wiser and gasping for oxygen because djt tries every day to steal even that. Deep breaths.
I swear I am breathing more shallowly since his inauguration. And I hate him for that! 😔😭
I'd use corrupt, criminal, malevolent, predatory, law-breaking, dishonest, fraudulent, sleazy, thieving, disreputable, bully, bs artist, accused r@pist, national threat, election rigging disaster.
One more thing COWARD ‼️
All true statements!!
He's an idiot, and a moron.
https://thistleandmoss.com/p/morning-roundup-full-metal-straightjacket
I agree!
Oh ya tell it like it is Mary...love ya
Hey Mary, nicely done. Here is my analogy to what His Heinous is doing:
-An arsonist sets fire to a house because he’s mad at the owner.
-The fire explodes the gas tank, destroying the house and setting fire to all the other houses around.
-There is no fire department because there is no funding for the fire department.
-The arsonist announces the next day that “We’re gonna have the biggest, most beautiful fire department you ever saw. Nobody has ever seen anything like it.”
Same shit as “Build the Wall.”
Everything he touches dies.
Total looser...? The tariff and Stockmarket selloff was a case of market manipulation so billionaires could make a huge profit when they bought cheap then sold when it started coming back. He's a fucking crook and always will belong in the fucking clink!
Totally agree Lawrence Fury
!!!
Keep being loud!
Use this spreadsheet to call/email/write any of our representatives as often as possible. Not just your own state reps, reach out to those in other states. Be as loud as you can and share this. Use your voice and make some “good trouble.”
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit
Thanks 🙏🏼 for sharing this
You’re welcome! I’m trying to share it wherever I can! Thanks for using your voice right now!