Simon Rosenberg had a lot to say on his substack this morning, and I have turned some of that into lists that might be useful as we communicate with people who might not be as politically engaged as we are.
Simon Rosenberg sees what’s happening as an emerging opportunity.
According to Rosenberg, in recent days we’ve all been reminded that:
- sometimes the wheels on the bus go round and round,
- and sometimes they come flying off.
- Trump has always been a ridiculous and cartoonish figure.
- The Emperor never had any clothes.
- He was always the old man behind the curtain and never the Wizard.
I just get the sense now that the buffoonish, dangerous, sundowning man we all see is now being seen by far more people.
A door is opening, people are waking up to the awful reality of Trump and not the right wing noise machine version of him.
You never know in politics what is the trigger that causes things to change, for new understandings to emerge. I have always believed that there was a limit to how fast some of his weak supporters would have buyer’s remorse, and come to realize they got played. In fact I’ve been surprised how quickly and consequentially his numbers have come down. Down, however they are, even on what was his greatest strength – immigration.
Which is why we need to keep working as hard as we can people. He is stumbling, failing, getting panicky, looking weak and pathetic.
An opportunity is emerging for us and we need to seize it.
That was from yesterday. This is Rosenberg today.
I made some lists from what Rosenberg wrote, because as text it was overwhelming and my eyes were glazing over.
What Trump Has Done
A quick summary – other than breaking a lot of things and enriching himself Trump has very few wins he can point to right now.
- His economic strategy is slowing the global and US economies,
- has caused our credit rating to be downgraded,
- threatens the fiscal integrity of the United States,
- raises prices on everyone and does not cutting them,
- and will cause tens of millions to lose their health insurance,
- tens of millions more will see their health care costs rise
- and the overall health care system will be dramatically weakened.
What Trump Promised
- He promised to end the Ukraine war,
- bring peace to the Middle East,
- end the Gaza conflict,
- 90 trade deals in 90 days,
- rip Greenland from Europe,
- make Canada the 51st state
In reality, none of that has happened.
- global leaders are not bending the knee
- and some are even mocking him to his face while visiting the Oval Office.
- He keeps losing in court again and again, badly,
- and judges are growing far more ambitious in their rulings.
- He had to bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia home.
- His bestie Elon tore into him, trashed his terrible budget bill
- and [Elon]called on him to be replaced as President.
- No one came to his birthday parade.
- Rs keep losing and underperforming in elections.
- His cowardice and indecision has become a global meme.
- His budget bill is wildly unpopular, and struggling to get through Congress.
- What may be the largest protest movement in American history has formed against him.
- It has become impossible to hide the buffoonery of his Star Wars bar cabinet.
- He looks terrible.
- His ties are longer, his pants higher and his Truths more unhinged.
- He fled the G7 on Monday.
- Respected elected officials in America are getting arrested, charged, assaulted and assasinated.
- Marines are on the streets of an American city.
Everything he is doing appears designed to make China and Russia – not America – great again.
The circle of defiance to Trump’s agenda of sabotage, plunder and betrayal keeps growing and growing. The world, the American people and reality itself just aren’t bending the knee. Our democracy is proving more resilient and our people more patriotic than he expected. This thing simply isn’t working as this delusional, vainglorious, sundowning old man thought it would.
We, all of us, clearly do not understand how STRONG AND MIGHTY he is.
And now I’ll repeat what Rosenberg wrote yesterday
I just get the sense now that the buffoonish, dangerous, sundowning man we all see is now being seen by far more people.
A door is opening, people are waking up to the awful reality of Trump and not the right wing noise machine version of him.
You never know in politics what is the trigger that causes things to change, for new understandings to emerge. I have always believed that there was a limit to how fast some of his weak supporters would have buyer’s remorse, and come to realize they got played. In fact I’ve been surprised how quickly and consequentially his numbers have come down. Down, however they are, even on what was his greatest strength – immigration.
Which is why we need to keep working as hard as we can people. He is stumbling, failing, getting panicky, looking weak and pathetic.
An opportunity is emerging for us and we need to seize it.
Open thread!
WaterGirl
Speaking of working as hard as we can and seizing opportunities, I’ll let you know that Four Directions is soon going to be on the ground in Virginia.
Just 15 days from now, we’ll have raffle tickets for a native-made Star quilt and then kick off our fundraising for them for their work with the Native tribes in VA. They are confident that they can find us an external match.
Almost Retired
Great list and post. Kinda feels like momentum is on our side. And our quilts are better.
rikyrah
Thank you for this post. Having it all in one place helps.
Jeffg166
The White House is upset by this:
Republican kidnapper video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7SOc_8IhSY
Baud
@Jeffg166:
I’m glad it focuses on the Republican Congress instead of just Trump.
chemiclord
We thought people were seeing who Trump really was this time 8 years ago.
Turns out the American people have the memory of a demented goldfish. We’ll forget within 30 days of the next Democratic president, and be ready to hand the GOP power within 2 years, like always.
I have come to really, really despise the Average American Voter.
Jeffg166
@chemiclord:
The radical right has always been with us. They always will be.
At the moment they are especially emboldened as the felon makes up powers daily.
They are just a bunch of miserable people who want even one else to be as unhappy as they are for whatever reason.
chemiclord
@Jeffg166: Sure. They alone don’t make up enough of a coalition to seize trifecta control. They need help from “Average American Voter” who gets pissy every single time they have to maybe kinda sorta have to “sacrifice” something for greater society and start to think, “Sure, a million people died because of Trump’s incompetence, but was that REALLY so bad? I mean, eggs didn’t cost this much under his leadership!”
Baud
@chemiclord:
Do you want to be liberal or do you want to loved?
oldgold
And, given all that, we are going to let the Manchurian Cantaloupe unilaterally make the decision as to whether we go to war against Iran.
Article One of the Constitution clearly gives Congress the power to declare war. Now, granted, there are circumstances where there would not be time for Congress to act. And, we have the Emergency War Powers Act to deal with situations where time is of the essence and the President must take military action to protect the country.
In this instance, deciding to go to war with Iran, no emergency exists that would preclude Congress from considering whether we should go to war after due and public deliberation. Yet, we are going to allow this malignant narcissist make this decision based largely on his gut.
Democrats in Congress should be screaming about this.
Jackie
@Jeffg166: That’s the same creepy guy used in pro abortion ads last year! The dude who pops into the bedroom to prevent a couple from using a condom.
eta I know he’s an actor, but he sure has the “gives off heebeejeebies vibes!”
Harrison Wesley
@Baud: “Love me, I’m a liberal?” Wow. I hadn’t thought of Phil Ochs in years.
narya
I agree there are opportunities, and that they won’t line up neatly (some strategies or tactics may work with some people/places that wouldn’t work with others). I also think a bigger danger is people like Vought, Thiel, Homan/Noem, Hegseth, and SCROTUS. They all have an interest in propping him up so that they can continue the wreckage and havoc they are wreaking, and focus on Cheetolini enables them. I do think masked, unidentified armed men yanking people of the street has gotten the attention of folks whose attention we need.
Belafon
@Jeffg166: The right is what makes me wary of a three day work week. Imagine these people having even more free time.
Baud
@oldgold:
We’re not letting or allowing anything. Pretending we have power after the last election is misinformation.
Harrison Wesley
@oldgold: Some of them are.
cmorenc
People who get conned are often very resistant to recognize they have been fished, and unreceptive to being presented with compelling evidence of such, even when it seems blindingly obvious to others. For such recognition and acceptance to break through and change their mode of thinking, it can take experiencing being personally, directly, and viscerally harmed by the con to induce an about-face to reality. Michael Cohn being a specimen example.
Melancholy Jaques
@chemiclord:
Same same, but as Donald Rumsfeld said, you do your democracy with the voters you have, not the voters you might want or wish to have at a later time. Or maybe it was Abraham Lincoln.
BlueGuitarist
@Jeffg166:
thanks for posting this!
bbleh
Definitely need to keep pushing as hard as we can (esp at the state and local levels imo). But lest we get too high on our own supply, a door maybe opening doesn’t mean the finish line is yet in sight. They’ve still got the guns and the purse strings, they’ve got a lot of angry supporters who are only gonna get angrier, and the demented old guy is just gonna get more desperate. Aux barricades!
BlueGuitarist
Historian Kevin Kruse suggests
“getting the phrase ‘George W. Trump’ trending on social media” to deter Iran War
or “Donald J. Bush”
https://bsky.app/profile/kevinmkruse.bsky.social/post/3lrxprts4mk2y
Eunicecycle
@Jeffg166: I think the video is so effective because it mirrors actual reality, live videos of people being ripped from family members.
Nilnoc
Larry O’Donnell last night did a brutal expo of Trump’s diminishing mental faculties. Let me know when other outlets and MSM stop the sane washing of the orange fartcloud. When we hear Trump in his own words, with the words put down on paper or spoken by someone else, then we can hope more of those who haven’t had a FAFO moment will at least have a WTF moment.
oldgold
@Baud: BS!
Professor Bigfoot
“In this country American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.” — Toni Morrison
Citizen Dave
Orange Stain promised he would lower electricity prices by 50% in one year. The actions he/his people have taken are doing nothing but raising prices.
Citizen Scientist
Thank you for this WG.
WaterGirl
@chemiclord: Trump was horrible 8 years ago, but he is exponentially more horrible this time because he has filled his cabinet with goons.
Have some hope, please.
WaterGirl
@Jeffg166: Chilling. Unfortunately, not really an exaggeration of the thread.
Another Scott
@oldgold:
ARLNow.com:
H. Con. Res. text (4 page .pdf)
Best wishes,
Scott.
WaterGirl
@Jeffg166: Can you say more about the white house being upset about that ad? I would love to read and hear more about that.
WaterGirl
@bbleh:
A good reminder, but pretty sure we al know that. But you have to push on the door if you want it to open. There are things we can do to push on the door and not get sucked into focusing on how big and heavy the door is.
PUSH!
frosty
@Nilnoc: I’m good with people having WTF moments. FAFOs are going to be too sparse for most old white guys.
Professor Bigfoot
@WaterGirl: I like the mobster analogy: he’s installed his crew at the top of the Family; and now they’ve DONE a big bustout and are looking around for where else can they grift.
Geminid
@WaterGirl: Trump also has a competent and trusted Chief of Staff this time, in Susan Wiles. I’m not saying this is a good thing– in many ways it’s bad thing– but Wiles brings an element of method to the madness.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
(D) House member Lloyd Doggett has a Trump Economic Timeline on his website:
https://doggett.house.gov/issues/trumps-economic-promises-timeline
To be technical, the Orange Fart Cloud didn’t just limit the drop in electric prices by 50%, but ‘energy’ prices in general.
A broader analysis of what the downright evil spending bill will mean to energy prices:
https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2025/06/10-ways-that-trumps-tax-bill-would-undermine-his-energy-promises/
https://www.americanprogress.org/article/10-trump-administration-actions-that-could-lead-to-higher-electricity-prices/
WaterGirl
@Geminid: Can’t argue with that!
frosty
@WaterGirl: Gotta go back to Churchill for times like this:
“This isn’t the end. This isn’t even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
WaterGirl
@frosty: Let’s hope that’s where we are now.
H.E.Wolf
@chemiclord:
Then it behooves us all to make sure we’re actively – and I stress actively – above average!
There are lots of ways to walk our talk. How about active participation with the Four Directions Native Vote effort? Their goals are in line with our goals.
From WaterGirl’s comment, above:
“Speaking of working as hard as we can and seizing opportunities, I’ll let you know that Four Directions is soon going to be on the ground in Virginia.”
oldgold
@Another Scott: This is not the raising of holy hell/ hair on fire that I am advocating.
But, yes, at least it is something.
Joey Maloney
@frosty: I think it was also Churchill who said you can always count on the American people to do the right thing – after they’ve exhausted all other alternatives.
I’m pretty exhausted these days.
rikyrah
@Jeffg166:
They are always bothered by the truth
Jeffg166
@Jackie:
Seems there are more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aK-weXT5HxE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtBenbuY0Wk
schrodingers_cat
@frosty: Churchill and the mobster in charge are in agreement about shithole countries and the people who live there. Which in large part became thus thanks to Churchill’s forefathers.
WaterGirl
@Jeffg166:
I ended up googling abut the kidnapping ad. The only thing I found was this, which states that Trump and Rs don’t like the ad, but I am not seeing any sourcing for that.
Even so, I am still all for sharing that video far and wide.
wmd
Progress Action Fund dropped a good ad on where INS goons are headed. Worth sharing, and possibly embed on a front page post at some point.
oldgold
@Another Scott: Here is the full list.
Joining Khanna as co-sponsors, Massie said, are Democratic Reps. Don Beyer of Virginia, Greg Casar of Texas, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Nydia Velázquez of New York, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Chuy Garcia and Delia Ramirez of Illinois, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, Jim McGovern and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
Another Scott
@oldgold: I hope that you are letting your representatives know, maybe including specific examples of the language and actions that you want to see.
Obama’s “fired up, ready to go” line came from a normal person…
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Jeffro
I have to agree: people ARE waking up to the sheer horrible-ness, in every dimension, of this maladministration.
BUT
They won’t automatically turn to the Democrats, at least not in droves, unless we a) pound on trumpov & Co and b) make our own case/present our own plans.
Jeffro
ooooo! I’m in!
Jeffro
I winced just reading that. LOVE it!
Lyrebird
@Another Scott: Thanks for this glimmer of good hope, good action!
Since your Google-fu is far stronger than mine, could you find if there’s a link that shows current co-signers? (ETA: thanks @oldgold: for that batch!)
And yes I have a shiver of discomfort cheering on Rep. Massie, but we need coalitions, and the current House needs Republicans to step up, so I thank the Spaghetti Monster he is!
WaterGirl
@wmd: I think that’s the same ad that was linked at #4. Was it supposed to be a different one?
If it’s the same one, I totally agree.
Another Scott
@Lyrebird: oldgold has the current co-sponsors above.
Congress.gov – H. Con. Res. 38 has all the details. (Sometimes what’s posted there lags a little compared to news stories.)
It’s apparently been referred to the Foreign Affairs committee.
HTH!
Best wishes,
Scott.
Belafon
@Jeffro:
We will repeal and replace.
Jackie
delete duplicate
Jackie
@Jeffg166: That second one about cutting Medicare is spot on! I hope these ads get aired nationally. And the kidnapping one, too!
WaterGirl
@Jackie: That guy is so perfectly creepy – he has the Republican creepiness down pat.
Jackie
@WaterGirl: Reminds me of mashup of Grassley and McConnell and Ron Johnson.
WaterGirl
@Jackie: I agree with those 3, but you forgot to mention the devil.
Oversight?
Belafon
@WaterGirl: The Devil has an ethics.
Jeffro
Fingers doubly crossed that Wiles’ methods can hold back his madness. Millions of lives depend on it.
Jeffro
Btw Geminid (and other Virginia peeps): I saw my first red ‘WINSOME’ yard signs out in Fluvanna County yesterday. She’s a disaster and the VA GOP is a mess, but they’re still going to try their hardest to keep the Governor’s mansion.
I’m encouraged by Democratic turnout in the primaries and by the high quality of the whole ticket, though!
Dorothy A. Winsor
I’m concerned that Trump will be motivated by his failures to bomb Iran in order to show how strong he is
Another Scott
@Dorothy A. Winsor: It is concerning, but we have some history with 47 and military force.
He sent a bunch of cruise missiles into Syria, then declared victory and didn’t do much of anything else, and didn’t really affect how Syria turned out. Especially since they knew the attack was coming before hand…
Fundamentally, 47’s a coward who blusters and bluffs and backs down when people stand up to him. He wants the big show of big power, but doesn’t want to get his hair mussed.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he orders bombing of the Fordow enrichment plant but agree with that writer that it won’t prevent Iran from getting a nuclear bomb if they really want one. I also wouldn’t be surprised if he declares victory without bombing Iran. He probably still hasn’t decided himself. (Of course, if he does bomb Iran, there will be consequences for him and the USA.)
Nuclear bombs are 80+ year old technology. The genie is out of the lamp. The way to keep countries from getting them is via political agreements (and sticking to them).
Grr…
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Another Scott
Meanwhile, … NotebookCheck.net:
Original article in Science Robotics.
Our intuition may be good for preventing us getting eaten by leopards lurking in the shadows, but it has great difficulty in dealing with modern problems. Independent proof of suppositions is always valuable.
Something something the first principle is that you must not fool yourself – and you are the easiest person to fool. – R. P. Feynman
Best wishes,
Scott.
Jackie
This doesn’t sound good. I await Hegseth’s non answer.
Geminid
@WaterGirl: It’s not a bad time to repost a Politico Magazine profile of White House Chief of Staff Susan Wiles. It was published last Spring, when she headed up Trump’s campaign team, and is titled, “The most feared and least known political operative in America” April 26, 2024.*
There’s a lot of biographical material concerning Wiles’ childhood growing up in a prosperous New Jersey household. Her father, Tom Summerall, was a highly successful sportscaster and also a high-functioning alcoholic. Reporter Michael Kruse leaves plenty of room for speculation as to the effect on Wiles’ psychology but draws no conclusions himself.
When Wiles graduated from the University of Maryland in 1979, she got a job in the office of Rep. Jack Kemp, an NFL teammate of her father’s. Then she joined Ronald Reagan’s 1980 campaign. Wiles’ work on his advance teams earned her a reputation as someone who could “make the trains run on time.”
Wiles stayed in politics. One career highpoint was in 2010, when she managed political newcomer Rick Scott’s successful campaign for Florida Governor. Then she helped Scott win a second close election in 2014.
When Wiles hooked up with Trump in 2021, many people assumed the relationship would not last. But Wiles went on to manage his successful comeback and four years later, the relationship seems as strong as ever.
Fun Susan Wiles fact: Wiles served as Ronald Reagan’s Chief of Staff after he left the White House in January of 1989, and sank into dementia. That experience could come in handy now.
@Geminid: *Ed: I posted a link to the article but it didn’t work. I hit some salient points above, though.
Wiles gave reporter Michael Kruse an interview for the article; basically, she told him nothing but in a very civil way.
Bill Arnold
@Another Scott:
Brings to mind this:
Republica – Ready to Go (Official Video) (YouTube, 3:42)
JoyceH
@WaterGirl: Hey, I’ve seen plenty of video on Twitter of masked men in unmarked cars snatching up known born US citizens who then disappear- and they’re not fiction, they’re real. ICE is out of control.
Another Scott
@Bill Arnold: 👍
Thanks!
Best wishes,
Scott.
NightSky
@WaterGirl:
Today across So Cal gardeners are afraid to come to work because ICE is scooping them up, with or without the help of local PD, or Nat G/Marines. I am very afraid for them. Mine is the nicest, most conscientious and skilled guy. Came here as a teen 30 years ago. Never in trouble, but never got even a green card bc someone advised him not to bother, there were too many other Mexicans ahead of him in line. Has a wife, 3 citizen children, and a successful business that provides a necessary service. I don’t see any “manly” white guys or Steven Miller wannabees eager to take care of my landscaping and fixing my driplines, esp in 95 degree heat. I am very afraid for the thousands of good people like him and his family — and for our economy and our society for losing them. They are the productive, helpful ones. Like the video, even his citizen kids could get grabbed by ICE. BTW, I’ve never heard a peep about whether ICE is working with local PD gang units to identify and detain actual criminals. That would be too logical, not performative, and entail hard work.
The protests in our area had 2-3 times as many folks recently as in April; it was peaceful and friendly, but people are getting mad as hell bc it’s biting into our lives now. For that I’m actually thankful bc we’re going to need another doubling of protesters and more embarrassing ads like these to begin to stop this American carnage and seize the opportunity we are being given. Yes, it’s not just T, it’s all the goons around him from the nicey nice Taliban-Christians to the macho militia types.
It takes energy and action to prevent depression. Many thanks to BJ for being here with therapeutic posts and donation options (e.g. 4 Directions…) just when we need them!
Not to mention the humor and animal pix.
Geminid
@Jeffro: Come November, Winsome Sears is gonna be Lose-some Sears.
I’ll be interested to see how much national money comes her way, and whether donors divert their money to Jack Ciattarelli, the Republican running for Governor in New Jersey. That seems the more winnable race.
Omnes Omnibus
Reminder: If you know someone who is undocumented, no, you don’t. Just like you don’t know anyone who has had an abortion, is trans, etc. If the person in question wants to make their situation public, that is their choice. The rest of us don’t know nothin’.
Another Scott
@Jackie: I’m no expert, but remember that online sites make their livings by getting people to be anxious.
Made me look…
TWZ – 2 of 4 E-4B Doomsday planes damaged in tornado (from June 11, 2025).
TWZ – E-4B replacement information (from April 29, 2024).
The latter story discusses how the E-4B and AF-1 replacements are hugely complicated jobs, with different contractors, and different design choices, so they’re apparently doing the work as expensively, slowly, and inefficiently as possible.
:-/
Hang in there, everyone.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Chief Oshkosh
@Jackie:
Whatever the answer is from any of them, our adversaries will know well before we do. After all, they know how to use Signal, too.
RevRick
@WaterGirl:
@rikyrah: Simon Rosenberg has a list, so for Juneteenth I would like to share the following list of books to read:
The Book of Delights by Ross Gay
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
The Cross and the Lynching Tree by Dr. James Cone
The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein
White Fragility by Robin Diangelo
Reconstruction by Eric Foner
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
The Half Has Never Been Told by Edward Baptist
Interesting Name Goes Here
Making our own case and presenting our own plans is one thing. These people listening to it is another thing entirely. Contrary to popularly wrong belief, the Democrats have been making their case time and time again. But the people don’t listen. They don’t want to listen…at least, not until the pain and suffering can’t be ignored anymore. At some point, that has to be confronted aggressively and not waved away in a misguided attempt to absolve the general public of their responsibilities and agency. Their stupidity, bigotry, racism, sexism, and ignorance are why we are here now, not what one candidate says or does.
Melancholy Jaques
@Nilnoc:
For the media, in addition to their inclination to be pro-Republican and their love of the attention that asshole draws to them, they have an institutional reluctance to say that Americans made a bad move when they elected them. It is etched into granite that America voters are then wisest and most wonderful people who ever lived, so if they picked that asshole, it must have been the wisest and most wonderful decision.
They are never going to communicate the reality of that asshole to the general public. We have to do it, person to person, on every social media we may be part of, in every communication to everyone we know.
Baud
@Melancholy Jaques:
That thinking doesn’t seem to extend to our elected officials.
Another Scott
@Interesting Name Goes Here: +1
Relatedly, … Dean Baker’s Beat the Press at CEPR:
He highlights legitimate big problems, and as usual has several sensible proposals to address them.
But the first step in implementing good polices is winning enough elections to have working majorities. Part of preparation for that first step is finding media outfits that don’t gaslight us or sanewash 47’s monsters with relentless both-sides reporting. They’re out there, and need our support.
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@Omnes Omnibus:
Channel one’s inner Sgt Schultz.
Betty Cracker
@Geminid: I wish Susie Wiles well — as a future federal prison inmate. A woman of her caliber should be assigned a better job than boobs like Hegseth and RFK Jr.
Maybe Wiles could shelve books at the prison library while Hegseth steals canned corn in the kitchen to make toilet hooch and RFK Jr. sips bleach out of a mop bucket.
(Just kidding, of course. Rich and powerful people are hardly ever held to account, which is one big reason we’re in this mess.)
JoyceH
Here’s what I don’t understand- Iran was actively engaged in nuclear disarmament talks with representatives of the Trump administration when Bibi started bombing, after Trump told him not to. So why should he help Bibi, who cheated him out of his Nobel Peace Prize?
Geminid
@Geminid: Imma try try that link again:
https://www.politico.com/2024/04/26/susie-wiles-trump-desantis-profile-00149654
Most Politico Magazine pieces are long, and this one’s no exception. But aside from the Israelis blowing a hole in the containment dome of a nuclear reactor Iran has under construction, and the Iranians in turn warning Israelis to evacuate their nuclear complex at Dimona, it’s kind of a slow news day.
Jackie
@Another Scott: This is… interesting?
That, coupled with:
I pray cooler heads keep FFOTUS from assuaging his fragile ego.
Geminid
@Geminid: I still couldn’t get that link to work. It worked fine when I texted it to a friend, so I’m gonna blame WordPress.
Ruckus
Down, however they are, even on what was his greatest strength – immigration.
Many of the humans/citizens of the United States (or us) are if not immigrants themselves are children/grand children of immigrants. My mom’s father was from Sicily. Not sure about her mom’s place of birth – she passed when I was 6 yrs old. Dad was born in Kansas City, I believe his parents were from the UK. Dad was brought out to CA when he was 1 yr old, in a horse drawn wagon, on dirt roads. This world has changed dramatically in the lifetime of many still alive today, like me. I remember that in Los Angeles when I was a kid, many of the roads had electric buses, powered by overhead wires, with steel wheels and train tracks. Seemingly many of the people that were driving were doing so in their first car. In the suburbs very many fewer people had cars. And there were very many fewer people. Where I live now was mostly orange and lemon groves even when I was 10-12 yrs old.
@Omnes Omnibus:
THIS.
RevRick
@RevRick: And films you can watch (on Prime):
I Am Not Your Negro
12 Years a Slave
Selma
Do the Right Thing
The Hate You Give
Citizen Scientist
@RevRick: Thank you! I would add The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander.
Another Scott
@Geminid:
(Your link is missing “/news/magazine/” in the URL.)
Warning! Politico! The Most Feared and Least Known Political Operative in America
HTH!
Best wishes,
Scott.
gene108
@chemiclord:
Yup. That’s where I’m at in terms of optimism about things actually changing.
chemiclord
@WaterGirl: I have plenty of hope that Trump will not be successful with whatever scheme he’s plotting. I do believe that the American people as a whole do not like this clown.
I have no hope that it’s going to stick this time when that lesson hasn’t stuck since… well… ever. The Average American Voter was/is/likely always will be an irredeemable dipshit.
jonas
@JoyceH: What it tells me is that Trump really isn’t running foreign policy in his own administration. They gave him a shiny toy to play with for a while — a “big, beautiful deal” with Iran — while the real players gamed out Armageddon with the Israelis. Once the Israeli attacks were a fait accompli, then they just had to make it look like it was Trump’s idea all along (evidenced by the whiplash pivot from “we have nothing to do with it” to “we demand unconditional surrender”).
Will he join the bombing? Will he — as he has on numerous occasions in the past — bully and bluster and bloviate only to back down at the last minute because he’s such a goddamn “peacemaker”? We’ll see. Depends on who talks to him last, as we all know.
Another Scott
@Jackie: The DoD prepares for lots of contingencies that never happen. That’s part of their job – not being “surprised” by whatever happens or might happen.
Pearl Harbor, RDS-1, Sputnik, etc., still give them the willies and fears of similar “surprises”.
So say we all.
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
jonas
What the GOP has finally groked is that you can use that brain-dead electorate pendulum behavior to erode government institutions each time you’re in power so that Democrats eventually become permanently associated with failing to fix them while each time they’re swept back into power, they’ll be unpopular but also make it harder and harder to vote them out. Wash, rinse, repeat until eventually they’re there forever.
Finding new media strategies to reach/influence these low-information, self-gaslit voters has to be a top priority for Dems from now on because they sure as hell ain’t watching the nightly news or reading the daily paper.
Ruckus
@gene108:
@chemiclord:
One of the things that helps is what we are doing right now. Communications. We have the right of free speech, we have the means to make our voices heard. We all have to say something because that is what changes the bad things, that ability to say something. That and the fact that we have the facilities, like this blog to say something, to make our voices heard – or seen. Look at the protests around the country. They will build to more and more people, because we have someone in the highest office who thinks the world rotates around him. Or as I’ve stated here before, around the stick stuck up his exhaust port – which is of course why he’s full of shit, it can’t escape, just builds and builds and then one day when the pressure builds too high – kablooie, and all that shit hits the fan. And everything else.
Melancholy Jaques
Exactly what they did with the massive, worldwide marches against the Iraq invasion.
Calling it a problem suggests that there is a solution. We can’t even convince liberals to stop funding the FTFNYT.
jackmac
@Geminid:
A correction here: Wiles’ father was PAT Summerall, not TOM Summerall. Pat Summerall, a very accomplished NFL broadcaster for CBS and Fox, did abuse alcohol but also eventually quit drinking.
Ruckus
@jonas:
Ever think that nightly news or daily paper might be part of the problem?
The people that own and operate those information providers may be in on the concepts that shitforbrains believes. They may not support his inelegant, ignorant methodology of delivery but they may agree with what he thinks he’s saying.
Geminid
@Jackie: I read one report that said those F-22s are headed to Jordan. Iran has threatened to strike US bases in the region if the the US strikes Iran, but it sounds like the Jordanians are assuming that risk.*
Qatar on the other hand is not, and satellite photos show that the U.S. Air Force jets based at Al Udeid airbase have been moved, presumably to other bases in the region.
On the diplomatic front, Foreign Ministers from France, Germany and the UK are slated to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Aranghchi in Geneva tomorrow.
Last Wednesday, when the IEAE board made a formal finding that Iran was out compliance with it Nuclear Proliferation Treaty obligations. Iranian officials complained bitterly about the roles France, Germany and the UK played in forcing that decision.
Under normal circumstances, Aranghchi wouldn’t give these foreign ministers the time of day right now. But his nation is under severe duress, and Aranghchi is trying to find a way out of this war.
Concurrently, Aranghchi has been in steady contact with White House envoy Steve Witkoff, or at least that’s what Axios’s Barak Ravid reports his White House sources said as of yesterday.
* Iran also demanded that nations in the region refrain from intercepting missiles and drones crossing their airspace on their their way to Israel. So then the Jordanians released video of one of their helicopters shooting down an Iranian drone. One might say their response to Iran’s demand was a middle finger.
Spanky
@Omnes Omnibus:
This should probably be posted hourly.
RevRick
@oldgold: In all the history of raising holy hell, can you please tell me when raising holy hell accomplished anything?
Geminid
@jackmac: Thank you for the correction.
The Wiles profile discusses Pat Summerall’s eventual sobriety, which he attained when Wiles was an adult. There is also material on Pat Summerall’s own difficult childhood.
RevRick
@Geminid: I would say it’s not just Jordan giving Iran the middle finger since Israeli bombers have to fly over multiple Arab countries to get to Iran.
Spanky
Well, CNN sez
By which time he will have totally lost interest.
gene108
@Ruckus:
To create fundamental political change requires one party winning consistently for a generation.
Democrats controlled the presidency from 1932 to 1952. Most Republicans viewed the New Deal as the baseline of American politics, long after 1952.
Republicans controlled the White House 20 out of 24 years from 1968 to 1992, with blowout wins in 1972, 1980, 1984, and 1988. The Democratic party changed as a result of this.
I do not see Democrats maintaining enough successive wins to force the Republican party to change. After every presidential election loss Republicans have engaged in more radical right-wing reactionary politics and have been rewarded for it.
Bill Clinton’s win in 1992 begat Gingrich, in 1994, and Bush, Jr., in 2000. Obama’s 2008 win begat the TEA Party and then Trump. Biden’s win in 2020 begat Project 2025.
I think Democrats can win in 2026 and 2028, but I don’t see the cycle of more radically revanchist reactionary right-wing politics by Republicans being rewarded by voters ever changing.
The right-wing propaganda machine is too powerful. They can bend the political conversation to always trash Democrats, when Democrats are in power, and prop up Republicans at all times.
Harrison Wesley
@RevRick: You prefer sacrilegious hell?
Another Scott
@Spanky: Heh.
Bibi haz a sad, and is probably working overtime to force his hand faster.
Grr…
Best wishes,
Scott.
RevRick
@Harrison Wesley: Yes!
Baud
@Spanky:
@Another Scott:
That’s how long he gave Russia to shape up on Ukraine or else!
Oh well, it’s nice to possibly see the TACO principle work in our favor.
Harrison Wesley
@RevRick: Did you mean,”Hell,yes?”
Another Scott
@gene108: Things don’t change until they do.
The Red Scare GQPers were on top for a long time too.
Agreed that it may take 20 years to fully right the ship of state, but we can make it happen.
Our politicians will find a way to win elections. Politics changes. RFK worked for Joe McCarthy and with Roy Cohn. Politics can get better. It won’t always be like this. We’re going to have more and better leaders like Obama and Harris and Mayor Pete and Gov Walz and many, many more. We can do this.
Albania is a member of NATO, for crying out loud. ;-)
Hang in there.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Geminid
@jonas: I don’t know that the outcome here depends on who Trump talks to last, and I would not assume it’s so random. From what I’ve read, the decision-making here is confined to a relatively small group.
That would be Trump, Rubio, Witkoff, and Susie Wiles. VP Vance and CIA Director Ratcliffe are also advising, as are Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine and CENTCOM boss Michael Kurilla. General Kurilla will be in charge of executing the decisions made.
Hegseth is out of the loop as he should be, and so is Gabbard. At least, this is what I’ve gotten out of the various news accounts I read.
Jackie
@Spanky:
I caught that and exhaled. LOL
Geminid
@RevRick: It looks like the Israelis are flying across northern Syria and northrn Iraq to get to Iran. Neither of those nations control that airspace. The Iraqi government doesn’t even control the ground under it; that’s controlled by the semi-autonomous Kurdish Regional Government, with assistance from the US military mission based at Erbil.
The Syrians have no air defense, and have their hands full securing their territory. But Iran did a lot of damage through their proxies during Syria’s civil war, and it’s still trying to destabilize Syria and neighboring Lebanon. This may explain why Syria has not condemned Israel’s attack on Iran even though every other Arab nation has.
Jackie
Another step toward authoritarianism.
oldgold
@RevRick: You apparently never met my Mother.
jonas
@Geminid: Don’t forget, though, to factor in random phone calls throughout the day from Netanyahu, Sean Hannity, the Saudi crown prince, a crypto hedge fund manager, or whoever else has his number. In the end, the decision will be made around what he thinks will make good TV and (thereby) make him look good at the same time, regardless if it’s sound foreign policy or makes a goddamn lick of sense.
jonas
@Ruckus: My point is that it used to be a lot easier for Democrats to get their message into the media cycle through traditional outlets. You’d hold a press conference or a demonstration or something, reporters, would show up, you’d have your talking points ready, give interviews, etc. Or leaders would go on the Sunday morning shows or NPR or whatever and people could at least see, if they wanted, what the alternative was if Republicans were fucking something up. Nobody can really see that now because of media fragmentation. They see whatever their Instagram or TikTok algorithm thinks can hold their attention span for 30 seconds.
Geminid
@jonas: You don’t have Trump’s phone logs, do you? It seems like you’re assuming Susan Wiles lets anyone talk to Trump who wants to, and I don’t think that is so this time around.
Wiles would probably let the Saudi Crown Prince talk to Trump, but bin Salman would more likely have his foreign minister talk to Rubio. That is, unless there was an emergency, which the Saudis don’t seem to think this is.
dnfree
@WaterGirl:
I have had an ongoing monthly donation to Four Directions ever since you first brought them up, and I’m so glad you found them and that they are still at work!
wmd
@WaterGirl:
Yeah, it’s the same one.