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Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Nothing says ‘pro-life’ like letting children go hungry.

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Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

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Oppose, oppose, oppose. do not congratulate. this is not business as usual.

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Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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Celebrate the fucking wins.

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There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

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Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

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You are here: Home / Politics / Trumpery / Website for Illiterate Morons Surprisingly Has Few Readers

Website for Illiterate Morons Surprisingly Has Few Readers

by John Cole|  June 2, 20217:57 pm| 151 Comments

This post is in: Trumpery

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So sad:

Former President Donald J. Trump has removed himself entirely from the internet.

Still banned from Twitter and Facebook, and struggling to find a way to influence news coverage since leaving office, Mr. Trump decided on Wednesday to shutter his do-it-yourself alternative, a blog he had started just a month ago called “From the Desk of Donald J. Trump.”

Mr. Trump had become frustrated after hearing from friends that the site was getting little traffic and making him look small and irrelevant, according to a person familiar with his thinking.

SMALL LIKE HIS HANDS. Apparently his supporters aren’t big readers, which, I am sure, comes as a major shock.

It’s not easy maintaining a near top 10,000 blog for almost two decades, but a month isn’t even trying. Speaking of top 10,000 blogs, a big shout out to LGM, which has been around for 17 years. Congrats, folks!

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Reader Interactions

151Comments

  1. 1.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 8:00 pm

    Hahahaha!

  2. 2.

    tom

    June 2, 2021 at 8:00 pm

    But I’ll bet Brad Parscale, who worked on TFG’s blog, made out like a bandit.

  3. 3.

    Black_onion

    June 2, 2021 at 8:01 pm

    Self inflicted Cancel Culture strikes again.

  4. 4.

    namekarB

    June 2, 2021 at 8:01 pm

    Some people say . . . He made a fistful of dollars by selling the domain name

  5. 5.

    eataTREE

    June 2, 2021 at 8:02 pm

    Who do you suppose the “person familiar with his thinking” is?

  6. 6.

    Mike in NC

    June 2, 2021 at 8:03 pm

    My favorite of the Orange Clown’s tweets was when he met Prince Charles: “I’m having lunch today with the Prince of Whales”

  7. 7.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 8:03 pm

    @eataTREE: Carnack the magnificent.

  8. 8.

    HypersphericalCow

    June 2, 2021 at 8:04 pm

    This is great proof of the network amplification effects that the big social networks have. Absent that, Trump is just another old man yelling at clouds.

  9. 9.

    schrodingers_cat

    June 2, 2021 at 8:08 pm

    @HypersphericalCow: His mouthpiece MAGA Haberman was amplifying his message on Twitter yesterday. Apparently he is going to be reinstated in August

    NYT is the Faux News for the tote bagger circuit. They peddle genteel white supremacy.

  10. 10.

    JaySinWA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:09 pm

    He needs one of them newfangled video blogs to appeal to the less literate.

  11. 11.

    Steeplejack

    June 2, 2021 at 8:10 pm

    Whew, I thought Cole was ranting about Balloon Juice for a minute there!

  12. 12.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    This didn’t garner any interest earlier but the teenaged girl pushing bear off the wall to protect her dogs is great!

  13. 13.

    West of the Rockies

    June 2, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    @eataTREE:

    Dr. Hannibal Lecter?

  14. 14.

    Tony Jay

    June 2, 2021 at 8:12 pm

    I’m just having a ball imagining the High Council of GQP Archons sitting silently around their meeting table, all of them baffled that This Fucking Guy owns their entire world, all of them too cowardly to be the one who calls in the hitman.

    Bare is back without brother to guard it, melonfarmers.

  15. 15.

    JaySinWA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:14 pm

    @raven: This blog has been there and done that earlier.

    https://balloon-juice.com/2021/06/01/do-not-try-this-at-home-open-thread-she-shoved-a-bear/

  16. 16.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 8:15 pm

    @JaySinWA: thx

  17. 17.

    Poe Larity

    June 2, 2021 at 8:15 pm

    has been around for 17 years

    n00bs

  18. 18.

    Mike in NC

    June 2, 2021 at 8:15 pm

    I think both Melania and Stormy Daniels would describe his private parts as “small and irrelevant”.

  19. 19.

    guachi

    June 2, 2021 at 8:16 pm

    Probably had a deal on the webhosting where it was free for the first 30 days. So, of course, Trump canceled as soon as he’d have to pay real money.

  20. 20.

    Elizabelle

    June 2, 2021 at 8:17 pm

    @raven:   Amazing young woman.

    Had not realized it was a mother bear with cubs on the wall.  Glad all ended well for everyone (including the bear and cubs).

  21. 21.

    jl

    June 2, 2021 at 8:19 pm

    Radio news blurb said Trump was angry that people were making fun of it too.

    Sad day! Not the best, there were some problems. A mess.

  22. 22.

    Elizabelle

    June 2, 2021 at 8:21 pm

    It is merciful that we are not subjected to all things trump.  Our lives are enriched and enlarged by his absence.

    Although, I look forward to Trump:  The Federal Trial(s).

    And may I add: foo on Maggie Haberman.  Publicist from hell, masquerading as a journalist.

  23. 23.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:22 pm

    @raven: It was front paged last night

    ETA: I see JaySinWA got there first.

  24. 24.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 8:24 pm

    @raven: That could’ve been a disaster. Fortunately, the minute the dogs went off, the cubs booked it away from the house, so Mama knew they were out of range. Second, Mama was swiping at the dogs, but not too much, as she was trying to turn around to follow the babies. So she was off balance and went off the edge when pushed, but you see her popping right back up as the kid runs with the doggo.

  25. 25.

    Dan B

    June 2, 2021 at 8:24 pm

    @Elizabelle: May not have ended well for Mama bear.  There was talk of euthanizing a bear that’s trouble.

  26. 26.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    June 2, 2021 at 8:25 pm

    Mr. [TFG] had become frustrated after hearing from friends that

    It always shocks me when I see that word in connection with that guy. It can’t mean the same thing as when normal functioning humans use it.

  27. 27.

    JMG

    June 2, 2021 at 8:26 pm

    If I were say, Ron DeSantis, (sure glad I’m not), I’d be in discreet, deniable contact, with Don Jr., Jared and Ivanka about how to get the old man institutionalized before he spoils the grift for everyone.

  28. 28.

    Elizabelle

    June 2, 2021 at 8:26 pm

    @Dan B:   I hope they just relocate Mama and her cubs.

  29. 29.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:27 pm

    @Dan B: Unless they’ve killed or seriously injured a human, they’re usually relocated deep in the forest.

  30. 30.

    HypersphericalCow

    June 2, 2021 at 8:30 pm

    Network effects are real, and very important, and the desiccated remnants of TFG media team not understanding that, is very on brand.

  31. 31.

    Van Buren

    June 2, 2021 at 8:32 pm

    @raven: I used it as a debate topic today in my fifth grade class. Slim majority felt it was wrong of her to risk her life for the dogs, which surprised me.

  32. 32.

    kindness

    June 2, 2021 at 8:32 pm

    @tom: I’ll bet Brad bought himself a new Ferrari with the coin he made on the web site deal.

  33. 33.

    Baud

    June 2, 2021 at 8:33 pm

    Who else read the title and thought John was talking shit about us again?

     

    ETA: Steeplejack!

  34. 34.

    Calouste

    June 2, 2021 at 8:36 pm

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: Friend is almost a synonym for sycophant.

  35. 35.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 8:36 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: You’re the plant whisperer. The house with the bear has one mature citrus tree and it looks like they may have a bunch more ready to plant. Bears like food. I wonder if it’s wise to add more to the menu

    Whoops that was supposed to be addressed to Dan B., sorry.

  36. 36.

    patrick II

    June 2, 2021 at 8:36 pm

    The media has not been constantly echoing whatever the bullshit of the day was either — which they could have and would have encouraged him.  I never subscribed to his twitter, but had to read the stupid crap he wrote almost every day.  His spiritual insurrectionist offspring are still out there bellowing, but the volume seems turned down.  Except for Tucker Carlson.  He seems to have found his true racist self and a cable network that will broadcast it.

  37. 37.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 8:37 pm

    Why isn’t he on Parler?  ??‍♀️

  38. 38.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:37 pm

    Did anyone do the WaPo puzzle today? 8 down was “What the names of three contiguous US states begin with,” and the answer was “ani.” I have no idea what this means.

  39. 39.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    June 2, 2021 at 8:40 pm

    @zhena gogolia: So I’m guessing those are the three leading initials of the three states. Like Arizona, New Mexico and Iowa? Do those touch?

  40. 40.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:40 pm

    @debbie: It’s not all about him.

  41. 41.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    June 2, 2021 at 8:41 pm

    @zhena gogolia: Arkansas, Nebraska, Illinois.

    ETA: Nope, way off.

  42. 42.

    Lord Fartdaddy (Formerly, Mumphrey, Smedley Darlington Mingobat, et al.)

    June 2, 2021 at 8:41 pm

    A month?  Pitiful.  I bet he’s taken shits that lasted longer than that.

  43. 43.

    Roger Moore

    June 2, 2021 at 8:41 pm

    @eataTREE:

    Who do you suppose the “person familiar with his thinking” is?

    Probably John Barron.

  44. 44.

    Matt McIrvin

    June 2, 2021 at 8:42 pm

    @zhena gogolia: Arizona, Nevada, Idaho. But that is a really poor clue.

  45. 45.

    craigie

    June 2, 2021 at 8:42 pm

    @Mary G:

    Bears like food.

    Why were we not told this in school?

  46. 46.

    swbarnes2

    June 2, 2021 at 8:42 pm

    @zhena gogolia:   Indiana, Illinois, Iowa all begin with ‘an I’?

  47. 47.

    Amir Khalid

    June 2, 2021 at 8:44 pm

    @eataTREE:

    Anyone familiar with Trump ‘s thinking knows there’s not a great deal of it.

    If Trump had any clue about what his followers wanted beyond the chance to worship him, he never showed it. His blog reminded the world that all he really gives a damn about is himself and his grievances. Shutting it down may have actually mitigated the political damage he was doing to himself. Indeed, I think it’s a more likely scenario than his staff just forgetting to pay the hosting service.

  48. 48.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:45 pm

    @Matt McIrvin:

    It is, isn’t it? Why not some other set of three contiguous states?

  49. 49.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:45 pm

    @swbarnes2: OH, THAT’S IT!!!

    ETA: Still a terrible clue!

  50. 50.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:47 pm

    Thanks, everybody. That was driving me crazy.

    If it were NYT, there’s Rex Parker’s blog, where he explains everything (or his commenters do). But WaPo hasn’t attracted that kind of analysis.

  51. 51.

    SiubhanDuinne

    June 2, 2021 at 8:47 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    It means “An I.”

  52. 52.

    Spanky

    June 2, 2021 at 8:47 pm

    @zhena gogolia: Arizona – Nevada – Idaho

    Sounds like a puzzle writer gave up.

  53. 53.

    bbleh

    June 2, 2021 at 8:48 pm

    So apparently there IS an active Facebook site, https://www.facebook.com/DonaldTrump/ (I clicked the link so you don’t have to), with latest posts dated Jan. 6, and allegedly accepting comments, but whether it’s actually being run by him or his people I have no idea.

  54. 54.

    Roger Moore

    June 2, 2021 at 8:49 pm

    @HypersphericalCow:

    Network effects are real, and very important, and the desiccated remnants of TFG media team not understanding that, is very on brand.

    It’s hard to tell if they don’t understand or don’t care.  They care mostly about getting their next payday, and that means convincing TFG to fund another project.  It may very well be good for them if their ideas fail; as long as it doesn’t get them fired, it gives them another bite at the apple.

  55. 55.

    bbleh

    June 2, 2021 at 8:50 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: THANK you for pointing this out.  Otherwise there’s some horrifyingly large combinatorial number of possible answers.

  56. 56.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 8:52 pm

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym:

    Idaho?

  57. 57.

    mrmoshpotato

    June 2, 2021 at 8:52 pm

    Awww….the Kremlin’s orange shitpile couldn’t figure out blogging.

    WEAK!  SAD!  TRAITOROUS ORANGE SOVIET SHITPILE!

  58. 58.

    StringOnAStick

    June 2, 2021 at 8:53 pm

    Drove for 7 hours through rural Oregon yesterday, going to and from the ocean; saw only 4 tRump signs, all but one associated with pretty non-prosperous homes and the other was basically a junk store.  The new thing is signs for vote fraud.info, with a frog is pot of water on a burner and always with a timberbeauty.org sign promising “good jobs for rural Oregon workers” that I suspect is a gateway site to get you to fall down the Greater Idaho or state of Jefferson wormhole. Saw 3 of those.  I expected a lot more tRump and even the other signs were a bit pathetic in their numbers.  Signs supporting TFG are definitely declining in number around here; significantly so.  Maybe his supporters are starting to feel the loser-dom.

  59. 59.

    Steeplejack

    June 2, 2021 at 8:54 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    Going over to do it now. No more reading here until after, because spoilers!

    Usually I wait and do the whole week’s WaPo puzzles on Sunday. I got spoiled all those months of plowing through the Times puzzle archives.

  60. 60.

    CaseyL

    June 2, 2021 at 8:54 pm

    @zhena gogolia: Probably means “An I,” Indiana, Illinois, Iowa

    ETA – I see Subaru Dianne got there first.

  61. 61.

    Mike in NC

    June 2, 2021 at 8:55 pm

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: David Pecker

  62. 62.

    Dan B

    June 2, 2021 at 8:56 pm

    @Mary G: Bears like things like bird seed and bugs + small critters or medium critters.  Citrus are likely to repel them.  Apples and other fruits would be attractive but they could end up like birds that go after fruit that’s fallen to the ground and fermented.  Wouldn’t need much to push an addled bear off a wall.

  63. 63.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:56 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    Comments 46, 51, and 60 are correct. I hope it’s not too much of a spoiler — sorry! I just couldn’t stand it any more.

  64. 64.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 8:58 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    I’m about to do the TV Guide puzzle, that’s how desperate I am. My nursing-home-grade monthly variety puzzle book hasn’t arrived yet.

  65. 65.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 8:58 pm

    @zhena gogolia: OK, I tried to figure it out and had no luck. I tweeted at the writer Evan Birnholz asking for an explanation, because I need to know. It’s evidently been used by the NYT and LAT in the past.

  66. 66.

    JoyceH

    June 2, 2021 at 8:59 pm

    Trump is a quitter, always has been. I was genuinely surprised that he made it to the end of his term – I expected him to quit in a huff long before that. I can only suppose someone explained presidential immunity to him and that’s what kept him hanging on, though he plainly hated it.

  67. 67.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 9:04 pm

    @Mary G:

    See comments #46, 51, and 60 — they’re correct.

  68. 68.

    Steeplejack

    June 2, 2021 at 9:04 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    “An I”: Indiana, Illinois, Iowa.

    ETA: Piling on (gleefully).

  69. 69.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 9:06 pm

    @Mary G: OK, now I feel dumb.

  70. 70.

    rikyrah

    June 2, 2021 at 9:06 pm

    ????

    Ida Bae Wells (@nhannahjones) tweeted at 4:21 PM on Wed, Jun 02, 2021:
    “Kemter said he was emailed by an event organizer (whom he declined to name) asking him to remove a part of his speech dealing with Black Americans’ role in an early Memorial Day-type of ceremony.” https://t.co/XRy8BJSQZ3
    (https://twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1400201034971193350?s=03)

  71. 71.

    RaflW

    June 2, 2021 at 9:08 pm

    The only people who look more pathetic than TFG in the shuttering of that blog are men like Rubio, Cruz, Graham and Pompeo — and women like Ronna McRomney and Nikki Haley.

    I cannot believe they’re afraid of him. But they are!

    I’m guessing the “Frank” rally in WI with the CheapPillow guy is gonna be a stinker, too. TFG is an announced jumbotron guest. Hahahah.

  72. 72.

    dww44

    June 2, 2021 at 9:10 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:  Haberman was on CNN earlier and spewing her usually mealy mouthed non answers regarding tfg.

    I say this, not disparagingly , but she did not look well. No makeup. Hair overlong and messy. She simply did not look well,

  73. 73.

    RaflW

    June 2, 2021 at 9:12 pm

    @guachi: Probably “First 1,000 site visits are free!”

    And it took a month.

  74. 74.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 9:12 pm

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    But he’d be the most popular member.

  75. 75.

    schrodingers_cat

    June 2, 2021 at 9:13 pm

    @dww44: Withdrawal symptoms?

  76. 76.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 9:14 pm

    Oopsie:

    ?A Stanford spokesperson tells me the school will NOT move forward with the investigation into Nicholas Wallace for making fun of the Federalist Society because he engaged in protected speech. The hold on his diploma has allegedly been lifted. Background: https://t.co/gtrIlUfFOd pic.twitter.com/aG5epczMm2— Mark Joseph Stern (@mjs_DC) June 3, 2021

    Twitter has been enjoyable this afternoon with all the dragging of TFG’s blog fail, and watching everyone and their mother drag Stanford Law and the Federalist Society is the cherry on top.

    This is the classic Streisand effect. The kid makes fun of them, they send an email to all their members to never hire this guy for anything again and have a chance of ruining his career without having their fingerprints on it. But making Stanford come down on him like a ton of bricks just shows their ass to a wide audience.

  77. 77.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 9:14 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    That is a Sunday London Times kind of clue.

  78. 78.

    WaterGirl

    June 2, 2021 at 9:16 pm

    @Mary G: So glad to see this!  Stanford should be ashamed, as should everyone who ever went to school there.

    It’s appalling to see how much money controls everything.

  79. 79.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 9:17 pm

    @Mary G: Why in the fuck would he want to work for any of them?

  80. 80.

    raven

    June 2, 2021 at 9:20 pm

    “In the wake of the news of the investigation, Stanford Law School students reportedly began circulating satirical flyers mocking both their university and the Federalist Society.”

  81. 81.

    Steeplejack

    June 2, 2021 at 9:21 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    “Still a terrible clue!”

    C’mon, man! There’s scarecely a puzzle past Monday or maybe Tuesday that doesn’t include at least one misdirection.

    Sour grapes. ?

  82. 82.

    dww44

    June 2, 2021 at 9:22 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: yup!

  83. 83.

    smith

    June 2, 2021 at 9:23 pm

    @debbie: I  was thinking the same thing. It’s a cryptic clue, as commonly used in British crosswords, not a straightforward  definition that you’re more likely to find in American crosswords.

  84. 84.

    Mustang Bobby

    June 2, 2021 at 9:23 pm

    Bark Bark Woof Woof has been around 6,388 more days than TFG’s feeble attempt, and I do it all by myself. </shameless self promotion>

  85. 85.

    RaflW

    June 2, 2021 at 9:24 pm

    @craigie: I thought it was just the pic-a-nic baskets.
    Like, the basketry really drew them in.

  86. 86.

    Roger Moore

    June 2, 2021 at 9:25 pm

    @Dan B:

    Black bears are excellent climbers, so they have no trouble going after fruit while it’s still on the tree.  Southern California is a great place for that, since so many people have fruit trees in their yards.  Of course the bears also won’t say no to some leftovers thrown out in the garbage.

  87. 87.

    Frankensteinbeck

    June 2, 2021 at 9:27 pm

    @JoyceH: ​

    I was genuinely surprised that he made it to the end of his term – I expected him to quit in a huff long before that.

    He held on for the same reason he’s flailing for attention now. He’s a narcissist. Every existing job or title in the world is a step down in external ego validation from ‘President of the United States.’ As miserable as he was, millions of people listened to every mindless face flatulence he released. People came begging to him for his approval on issues large and small. Now nobody gives a shit what he thinks, even the people loudly screaming the election was stolen.

  88. 88.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 9:29 pm

    @smith:

    I do the New Yorker cryptic every week, so I’m used to cryptic clues. But this was just dropped into an otherwise very easy puzzle. I was mystified by it.

    But I had faith in the jackals to explain it to me!

  89. 89.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 9:29 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    You always hit the nail on the head!

  90. 90.

    Steeplejack

    June 2, 2021 at 9:30 pm

    @zhena gogolia:

    I have been on a starvation diet since finishing the Times archives right around the end of the former guy’s regime. On bad days I was doing 20-plus puzzles a day. Now I do just the one Times puzzle every day, mostly because you have to do it daily to keep your solving “streak” alive. Thought I didn’t care about that, but apparently my OCD side does. I wait and do the week’s Post puzzles on Sunday.

  91. 91.

    Ken

    June 2, 2021 at 9:38 pm

    Wonderful how technology is advancing. The tiny violins are a tenth the size of the ones available just three months ago.

  92. 92.

    CaseyL

    June 2, 2021 at 9:39 pm

    My Sunday paper has both its own big crossword and the NYT Sunday crossword.  Sometimes I do them both right away; sometimes I wait until later in the week.  They can be difficult – until you figure out the theme.  That makes things a lot easier,

    I actually find the NYT Saturday puzzle to be harder to do, because there is no theme, just a bunch of difficult clues!

  93. 93.

    Steve in the ATL

    June 2, 2021 at 9:45 pm

    @zhena gogolia: dude, M-W-F are The New Yorker crossword puzzle days. We here at B-J don’t do prole puzzles.

  94. 94.

    dmsilev

    June 2, 2021 at 9:45 pm

    @CaseyL: Sunday puzzles are big, but difficulty-wise I find they run somewhere in the Wed-Thurs range, mostly depending on how much trickery is involved in the theme.

  95. 95.

    Eunicecycle

    June 2, 2021 at 9:47 pm

    @rikyrah: I just saw that story in our local paper. It’s infuriating! I can’t believe the Lt. Col. was asked to take the part that was silenced out of his speech. I know the sound guy, AJ Stokes. He did the sound for some events I was in charge of. He was always very laid back no matter how crazy I would get. A good guy.

  96. 96.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 9:50 pm

    @smith:

    I used to solve those years ago. Now I couldn’t even remember what they’re called.  ?

  97. 97.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 9:51 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    The perks were pretty good too. Free golf, etc.

  98. 98.

    Ken

    June 2, 2021 at 9:51 pm

    @debbie: @smith: “Singular pronoun found in a mess”

  99. 99.

    Honus

    June 2, 2021 at 9:56 pm

    @rikyrah: I was going to say that was despicable but despicable is not a strong enough word.  What the hell is the matter with those people that they would even ask him to take that part of speech out, and then turn off his microphone?  Support the troops indeed.

  100. 100.

    Shana

    June 2, 2021 at 10:03 pm

    @zhena gogolia: The states’ names all begin with the letter I.

  101. 101.

    NickM

    June 2, 2021 at 10:04 pm

    @StringOnAStick: I drove through about 300 miles of coastal/rural NC in April and saw maybe 5 Trump signs and no multiples on one lawn. I was very surprised and it made me feel hopeful.

  102. 102.

    James E Powell

    June 2, 2021 at 10:06 pm

    @eataTREE:

    Who do you suppose the “person familiar with his thinking” is?

    Maggie Haberman

  103. 103.

    Honus

    June 2, 2021 at 10:06 pm

    @Mary G: I made fun of the Federalist Society pretty much every day when I was in law school at W&L.  But that was 28 years ago and I was 15 years older than most of them

  104. 104.

    NotMax

    June 2, 2021 at 10:07 pm

    @Steeplejack

    “Favorite pronoun of the 45th president”

    //

  105. 105.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 10:07 pm

    @Steve in the ATL:

    I did that one. But none of its clues were incomprehensible.

  106. 106.

    Shana

    June 2, 2021 at 10:07 pm

    @zhena gogolia: My husband likes the Globe and Mail cryptics.

  107. 107.

    Patricia Kayden

    June 2, 2021 at 10:09 pm

    Biden went to Tulsa and helped shoulder the community's pain. The Former Guy went to Tulsa and helped kill Herman Cain.— Jake Lobin (@JakeLobin) June 2, 2021

  108. 108.

    David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch

    June 2, 2021 at 10:10 pm

    Trump’s failed businesses:

    1. Trump Steaks

    2. GoTrump (rip off of expedia)

    3. Trump Airlines

    4. Trump Vodka

    5. Trump Mortgage (rip off of online mortgage sites)

    6. Trump: The Game

    7. Trump Magazine

    8. Trump University

    9. Trump Ice

    10. The New Jersey Generals

    11. Tour de Trump (rip off of tour de france)

    12. Trump Network (vitamin sales company)

    13. Trumped! (daily talk radio show)

    Trump companies that sought bankruptcy protection:

    1. Trump Taj Mahal

    2. Trump’s Castle

    3. Trump Plaza Casinos

    4. Trump Plaza Hotel

    5. Trump Hotels and Casinos Resorts

    6. Trump Entertainment Resorts

    and now Trump Blog

  109. 109.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 10:12 pm

    @Shana:

    They’re probably too hard for me. I can’t do the Times one. The New Yorker cryptic is about my speed.

  110. 110.

    Kay

    June 2, 2021 at 10:13 pm

    Kaitlin Durbin
    @njKaitlinDurbin
    ·1h
    Vax-a-Million winner Jonathan Carlyle of Toledo is overwhelmed but said he’s hoping to use the $ to pay bills and buy a house.
    “I kept hemming and hawing about (getting the vaccine)…and when the Vax-a-Million thing started I immediately went down there and got it.”
    @toledonews

    He’s wearing his Amazon uniform.

  111. 111.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 10:13 pm

    Deleted tweets saying the status of Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts changed because apparently that’s not the case. I didn’t realize those pages remained live to commenters even after he was suspended. Facebook says nothing has changed & he’s still indefinitely suspended.— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 2, 2021

  112. 112.

    zhena gogolia

    June 2, 2021 at 10:17 pm

    Asha Rangappa makes a really good point here.

    This clip is from last week, but especially in light of Trump's talk of being "reinstalled" — however crazy and idiotic it seems — we need to really start understanding the Big Lie as a terrorist ideology pic.twitter.com/t7hwJJHCzV— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) June 2, 2021

  113. 113.

    Kent

    June 2, 2021 at 10:17 pm

    @raven:@Mary G: Why in the fuck would he want to work for any of them?

    There are Federalist society creeps buried in law firms all across the country.  Hard to find work anywhere without running into one of them.  It was about torpedoing his future employment prospects in the private sector.

  114. 114.

    Mai Naem mobile

    June 2, 2021 at 10:18 pm

    @David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch: you forgot Trumpovotus Inc. also a business.

  115. 115.

    Jeffro

    June 2, 2021 at 10:19 pm

    “If he’s not mainlining 140 characters (or less) of stupid shit directly into my social media brain 24/7 then there’s just no point in living!!!”

    -my fervent wish for all remaining trumpov supporters

  116. 116.

    Patricia Kayden

    June 2, 2021 at 10:21 pm

    US President @JoeBiden has amassed an approval rating of 70% among American Jews, thanks to his handling of the #COVID pandemic, ongoing racial tensions and help manage a ceasefire in the last conflict between #Israel and Hamas.https://t.co/F3GuVnBeQx— The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) June 3, 2021

  117. 117.

    Jeffro

    June 2, 2021 at 10:21 pm

    @guachi: I do love the idea that he set up his oh-so-presidential “thoughts” blog on a free trial site and then punted at the 29 day mark.

    Might have to spread that not-disproven rumor around a bit tomorrow… ;)

  118. 118.

    JoyceH

    June 2, 2021 at 10:22 pm

    I used to get the books of the Times cryptics but I could never get all the clues because so many of them were UK specific. But I’ve found other cryptic series, Can-Am cryptics and cryptics ‘for the rest of us’. One series promises “NO cricket clues!”

  119. 119.

    Jeffro

    June 2, 2021 at 10:25 pm

    @JoyceH:trump is a quitter, always has been. I was genuinely surprised that he made it to the end of his term – I expected him to quit in a huff long before that.

    Well…he did slink out of town, embarrassed to show his face at President Biden’s inauguration.  First time in over 100 years that happened, I think it was?  We should make more hay of that.

    Only a guy who botched a fucking pandemic, racked up 10k+ lies and $100m in golf bills would do that…

  120. 120.

    Jeffro

    June 2, 2021 at 10:26 pm

    @RaflW:The only people who look more pathetic than TFG in the shuttering of that blog are men like Rubio, Cruz, Graham and Pompeo — and women like Ronna McRomney and Nikki Haley.

    We really should spend more time (here and on social media and emails and perhaps even skywriting) mocking the living shit out of these people.  “You’re AFRAID!  Of HIM!  lolololol”

  121. 121.

    debbie

    June 2, 2021 at 10:32 pm

    @Patricia Kayden:

    That will infuriate Israeli settlers.

  122. 122.

    VeniceRiley

    June 2, 2021 at 10:43 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Yeah I saw that and sniggered “Maggie got no access in the Biden White house. So we get this bit.”

  123. 123.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    June 2, 2021 at 10:52 pm

    @rikyrah: There is a good footnote

    Kemter said he wanted to use his speech to share the history of the origin of Memorial Day. Afterward, he noted, he received “numerous compliments” from attendees who told him “it was nice to hear the history.”

    So as usual the racists fucks shoot themselves in the foot.

    If people wonder why those of us are into history feel the need to petulantly speak up on it it. This why, a lot of popular history is a lie perpetuated by racists.

  124. 124.

    Dan B

    June 2, 2021 at 10:53 pm

    @rikyrah: This story is from where I was born and raised.  The Akron area was not as awful as the deep south, where I also lived for little over a year, but there were plenty of horrible bigots and still seem to be.  I hope the two assholes whose hatred of hearing about the contributions of all Americans, in this case black Americans, is met by appropriate outrage and swft consequences.

  125. 125.

    smith

    June 2, 2021 at 10:53 pm

    @JoyceH: The Guardian has its puzzle archive online going back to the time of Noah’s Ark — there are thousands of them. I print them off 40 at a time and do one every evening. The UK specific words are a challenge, but I’ve learned a lot (not so much about cricket, though).

  126. 126.

    VeniceRiley

    June 2, 2021 at 11:03 pm

    Call me crazy, but I think the cult has moved beyond TFG except for performative purposes. It’s all about the RWNJ billionaires propaganda and officeholders’ allegiance to the paranoid Q cult and the insane base. Propped by internet, Russia, Fox, Newsmax, OANN, rwnj radio, etc. All enabled by male white supremacy, as ever.

  127. 127.

    munira

    June 2, 2021 at 11:10 pm

    @zhena gogolia: An I – Indiana, Illinois and Iowa

  128. 128.

    Steve in the ATL

    June 2, 2021 at 11:10 pm

    @zhena gogolia: 45 Down was easy,  it offensive as she is a trump lover

  129. 129.

    Mary G

    June 2, 2021 at 11:11 pm

    “Conservatives” are complaining they’re being canceled because no one wants to buy a hit book against Joe Biden (Atlantic):

    In the conservative book world, nothing is supposed to set off a gold rush like a new Democratic president. Ever since Bill Clinton inspired a wave of right-wing best sellers in the ’90s, publishing houses that cater to Republican readers have learned to make the most of a new villain in the Oval Office, churning out polemics and exposés that aim to capitalize on fear of the new president.

    Unless, that is, the new president is Joe Biden.

    His presidency may be young, but industry insiders have told me in recent weeks that the market for anti-Biden books is ice cold. Authors have little interest in writing them, editors have little interest in publishing them, and—though the hypothesis has yet to be tested—it’s widely assumed that readers would have little interest in buying them. In many ways, the dynamic represents a microcosm of the current political moment: Facing a new president whose relative dullness is his superpower, the American right has gone hunting for richer targets to elevate.

    To some in the publishing industry, the apparent lack of appetite is bewildering. “In the past, it’s been like taking candy from a baby to write a book about the Democratic president,” one frustrated conservative editor told me, requesting anonymity to speak candidly about internal business practices. Now? “Nobody is trying.”

    Ben Shapiro, the popular right-wing podcast host and author, echoed this sentiment. The president “has a deeply nonthreatening persona,” Shapiro told me. “You kind of feel bad attacking him, honestly, because it feels like elder abuse.”

    Fauci is the new Obama. A bunch of his emails were published, and the gotchas are ridiculous.

  130. 130.

    mrmoshpotato

    June 2, 2021 at 11:20 pm

    @Mary G:

    The president “has a deeply nonthreatening persona,” Shapiro told me. “You kind of feel bad attacking him, honestly, because it feels like elder abuse.” 

    So Ben is admitting he’s a walking sack of shit in the weirdest way possible, I see.

  131. 131.

    TomatoQueen

    June 2, 2021 at 11:20 pm

    Thank you for the warning about the Firefox update and the fixes and workarounds for appearances.

  132. 132.

    dmsilev

    June 2, 2021 at 11:22 pm

    @Mary G:

    Ben Shapiro, the popular right-wing podcast host and author, echoed this sentiment. The president “has a deeply nonthreatening persona,” Shapiro told me. “You kind of feel bad attacking him, honestly, because it feels like elder abuse.”

    Whereas stuffing Ben Shapiro into a barrel head-first and then nailing shut the lid would feel quite good.

  133. 133.

    Eric S.

    June 2, 2021 at 11:37 pm

    @zhena gogolia: “An I”. Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana

  134. 134.

    MattF

    June 3, 2021 at 1:08 am

    @JoyceH: I’ve been doing variety cryptics for a looong time. There’s a Facebook group, The Puzzler, that collects (look under ‘Announcements’) and solves variety cryptics, particularly cryptic puzzles set by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon, aka ‘Hex’. Hex puzzles are currently appearing online on the WSJ puzzle page.

  135. 135.

    LHRHSHTT

    June 3, 2021 at 1:27 am

    Introducing myself as a Left-handed, Redhead, Small Hands, TeeTotaler,

    I might say more some other time, but seeing if I am welcome.

  136. 136.

    Ruckus

    June 3, 2021 at 2:04 am

    @dmsilev:

    I’m thinking steel drum and welding it shut.

    But that’s just me….

  137. 137.

    opiejeanne

    June 3, 2021 at 3:02 am

    @LHRHSHTT: Hi there. Nice to meet you.

  138. 138.

    TriassicSands

    June 3, 2021 at 3:42 am

    @David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch:

    You left out the U.S.A. But since it will probably never recover, Trump and the GOP would call that a triump.

  139. 139.

    Tony Jay

    June 3, 2021 at 3:44 am

    @LHRHSHTT:

    Did you bring any drugs? They said you’d be bringing drugs.

    That’s what teetotal means, right?

  140. 140.

    yellowdog

    June 3, 2021 at 4:03 am

    @zhena gogolia: An I. Indiana, Iowa, Illinois.

  141. 141.

    Bruce K in ATH-GR

    June 3, 2021 at 4:27 am

    @Ruckus:  Don’t forget to add the fire ants and the bullet ants before welding the steel drum shut.

  142. 142.

    ET

    June 3, 2021 at 5:48 am

    So sad and so unsurprising.

  143. 143.

    Barry

    June 3, 2021 at 6:11 am

    @JMG: ”

    If I were say, Ron DeSantis, (sure glad I’m not), I’d be in discreet, deniable contact, with Don Jr., Jared and Ivanka about how to get the old man institutionalized before he spoils the grift for everyone.
    ”

    I bet on him as TFG’s successor.

  144. 144.

    SFAW

    June 3, 2021 at 7:38 am

    @Mustang Bobby:

    “Half the Life of a Fruit Fly,” excellent post title.

    Now, if only TFG and his idolaters had half the (political) life of a mayfly.

    And, yes, I did learn something, thanks!

    [As a tangent: I recall some scientists studying a Drosophila mutation which had an extended life; they named it “INDY,” for “I’m Not Dead Yet,” which was of course a Monty Python ref.]

  145. 145.

    Kathleen

    June 3, 2021 at 7:45 am

    @dww44: One of the people I follow on Twitter said the same thing. Biting keyboard regarding additional commentary.

  146. 146.

    Kathleen

    June 3, 2021 at 7:46 am

    @schrodingers_cat: Perfect question.

  147. 147.

    Fester Addams

    June 3, 2021 at 8:03 am

    I suspect the money they gave Parscale to buy a bunch of fake readers ended up at the boat store or something.

  148. 148.

    cmorenc

    June 3, 2021 at 9:10 am

    @Matt McIrvin:

    @zhena gogolia: Arizona, Nevada, Idaho. But that is a really poor clue.

    Indeed, because while Arizona & Nevada are contiguous, and Nevada and Idaho are contiguous, Arizona is most definitely not contiguous with Idaho.

  149. 149.

    SFAW

    June 3, 2021 at 9:13 am

    @cmorenc:

    Arizona is most definitely not contiguous with Idaho.

    But if you squint your eyes just so, you will see that there are five lights they are

  150. 150.

    jonas

    June 3, 2021 at 9:48 am

    Because he can’t write or string more words together than required by an incoherent tweet, my guess is that TFG found it annoying to have to compose an actual essay-length blog post every few days, even if it was just dictated to an aide who then wrote it up and posted it. He really is a lazy, lazy man.

  151. 151.

    J R in WV

    June 3, 2021 at 6:14 pm

    @Mustang Bobby:

    And YOU do a great job, as opposed to TFG who can’t spell C-A-T if you spot him the C and the T…

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