There’s so much going on and this is the troubling thing. It’s not a question of sifting out the important from the unimportant, the potentially devastating from the inconsequential. It’s a question of making sure we realize that most of what’s going on right now, by design, is important—potentially devastating to the future of our country. And while we focus on the most obvious, the most dramatic, the most immediately consequential things, a lot is getting lost.
Today we heard that Donald has decided he knows better than anybody else about art—which is laughable, of course, but also quite frankly grotesque. We cannot pretend that what is going on with our museums and our institutions of culture and the arts isn’t as important—indeed, perhaps more important—than everything else. And we cannot let any of it get lost in the shuffle of the other horrors.
Personally, I find the incursion into our cultural institutions by the Trump regime—the undermining of cultural expertise, the censorship, the co-opting of the arts to promote an ideology antithetical to the arts—to be among the most serious threats we’re facing as a people.
Everything has been tending toward this for a while. How is it happening so quickly? Because when we had the opportunity to do something, we did not do what needed to be done. We did not say tradition and norms aren’t enough—everything must be codified. We did not say that if the courts are the only backstop, we need to reform the courts, especially the Supreme Court. None of that happened. We did not say that if the arts are the pinnacle of a culture—if the arts are the most valuable resource we have, if the arts define who we are as a people—they must be protected at all costs.
We did not protect them. We did not defend them appropriately. We did not support artists in the way they so desperately need to be defended. The right has been planning everything that’s going on right now for at least a decade, if not longer.
It should surprise none of us that once the fascist Republican Party gained complete control of the federal government—all three branches—and many states and local governments, everything that had been keeping our very fragile and aspirational democracy in place would unravel at a rapid and terrifying pace.
Part of what needs to be highlighted here is what an utter insult it is—and assault it is—upon expertise. I’m talking specifically about what the Trump regime has planned for the Smithsonian Museums. They essentially want to turn them into agencies of propaganda. But museums are extraordinarily well-designed, well thought-out places where people can go to learn, to immerse themselves in other cultures, to expose themselves to different ways of looking at the world, to different perspectives.
The people who plan exhibits for us, who design museums, are extraordinarily well-trained experts—especially at places like the Smithsonian Museums. They are at the top of their fields. They know what they’re doing. They know what their mission is. The same could be said of anybody in the past running the Kennedy Center.
The idea that anybody—including Donald—thinks that he, of all people, has any business going anywhere near our cultural institutions, that he of all people has the right to interfere in our ability to learn about ourselves and other people, is quite frankly grotesque to me.
We need to continue to alert people to the fact of what is going on in this area. Is this just another assault on expertise? We’ve seen this happening in the scientific and medical communities. We’ve seen it happening in education. So no—this is not an isolated incident.
It is part of an overarching plan. But this one, I think, carries a unique threat to our futures as an advanced country that cares about such things. We also need to remind people that the arts are the most important mirror of—and way into understanding—a society and a culture.
When we neglect the arts, when we fail to protect the arts and artists, we make it that much easier for the fascists to take over. We need to fight back by making sure everybody understands what’s at stake here and why it matters—because it may not be so obvious on its face.
Above all, we need to explain to people repeatedly why we need to protect the arts and artists at this very critical time in our history. All of this is happening in the context of arts and artists having been massively defunded by the federal government, just as everything else has been.
The most important thing to remember in this moment is that fascism kills community, kills democracy, kills our sense of belonging, kills intellectual freedom—and it kills art. But here’s the thing: art kills fascism.
Let’s dive in.
Hello everybody and welcome to this evening’s episode of Mary Trump Live. It is wonderful to have you here, and my apologies for the delay. At the beginning we had some technical difficulties—which is to say, I just got back from another trip and I’m behind with everything—so thank you for being patient.
Alright, let’s go.
A hostile takeover of Washington D.C. was not enough for Donald. He’s going after California again. So Governor Gavin Newsom was on it. He held an event in California today in order to unveil a plan to combat Donald and his egregious attempts to redistrict Texas in favor of the Republicans, to help that party steal the midterms—which, of course, is the only way they can win.
But because Donald is so threatened by the likes of Gavin Newsom and J.B. Pritzker—actual men with actual backbones who actually know what they’re doing—he sent ICE to the event.
Border patrol agents are making arrests—illegal immigrants that I don’t know if they were at this press conference or if they were in the area—but this is a very, as John put it when we first saw this video, a very in-your-face way to let Democrats know that you are going to do your job, that you’re going to carry out these Trump policies. Can you just respond to this video that we’re watching right now?
Yeah. Every single one of our ICE and Border Patrol operations is built on information, on investigative work. It’s a case and an operation that has been planned because of who they think could be in that area.
I don’t really think we needed Christie Noem’s take on what was happening—or, quite frankly, the propaganda being perpetuated by the host of that show, whoever she was. That was not “in your face.” This is what happens when Democrats don’t do what they’re told.
That was fascism. That was also—though less importantly, but still telling—our leader having a fucking temper tantrum. Quite frankly, when people don’t bend the knee to Donald, he resorts to violence. He resorts to illegal, unwarranted arrests and threats.
That’s America under Donald. And if you think they’re going to stop at immigrants or the most vulnerable among us—especially trans people, other members of the LGBTQ+ community, Muslims, Black Americans—you would be wrong.
Anybody who does not support this vile fascist regime is going to be in their sights at some point in the not-too-distant future. Any of us could be denied habeas corpus. Any of us could be disappeared from the streets.
How do I know this? Because once the right to due process ceases to exist for one person on American soil, it ceases to exist for all of us. And that could happen simply because we continue to insist upon our right to exercise our freedom of speech—which, last I checked, is still in the First Amendment of the Constitution.
Luckily, Newsom is a relatively sharp guy, and he sees all of this for exactly what it is: a desperate attempt at a power grab by a failing and flailing leader in Washington D.C. Take a look at what Newsom had to say about Donald during his rally.
And right outside at this exact moment are dozens and dozens of ICE agents. Donald Trump. You think it’s coincidental? No. Donald Trump and his minions—Tom Holman, tough guy Coley—decided, coincidentally or not, that this was a location to advance ICE arrests indiscriminate. Perhaps we’ll find out later. Well, I think it’s pretty sick and pathetic, and it just says everything you need to know, the setting that we’re under, that they chose the time, manner, and place to send their district director outside right when we’re about to have this press conference. Said everything you know about Donald Trump’s America, and that was top-down. You know that for a fact. And they’ll deny it—I’m sure. Maybe they won’t deny it. Said everything you know about the authoritarian tendencies of the President of the United States. I said it a moment ago: wake up, America. Wake up. You will not have a country if he rigs this election. You’ll have a president who will be running for a third term. Mark my words—I wasn’t exaggerating when I said that. I received in the mail a Trump 2028 hat from one of his biggest supporters. These guys are not screwing around. The rules do not apply to him. The most corrupt president in history, he doesn’t believe in free enterprise, crony capitalism. He is wrecking this country, wrecking the economy. It’s a lawless president. Wake up, America. Wake up to what’s going on.
It really is quite that simple. If the rules don’t apply to Donald and the fascist Republican Party, why are we playing by rules? Think of it this way: to play by the rules of a democracy—rules that no longer exist because the other side set the rule book on fire and buried it in the molten core of the planet—is to risk democracy itself.
So that’s the conundrum Democrats face: how do we not play by the rules of democracy when we believe in democracy? Here’s the question they need to answer for themselves: do you want to save democracy? Is democracy worth fighting for in ways you’ve never had to imagine?
I think the answer has to be yes. Otherwise, they’re as much a part of the problem as the Republicans who are deliberately and openly trying to steal everything we hold most dear.
California is not the first hostile takeover Donald’s attempting. As we know, D.C. is still under attack. He is absolutely determined to keep a grip on the District of Columbia.
As things are starting to escalate, Donald went a step further today, saying that D.C. officials are under investigation “for reasons.” Take a look at what he had to say to the press today from the Oval Office.
Crime in D.C.—will the administration release its own crime statistics to counter their misinformation? And will individuals who are intentionally misrepresenting crime data and fudging the books, like you said, be penalized for endangering the public?
They are under investigation right now. They are giving us phony crime stats, just like they gave other stats in the financial world, but they’re phony crime stats. And Washington D.C. is at its worst point and it will soon be at its best point. You’re going to have a very safe—you’re going to have a crime-free city. I mean, I say that you have virtually a crime-free city, and these are strong men—but the criminals are strong men and women—but they’re strong men. And these are people that don’t play games. We’re not playing games.
Oh yeah, you are. Pro tip: simplest way to make D.C. a crime-free city—leave.
Anybody get tired of this “phony crime stats” hoax? Like nothing you’ve ever seen. Why people continue to believe a word that comes out of this adjudicated rapist’s mouth—why anybody continues to have any faith that that person is sincere about his desire to lower crime and protect people from criminals when he has been convicted of 34 criminal felonies—is beyond my comprehension.
The only thing fake or phony happening in D.C. right now is the war that Donald and his fascists are waging against that city based on disinformation and propaganda.
Donald is also looking to target Democratic lawmakers in D.C., expanding the police presence even further. D.C. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith issued an executive order today allowing officers making traffic stops to notify federal ICE agents about undocumented immigrants they encounter.
NBC Washington reports that this is a departure from the police department’s previous policy—didn’t see that coming—and the executive order will now allow immigrants who have not been detained or charged with a crime to be reported to ICE for arrest and deportation.
Essentially, any undocumented immigrant in D.C. will now be living in fear because they could be reported despite having never committed a crime. Who are we kidding? In a Trump regime, it is a crime to be brown. It is a crime to want to do jobs white Americans refuse to do.
This has nothing to do with Donald’s desire to remove violent criminals from our country. This is simply about getting rid of immigrants in the most graphic, violent, and viral way possible—to instill fear in the rest of us who don’t want these things to happen, who want to protect our immigrants and undocumented workers.
It is, in the end, to chill our ability to exercise our right to peaceable assembly and free speech.
None of this is going to end anytime soon because the Republican Party is entirely beholden to the likes of Donald. He said he plans to extend the takeover past the legally allowed 30 days, making this a war between him and liberal cities—basically unending.
D.C., luckily, is fighting back. Let’s take a look at footage of protesters confronting federal officers yesterday.
Get off on—get off on street, get off on street, get up. You’re trying to arrest innocent people. What’s your purpose? What’s your goal? What’s the motive? Why won’t you show your face? You look yourself in the mirror and think, “I did a good job today.” Turn left.
Left, turn left. Trying to get people to turn left to not go down 14th Street. There’s a random search right now. They’ve pulled over about six cars. I’ve seen two people get detained—one by ICE, one by the police. Taken—no rhyme or reason.
And I just want to tell people at this point that it’s not been confirmed—continue.
Yes, that is what it seems like. So we’re trying to get people to turn left so that nobody drives down this street.
We need more people in the streets—but early days. Resistance is more important than ever. Obviously we need more of it. We need more people engaged in resistance.
As you heard, they’re setting up checkpoints. I’m sure there’s a lot of racial profiling going on, but here’s a tip: if you get stopped at a checkpoint and you are not a member of a vulnerable population—if, for example, you’re a white man—refuse to show them your ID. They have no right to ask you for it, so do not give it to them. That is a form of resistance.
If people keep doing that, maybe a message will be sent.
Donald, of course, has many enemies, most of them of his own making. He’s going after not just blue cities with diverse populations—he’s continuing to go after his political, or I should say, his perceived political enemies.
We know that this D.C. takeover is meant in part to distract from all of Donald’s other self-inflicted problems: his horrific tariffs, his destruction of the American economy, and his potential implication in Jeffrey Epstein’s files. So he’s attacking anybody he can find.
The latest victim of Donald’s attempt at a distraction is—and I cannot believe I’m saying this because it’s embarrassing. I mean, it’s not just embarrassing; it’s really, really embarrassing—he’s going after Hunter Biden.
Who, you might ask, is this person, Hunter Biden? Well, I believe he’s the surviving son of the guy who was president a very long time ago, who, by the way, was always a private citizen. He’s facing the threat that is Hunter Biden—the threat of legal action brought by Donald and Melania.
Who is Melania, you say? Who knows or really cares.
After Hunter Biden went on a podcast claiming that Donald and Melania had a close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein—oh, it’s all coming back to me—yes, Melania is prominently featured in many photographs with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Now I remember who she is.
Melania, through her lawyers, is now threatening to sue Biden for defamation if he doesn’t take down the video and issue an apology or retraction. As you would expect, Donald was the one telling Melania to move forward with the lawsuit, and he confirmed it today in an interview with Brian Kilmeade on Fox Radio. I’m sure it’s riveting. Let’s listen.
Well, I said go forward. I’ve done pretty well in these lawsuits lately, and I said, go forward with it. Jimmy Epstein had nothing to do with Melania and introducing me. But they do that to demean. They make up stories. Imagine they tell you exactly how it was, and it was another person. Actually, I did meet through another person, but it wasn’t Jeffrey Epstein. Yeah, I told her, let’s go ahead and do it. I’d let her use my lawyers.
I’m generous of him to let his spouse use his lawyers. And it’s okay, though, because actually, he doesn’t pay for any of them—his legal fees are paid by the people in his base.
It isn’t just Hunter Biden. I swear I’m feeling nostalgic that I have to be talking about Hunter Biden at the moment.
At the press conference Donald held in the Oval Office, he took the chance to bash former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper—like he’s digging deep. James Clapper. I literally can’t even picture… I mean, I know who James Clapper is, but I cannot picture him in my head—it’s been that long.
Here are Donald’s comments about that:
Tulsi Gabbard declassified more documents last night related to the Russiagate probe.
She’s doing a great job, by the way. That was another fake story. I’m very happy with the job she’s done. That’s right—they declassified some terrible documents talking about Democrats and what they did. Radical left lunatic.
What’s your reaction to the latest declassification, and in your view, sir, what does real accountability look like for the players?
Incredible what we’re finding—absolute proof of guilt—and we’ll see what happens. But Clapper and Comey and that old group of criminals—the criminals—and they made it very tough. They did the fake Russia, Russia, Russia witch hunt. That lasted for two years, and I get totally exonerated. There was no doubt about it. They should have done it in one day, not two years. But it was a whole scheme to try and demean Trump so that I couldn’t win an election. And that is a criminal group—they’re sick people and they’re criminals, and they should be taken care of.
Oh, get my name out of your mouth. My God. Yeah, really. I’m getting really tired of this. Oh, hunt, witch hunt—yes, going after the golden oldies to pretend that he has been, and Donald has been, entirely exonerated, even though, again, we know that he was convicted on 34 felony counts, and the two biggest cases against him never even got to trial—thanks entirely to the corrupt, illegitimate super-majority of the Supreme Court and the fact that Merrick Garland was a hack.
These attacks are being backed up by current Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. She’s going after Clapper with a newly released email as part of her argument that there was an attempt by the Obama administration to undermine Donald with its investigation of Russia’s 2016 election interference.
The Hill reports that a brief email exchange released by Gabbard shows a discussion between then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and then-National Security Agency Director Mike Rogers, in which the NSA director said they needed more time to review information before a forthcoming report to Obama about Russia’s hacking of the Democratic National Committee.
Gabbard’s take on that email, which Donald agreed with today in a post on his failing social media platform, is that Clapper’s email suggests standards were compromised in order to release the Russia report.
That is not what’s happening. That is not what happened.
An investigation was made into whether or not a hostile foreign power attempted to—or did, in fact—interfere with the 2016 election to benefit one candidate at the expense of the other candidate. That’s it. It says nothing about whether or not the candidate who benefited was involved voluntarily—says nothing about that.
Although we know it’s true. There is no doubt that Donald willingly accepted help from Russia. One question is: why was nothing ever done about it?
And now the people who are in charge of those investigations into the very real interference in our 2016 election find themselves in a position to be targeted by the most corrupt administration in American history.
All why? To distract from Donald’s—what’s the word?—monumental, mind-boggling corruption and incompetence and stupidity and cravenness and cruelty. And let’s not forget the fact that he was mentioned—he was mentioned in the Jeffrey Epstein files many, many times, according to his own FBI.
So maybe—just maybe—he’s also distracting from some potentially illegal, but also, and Donald, I know this is a thing that’s really keeping you up at night, some potentially extraordinarily humiliating and, I don’t know, maybe crazy-making embarrassments that you would find utterly insupportable and perhaps annihilating.
