Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

There are a lot more evil idiots than evil geniuses.

I swear, each month of 2025 will have its own history degree.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

Trumpflation is an intolerable hardship for every American, and it’s Trump’s fault.

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

If you can’t control your emotions, someone else will.

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

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

Not rolling over. fuck you, make me.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

Mediocre white men think RFK Jr’s pathetic midlife crisis is inspirational. The bar is set so low for them, it’s subterranean.

“Just close your eyes and kiss the girl and go where the tilt-a-whirl takes you.” ~OzarkHillbilly

Not all heroes wear capes.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

They want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted. Focus. Resist. Oppose.

That meeting sounds like a shotgun wedding between a shitshow and a clusterfuck.

’Where will you hide, Roberts, the laws all being flat?’

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

The press swings at every pitch, we don’t have to.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

You are here: Home / Politics / Trumpery / Trump Crime Cartel / Donald Trump is a Russian Asset

Donald Trump is a Russian Asset

by | 180 Comments

This post is in: 

I don’t think anyone can even question that by now:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week ordered U.S. Cyber Command to stand down from all planning against Russia, including offensive digital actions, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Hegseth gave the instruction to Cyber Command chief Gen. Timothy Haugh, who then informed the organization’s outgoing director of operations, Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Ryan Heritage, of the new guidance, according to these people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity.

The order does not apply to the National Security Agency, which Haugh also leads, or its signals intelligence work targeting Russia, the sources said.

While the full scope of Hegseth’s directive to the command remains unclear, it is more evidence of the White House’s efforts to normalize ties with Moscow after the U.S. and international allies worked to isolate the Kremlin over its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Then this:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Russian oligarchs would “possibly” be able to apply for a $5 million “gold card” via a new scheme that grants a pathway to American citizenship to wealthy foreigners.

“Hey, I know some Russian oligarchs that are very nice people,” a jovial Trump said in response to a question about whether they would be eligible for the gold card, saying “it’s possible” they could obtain one.

“They are not as wealthy as they used to be; I think they can afford $5 million,” Trump joked.

We knew it about the NRA a couple of years thanks to the Maria Butina scandal, and the question is how deep does the rot run in the GOP. There is a reason CPAC has been running to Hungary every year for a few years, and I always said and thought it was because it was easier for them to receive payments from their Russian masters. How deep does it go, though?

At any rate, the display today with TASS in the White House covering Trump and Vance dressing down Zelensky to the cheering praise of Mededev should seal any doubts you may have had. It’s depressing, as someone who was part of the cold war military, to see Putin win forty years letter. Scratch that, it is fucking infuriating. And he didn’t win, Republicans are giving it away.

I am so fucking angry.

Reader Interactions

180Comments

  1. 1.

    satby

    Republicans both elected and voters. Driven by a hatred of their fellow citizens and their rage that they have to share a country with us.

  2. 2.

    Yutsano

    This is going to break up the country. Those of us on the Left Coast are infuriated. I’m from the second most blue state* in this country and I am livid. Dolt47 can take his traitorous ass all the way to St. Petersburg.

    *Number one being Vermont

    @satby: White supremacy is such a helluva drug they’re willing to sell out their country for it. Absolutely disgusting.

  3. 3.

    Steve LaBonne

    He’s been one for a long time. Most of his career as a “real estate developer” was about laundering dirty Russian oligarch money. The FBI was onto him as long ago as the 70s, which is one of his motivations for wanting to destroy it.

  4. 4.

    satby

    Abraham Lincoln had their number:

    Your purpose, then, plainly stated, is that you will destroy the Government, unless you be allowed to construe and enforce the Constitution as you please, on all points in dispute between you and us. You will rule or ruin in all events. …

  6. 6.

    John S.

    @satby:

    Speaking of things Abraham Lincoln said:

    As a nation, we began by declaring that ‘all men are created equal.’ We now practically read it ‘all men are created equal, except negroes.’ When the Know-Nothings get control, it will read ‘all men are created equal, except negroes, and foreigners, and Catholics.’ When it comes to this I should prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving liberty – to Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy.

    His remarks are so prescient, one might wonder if Lincoln was a time traveler.

  7. 7.

    Jeffro

    No lies told here in the post or the comments.  He’s a traitor.  We’ve all been saying it since 2015 (if not sooner).

    One more thing to pound on Congress about, and hopefully ratchet up the pressure.  All we need are a few not-bought-by-Vlad Reps.

  8. 8.

    Ohio Mom

    @Steve LaBonne: Yes, the FBI knew and the CIA must have known, plus all the other agencies I’m not entirely clear on — isn’t there a NSA too?

    And none of them did anything about this?! Wasn’t that their job? What is their purpose?

    It is weird to see videos of Khrushchev saying “we will bury you” and know that it came true. Up until now, it was seen as empty posturing.

  9. 9.

    Princess

    I think Democrats and their supporters need to recognize from what happened today that there is no negotiating with the Republicans on anything— the debt ceiling, the budget, whatever. Any promise they make, they’ll break without a thought.

  10. 10.

    Ohio Mom

    @Princess: And yet, whatever Democrats do won’t matter. They voted against the cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, to no avail. It will be a footnote in history books.

  11. 11.

    gene108

    This was going to happen sooner or later. Every possible Republican presidential hopeful in 2016 and 2024 is not far from Trump on foreign policy. It’s all different shades of isolationism and bullying.

    Trump’s accelerating the decline of respect the U.S. had starting with Bush, Jr.’s invasion of Iraq, and then Trump I, at a rate not thought possible before.

    and the question is how deep does the rot run in the GOP.

    Some Republicans are more willing to be Russian assets or useful idiots than others. The rot is very deep. The ones who don’t want to be Russian assets can’t do anything, because it’d out the Republicans that are.

  12. 12.

    John S.

    @Princess:

    Don’t forget about Washington.

    We are down to only 2 Republicans in our congressional delegation, the state government is completely dominated by Democrats, not one single Republican was elected to statewide office in the last election and we haven’t had a Republican governor since 1985.

    It’s a solidly blue state.

  14. 14.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @Ohio Mom:

    It’s important to remember that was only the first step in the reconciliation process, passing the language for instructions telling Congressional commitees (forget which ones) to cut funding from the programs they oversee (mainly Medicaid). I recall reading that was the easy part and it will only get harder from here on out. The cuts aren’t set in stone yet

  16. 16.

    geg6

    I hate these people and I am ashamed to be an American.  I didn’t think my rage against Cheetolini, the GOP and half of the American voting public could get worse, but today it has.  I do not consider myself a fellow citizen with these cretins.  I am without a country.

  18. 18.

    FDRLincoln

    The Constitution is a dead letter, the Oval Office is occupied by the Russians, and our entire scientific infrastructure is being dismantled.

    Trump, Vance, Miller, and Musk deserve the Esso treatment and the GOP should be treated like the NSDAP.

  20. 20.

    cain

    @John S.:

    Oregon finally has enough Democrats to do what they need to do without Republican interference. I think we’re going to see a lot of solidarity against the feds and the red states.

    But I think it is ominous that Trump says there will be no more blue states. I think he’s planning an invasion.

  21. 21.

    suzanne

    “Hey, I know some Russian oligarchs that are very nice people,”

    I hate this piece of trash with the fire of 10,000 suns.

  22. 22.

    Hoodie

    It’s been pretty obvious for a while. Trump is just an international version of a mobbed up businessman. Putin owns him, probably through a combination of kompromat and an ability to manipulate his disordered personality. I imagine Putin is quite familiar with various manipulative techniques developed by the KGB to turn their targets. IIRC a lot of these involve taking advantage of the subject’s resentment of perceived slights and lack of respect, along with their greediness,  insecurity and, of course, stupidity.

  24. 24.

    Wyatt Salamanca

    Trump is a morally bankrupt, degenerate, sick bastard. If Hell exists, every Republican senator who voted to acquit him in the second impeachment trial needs to burn there for eternity.

  25. 25.

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

    I know the big question many people have is whether the Russians bought him off, or whether they have something on him they can threaten him with, or whether he’s just constitutionally inclined to lick Putin’s ass. But I think that’s a waste of time to dwell on. The outcome is the same. We don’t need to know why. We only need to know that it is. And what the fuck we can do about it.

  29. 29.

    John S.

    @cain:

    Good luck to him with that. There’s a lot of anti-government prepper types in Washington and Oregon, and they’re not all conservatives.

  31. 31.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    I feel like Christoph Walz in Inglourious Basterds – “If you want to end this war tonight, you have to get all four…..”

  33. 33.

    sab

    Also too, it seemed like every other driver today was a reckless MAGAt. It was actually frightening to commute home because so many of the other drivers don’t seem to believe in the laws of physics any more.

    Two ton vehicles banging together can actually seriously damage the people within.

    ETA more of the ‘rules are meant to be broken’ mindset.

  35. 35.

    Hoodie

    @cain: He thinks all kinds of crazy shit, doesn’t mean he can make it happen. In fact, based on past performance, he’s more likely to fuck up royally and write a check he can’t cash. This latest episode could have all sorts of bad effects for him, and he’s not exactly carrying out DOGE without tripping over the furniture.

  38. 38.

    MazeDancer

    Trump wants a war. He’ll take WW3 or a Civil War, either, or both.

    The planned ambush he and Vance did, today, pushed us closer to both. Trump and Vance split the world.

    All of the Dem Governors, Senators, and Reps are publicly announcing their horror at Trump and Vance. Every leader in Europe, except the UK, tweeted their support of Ukraine.

    The lines are drawn.

    Polls by 80-90% of Americans do not support Putin. We’ll see if that holds.

    Maybe dying in WW3 is preferable to dying of bird flu, TB, tainted food, or unannounced hurricane or forest fire.

  40. 40.

    Professor Bigfoot

    @gene108:The ones who don’t want to be Russian assets can’t do anything, because it’d out the Republicans that are.

    That means that there are no Republicans who are not Russian assets.

    The entire party has long been under the thrall of Russian intelligence using Russian money and a deep understanding of the USA and where the fault lines lie— and how to exploit them.

    Russia is led by a former KGB officer, and they’ve studied us for the last hundred years.

  41. 41.

    French Onion Soup

    The major motivation for most of them isn’t that they are Russian assets.  It’s revenge.  Revenge for a whole litany of issues going all the way back to the The Enlightenment for most of them.  Revenge for personal issues in the case of Trump.  They are assets as well but they got there to get revenge.  This is a bust out, this is treason, this is a rollback of rights, it’s all of that.  But it is revenge most of all.  There is no political, polite, logical, or peaceful solution to revenge.  We need to realize where we are.

  44. 44.

    Hoodie

    One thing that keeps running through my mind is the world is ripe for realignment. For example, look at the EU’s trade balance. Net exporter, but constrained by natural resources. What’s a big natural resource prize? Ukraine. Another? Canada. Both conceivably fit the EU.

  45. 45.

    Captain C

    I’m starting to think that Russia should be permanently de-nuked and broken up.  No, I don’t know how, but all the constituent republics should be set free and the remains split up into parts.  Not even a Muscovy should be left; perhaps a reconstituted Vladimir-Suzdal could be allowed.

    Also, if President Skum and his Veeps, the Felon and the Couchfucker want to do anything actually useful with regards to Ukraine, they can go over there and go on a mine clearing mission using their feet.

  49. 49.

    Snowlan01

    I hear and feel the horror.  And I also am not feeling confident.

    But . . . are we truly saying American Democracy is so fragile it is already destroyed in less than two months, and before any court cases or legislation has been enacted?  That a series of pieces of paper (sorry . . . “Executive Orders”) is enough do what a civil war couldn’t do?    And before anyone has actually had a chance to fight?

  51. 51.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    Consider the Shaming of Zelenskyy for Disrespecting The Bling in the context of the Atlanta Fed forecasting  today the First Quarter of 2025 the GDP will shrinking -1.5%.  A month ago, when Trump took the oath of office the GDP was supposed to grow +4.5%.

  55. 55.

    Jay

    @Hoodie:

    Alcan, who is the only manufacturer of various specialty aluminum alloys for rockets, missiles, engines and aircraft, cancelled all US contracts over a month ago and found buyers for the products in the EU, Taiwan and China.

  56. 56.

    Tazj

    @geg6: I feel like I don’t belong here either. I’m so angry and I’m scared. My husband and kids are all dual US/Canadian citizens so I’m the odd one out.

    Hoping the U.S. economy tanks sooner than later so maybe more people will turn on Trump. Terrible  thing to wish for but here we are.

  57. 57.

    Citizen Alan

    @cain: I was charitable when I heard that and assumed he simply meant he would suppress voting to the point that Democrats would never be able to win a state-level election again. But yeah, feds and red state national guards outright occupying blue states to keep us under control is certainly not as inconceivable to me as it was just a few years ago.

  58. 58.

    John S.

    This is a truly awful perspective:

    Older Ukrainians, who grew up in the Soviet Union, have recognised in this situation the US that was depicted by Soviet propaganda cartoons as a nation of greedy, irresponsible, grab-what-you-can capitalists, who spat on complex problems and had eyes only for dollar superprofits.

    What a kick in the chops. America literally just turned into the caricature that was painted by the Soviet Union.

  60. 60.

    Jackie

    @gene108:

    Some Republicans are more willing to be Russian assets or useful idiots than others. The rot is very deep. The ones who don’t want to be Russian assets can’t do anything, because it’d out the Republicans that are.

    How many Republican congress members who were in Russia on the Forth of July 2017 are still in congress today?

    Your statement reminded me of that visit. It was suspicious then, and still is.

  62. 62.

    sab

    @Snowlan01: Well we will figure that out this year.

    I knew there was a lot of Russian money in Republican politics, but I am quite frankly amazed by quickly that party collapsed into whatever they are now.

    And Russia’s economy isn’t at all healthy. It’s all war based, and that long term or even mid term is a recipe for disaster.

  63. 63.

    TONYG

    @sab: One of my many half-assed theories is that the rise of consumers preferring SUVs and suburban-dad-pickup-trucks to normal cars thirty years ago was an inflection point in the deterioration of our “society”.  Selfish jerks who wanted to pretend that they’re Rambo or Rambo’s wife, while wasting fuel and endangering other people.  The fact that this change in consuming and driving habits occurred AFTER the existence of global warming became public knowledge just makes it extra special.  Trump is a logical result of that “thinking”.

  64. 64.

    sab

    @TONYG: Most of today’s offenders in my world were Jeeps and pickups.

    The poor semis tiptoeing through traffic with those mighty puppies underfoot.

  67. 67.

    Gretchen

    @Jackie: Wasn’t John Thune there? He’s Majority leader now. Jerry Moran is still in office as is stupid John Kennedy, still smearing his slime over the Senate.

  68. 68.

    WTFGhost

    What’s worse, insofar as it can be worse, is the Republicans are giving it all away at the behest of a complete moron. If only Trump were a brilliant schemer, who really was playing multi-dimensional chess, and not checkers, where the board is set for him to move, and one jump will win the game.

    No, they just threw it all behind him because they got the SCOTUS majority they wanted, and can lay waste to the the place, and they’re all too effing stupid to realize how much it will diminish America, and American power, where, *duh*, that’s the RUSSIAN goal, weaker America! So they’re all too stupid to live, but, nevertheless got elected to high office.

  69. 69.

    French Onion Soup

    @Jackie:

    Nothing has ever changed.  Republicans and conservatives more broadly openly spread Nazi propaganda prior to WW2 and through it.  They wanted to side with Hitler and held Nazi rallies.  They tried to coup FDR and weren’t held accountable.

    It’s revenge.  They have never accepted anything from The Enlightenment onward.  They had to put a smiling face on it and talk in code to get to power.  Now they have a leader hell bent on personal revenge, multiple donors with more power than a nation state, an army of religious zealots, and secured the power of multiple hostile foreign nations to get their revenge on us, the nation, and the world.

    Tombstone summed it up.

    What’s he need?

    Revenge.

    For what?

    Being born.

    youtube.com/watch?v=NqF7ZD64bwY

    That is where we are.  Too much has changed for these people.  There is no political solution and no return to normalcy after.  They have decided on revenge and there is no talking or voting them out of that decision.  We need to wake up on this.

  71. 71.

    Yutsano

    @John S.: We were also one of two states to swing left in the 2024 election. The other was Vermont. That’s why I said we’re number two in the blue column.

  73. 73.

    French Onion Soup

    @sab:

    I saw a wankpanzer the other day.  It rushed up to the stop light stupid fast and had a red and black camo wrap on it.  The windows were down and it was blasting EDM at full throttle and full of middle eastern men fist pumping and bouncing like crazy with shit eating grins yelling at people.  Then it shot off way over the speed limit in the middle of the city.

    Fucking surreal on all sorts of different levels not a damn bit of it made sense especially as this area is extremely blue.

  74. 74.

    Spanky

    I don’t understand how this greed thing works.

    04:50 PM EST, 02/28/2025 (MT Newswires) — US benchmark equity indexes rose on Friday after President Donald Trump’s meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ended without a minerals deal being signed.

    The Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 climbed 1.6% each to 18,847.3 and 5,954.50, respectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 1.4% at 43,840.9. All sectors registered gains, led by financials.

    Earlier in the day, Zelenskyy left the White House after a heated argument between the two sides. The US wants access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals as part of a broader effort to end the conflict between Kyiv and Russia.

    US Treasury yields fell, with the two-year rate sinking 9.1 basis points to 3.99% and the 10-year rate dropping 7.7 basis points to 4.21%.

  75. 75.

    JoyceH

    Could someone post some verified and vetted links to contribute to Ukraine? And post those links everywhere. I’d like to see a f**k-ton of money headed Ukraine’s way, ideally marked with the same stamp that used to be on every box of food assistance from USAID “from the American people”. (And anyone with a Ukrainian flag, bring it back out.)

  77. 77.

    Suzanne

    I just got home a half hour ago. Just watched the interaction, and I told Spawn the Youngest that I’m going to donate some money to Ukraine. She told me that she has a dollar and she wants to send it to Ukraine, too.

    I’m just heartbroken.

  78. 78.

    WTFGhost

    @Ohio Mom: Well, when the cuts to Medicaid are announced, we can do what we always do, and make noise. Republicans can’t afford to lose many votes, so all we need is a few Rs with shaky knees who decide to save the nation.

    Even in the Senate, Rs might get piggy, and need to do a lot of horse trading, which can also be used to stir up trouble, but they can afford to lose three whole senators, so, they can probably hit the recon threshold. We can still use their gamesmanship to try to ruin the R brand, if they give us something juicy.

    You’re right: if the caucus holds together, they have the votes to win, but, since Medicaid paid for many a Grandmom/Grandpop nursing home, there are more people than you might expect who are willing to hold R feet to the fire. (To say nothing of medicaid expansion, in states where they did it.)

  79. 79.

    Old School

    @JoyceH:

    Could someone post some verified and vetted links to contribute to Ukraine?

    There’s a link in the sidebar.  (Or down below if you are on your phone.)

  80. 80.

    sab

    OT: For those who don’t hate NPR: Their new Science Friday person had a couple of women scientists on about how much Trump’ executive orders have fucked up scientific research. Possibly have stopped anything with ‘women’ because that is on the grant DEI hit list.

    So back to the bad old days where drug and science tests do not have women participants because we might get pregnant. So none of our drugs are tailored to our anatomies. Oh well.

    One of the women on the show was a big huge deal in science circles, a huge NIH grant recipient for oncology and gynocology grants, and is now possibly soon to be unfunded and also not supported by her own university.

    Trump and Vance stomping around annoys and offends me.

    The behind the scenes science and technical damage just frankly terrifies and appalls me.

  83. 83.

    gene108

    @Snowlan01:

    But . . . are we truly saying American Democracy is so fragile it is already destroyed in less than two months,

    If the people running an organization want to run it into the ground, the organization will eventually be run into the ground. At the end of the day, organizations are no better or worse than the people running them. There’s no magic “institution” that’s immune from the intervention of those in charge.

    In the U.S. case, the entirety of those in charge of the federal government, right now, want to install an authoritarian state, with them perpetually in charge.

    The Executive, SCOTUS, Congress, and Republican run state governments, via gerrymandering, have been working towards this dismantling of democracy for the entirety of the 21st century, when SCOTUS handed Bush, Jr. the White House.

  86. 86.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    A month ago, when Trump took the oath of office the GDP was supposed to grow +4.5%.

    Missing projections by 5.5%? I’m certainly no expert, but isn’t that rare? Do you have a link for the +4.5%? I want to rub some piggy noses in it this weekend.

  89. 89.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @Jackie: I think about that July 4th, 2017 visit to Moscow all the time. And it pisses me off to no end that NOTHING was very done about that. Nothing.

    ETA: Q: Well, what COULD have been done, Chief? A: Fuck if I know.

  92. 92.

    Josie

    @JoyceH: ​
    Besides the site on the sidebar, there is also this site that supports the Ukrainian defense:
    u24.gov.ua/
    I have donated to them with no problems.

    ETA: This site gives four choices, one of which is for fighting.

  93. 93.

    Ohio Mom

    @WTFGhost: I’ve been mulling over if it isn’t Medicaid expansion they are aiming at, it’s Obama’s baby after all.

    I know it’s far from over, I studied David Anderson’s post, it’s just that that vote really illustrated from me how clear the lines are drawn.

  94. 94.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @TONYG: Meh. The inflection point for me was when everyone pretended that Shrub was telling the truth about Iraq. Hell, EVER FUCKING ADULT IN THE ROOM knew he was lying.

    THAT was the beginning of making truth absolutely irrelevant.

  96. 96.

    Tazj

    @Elizabelle: Too many pundits, opinion writers and voters in general thought there was a “Russia Hoax “ just like Trump. We all had TDS and were silly wine moms and resisters. Orange man bad! Don’t you have a better argument than that? What are you offering the voters? Oh, I don’t know a Democracy, Social Security, Medicaid, Reproductive Rights, jobs, expanded Medicare, universal Pre-k. Could have had the beautiful, smart and accomplished lady.

    Our idiot press is trying to sell books about Biden was old while our Democracy goes down the drain.

  98. 98.

    currawong

    I’ve been saying this for years.

    Look at the orange globule. Does he look like the kind of man to resist kompromat that must have been offered to him on his many,many visits to Moscow from the 1980s onwards. Hell, he probably even ordered it from room service.

    He’s been compromised for decades.

    How did the US iltelligence services ever let him run in 2015? That’s the one question I can’t answer.

  100. 100.

    VFX Lurker

    @Spanky: Stock markets reflect the emotions of a mob of thousands, not any kind of reason. Apple once came out with a strong quarterly earnings report…and its stock plummeted, because their earnings report didn’t live up to the mob’s expectations.

    It’s why I rely on low-cost, total-market index funds and do not attempt any kind of day trading.

  101. 101.

    lowtechcyclist

     the question is how deep does the rot run in the GOP.

    If Lindsey Graham is any bellwether, very very deep indeed.  He said he wanted Zelenskyy to resign and apologize, and that he had never been so proud of Trump as he is today.

    What a disgusting, pathetic toady.  I feel sorry for the jackals that are represented in the U.S. Senate by this scum of a human being.

  102. 102.

    Ohio Mom

    @sab: Martin would know better than me but it’s long been my impression that universities expect their science departments to support themselves with grants.

  103. 103.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @sab:”…a huge NIH grant recipient for oncology and gynocology grants, and is now possibly soon to be unfunded and also not supported by her own university.”

    Which university is that? Typically U admins will do just about anything for a faculty member who holds multiple NIH grants. Not doubting your statement, just genuinely curious as to how stupid some people can be (including Uni admins sometimes).

  105. 105.

    Jay

    @JoyceH:

    Almost all the quotes with links that I post on Adam’s thread, have verified fundraisers, some are for medical kit, some are for excavators and other construction equipment, some are for night vision goggles and scopes, some are for jammers, some are for medical gear, some are for therapy and prosthetics for Veterans, some are for medical evacuation, some are for caring for cats and dogs,

    NAFO is a good source for campaigns along with St. Javelin,

    Weapons and ammo are a bit of an issue,  mostly because there is a lot of money chasing not a lot of inventory, and the one nation sitting on a ton of inventory all across the globe, has decided to go all in with Putin and ruZZia.

  106. 106.

    sab

    @zhena gogolia: So it is okay that I don’t know the cyrilic alphabet and cannot read any Slavic lanuage?

    It is not okay because ignoranceis not okay, but I should be glad I cannot read?

  110. 110.

    Geminid

    @Yutsano: I think Oregon also swung towards blue in the last election. The Cascadia Advocate put out by the Noerthwest Progressive Policy Institute had an article by Anthony Villaneuve to that effect.

  114. 114.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    I noticed this from the Trump “Truth” about the meeting

    “It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved,”

    Trump’s chicken shit is showing. He couldn’t get Putin to do what he wanted to he’s blaming Zelenskyy for his own failure.  Likely dawned on Dumbass that Zelenskyy made the rare earth contract deliberately because Zelenskyy knew Putin would still say no to peace, and leave Trump looking like the idiot he is.

  115. 115.

    TBone

    Recommended “fantasy” film

    Can’t be worse or more surreal than this reality…

    en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam_(2022_film)

    Ryan Swen of Slate, and Oliver Jones of The New York Observer gave the film three out of four stars. Calling it a thoroughly entertaining, “whimsical whodunit” and “quirky, big-hearted trip”, Truitt’s praise was focused on the cast, especially the “crowd-pleasing” chemistry between Bale, Robbie and Washington.[42] Swen complimented the film’s sentiment and “detail-rich” narrative.[43] Jones wrote that the film is “quite odd and discombobulating, but if you allow its turned up and persistent energy to sweep over you, and soak in the joy and righteous anger that animates its generous spirit, the end result is decidedly moving, and—at some points—even enthralling.

  116. 116.

    sab

    @zhena gogolia: I think I will pass on that.

    I am so old that when I was young the serious college bound women learned French, but the guys learned either German, or if they were Jewish, Russian. Everyone else learned Spanish.

    I started in Spanish in Florida but my mom switched me to French when we moved north.

    I have always regretted not learning more Spanish, but I briefly went into law, and French and Latin were the useful languages there.

  117. 117.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @sab: Thanks, sab.

    Northwestern. They’re pretty button-down. Very odd behavior. I interviewed there once and they had the solid judgement backed up with innate intelligence to not offer me the position. ;)

  119. 119.

    Jackie

    @jimmiraybob:

    Meanwhile, the Donald is listed on the Jeffrey Epstein flight logs at least seven times.

    I have to wonder if FFOTUS knew that info was going to be released today, and decided kicking President Zelenskyy out of the White House would divert the media and America?

    Because if he did, it’s working.

  121. 121.

    sab

    @Chief Oshkosh: That professor was shocked. She said she devoted a big part of her career to getting tenure so that she could speak her mind, and now apparently it means nothing.

    We don’t need more and better obstetricians and gynecologists and oncologists.

    Very eighteenth century. If you wife dies there is always another eighteen year old available. It’s not like you need to be friends with your wife.

  123. 123.

    Jay

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Російський актив Трамп, іди до біса.

    Як стало зрозуміло останніми подіями, Америка є російським васалом

  125. 125.

    persistentillusion

    @sab: Today, I spent the day ruminating on the type of pickup drivers that should be eliminated for the national good. Settled on people who have pickups that have never picked anything up.

  128. 128.

    japa21

    I had heard about the “discussion” earlier but was busy with 2 young grandsons to delve into what happened. Enraged, yes. Embarrassed, yes (though I know I shouldn’t be.
    Mrs. Japa and I are going on a Caribbean cruise with a couple we’ve been friends with for years. The event is to celebrate our 50th anniversary which was in December. Someday I will regale you with the story of the actual celebration at that time.
    Anyway, I don’t talk Canadian, so I’ll be pretty obviously an American (US style). Already working on ways of trying to explain what is happening to non USians we meet.

  130. 130.

    sab

    @persistentillusion: I am not so stupid as to want a gun, but today I wanted a gun to shoot whatever asshole started the traffic mess I might have been involved in. Shooting drivers like that is a public service not a crime.

    As anyone can see, all my filters are damaged and possibly turned off. I blame Cole.

    A major mercy today is I left my phone at work. So now the office manager lnows I have a flip phone. Kind of bad.

  132. 132.

    HopefullyNotcassandra

    @geg6: No.   You are still an American.

    You are without an executive branch that is now attempting to destroy US 🇺🇸

    Messieurs Trump and Vance have shown their contempt for everything America is and has fought for.   They forfeited the right to call themselves American, not you.

  134. 134.

    Jackie

    Did anyone watch President Zelenskyy on Bret Baier’s show? I’m watching delayed. I am SO PROUD of Zelenskyy’s interview! Baier – so far – is being respectful and showing clips of FFOTUS’s temper tantrum.

  135. 135.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    James Carville, hardly a Balloon Juice favorite explanation for Trump behavior today: “Trump has Syphilis”   It does say a lot that it’s hard to tell the difference between the Russians and a venereal disease.

  136. 136.

    HopefullyNotcassandra

    @cain: He should be careful what he wishes for

    These putin-loving putzes are spitting on what American stands for, while torching what makes our military might superior.

  137. 137.

    HopefullyNotcassandra

    @John S.:

    There are a lot of neighborhoods everywhere that nobody should try subduing.   Good grief.  We are a rambunctious bunch in the best of times.

  139. 139.

    Geminid

    @Yutsano: I gound the article I was talking about:

    “A tale of two elections: Washington and Oregon get more Democratic as battleground states swing to Trump” Cascadia Advocate, Anthony Villeneuve. I could not find the date but I think it was published around November 10, 2024.

    Villeneuve includes some interesting background on Washington’s history as a swing state before it became a “blue bastion” in this century.

    The Cascadia Advocate is published by the Northwest Progressive Policy Institute founded by Villeneuve in 2005. It’s mission as stated in its BlueSky header:

       Regionally focused non-profit working from WA/OR/ID to constuctively transform our world.

    The BlueSky address appears to be nwprogressive.org on BlueSky. They seem to have a lot of good reporting on your region.

  140. 140.

    m.j.

    Do you remember that little meet-up with Kim Jong Un in Vietnam back in 2019 and nothing happened?

    Trump flew half-way across the globe, for nothing.

  143. 143.

    kindness

    They won’t be sending red state National Guard units to blue states.  Trump is going to send the Army.  Why do you think he replaced anyone who could say no?  And even if they did…I don’t think GIs want to fire on other Americans.  Maybe it’s projection on my part but no, I don’t see it.  Now if Trump wants to start an actual civil war he would send red state Guard units to blue states because he knows blue states are heavily armed too.  It’d only be a matter of time till the shootin’ started.

  144. 144.

    Jay

    That was the DMZ between South Korea and North Korea, and DJTdiot crossed into North Korea to shake Kim’s hand.

    What happened is DJTdiot showed that he only respects brutal Dictators.

  147. 147.

    wjca

    @Josie: Besides the site on the sidebar, there is also this site that supports the Ukrainian defense:
    u24.gov.ua/
    I have donated to them with no problems.

    Definitely donating.  But tomorrow — not buying stuff today includes not giving Visa their cut of my donation today.

  148. 148.

    Citizen Dave

    I say the title of this post all the time. What would be different in the last month if Putin was our leader?

    If there are any patriot Republicans left in Congress they need to stop being cowards.

  150. 150.

    MoCaAce

    Right now millions of “real murkins “ are watching that meeting on replay while rubbing one out. In their eyes the orange shit stain just made Zelenskyy his bitch.

    I am so glad I don’t travel outside the country.  The shame would kill me.

  153. 153.

    Jackie

    @WaterGirl:

    @Jackie: Did not see it.  If you find a link, please share it!

    For whatever reason, I don’t seem to be able to post links other than secondarily, but I’m sure you can find a link on YouTube? It’s the Special Report with Bret Baier.

  154. 154.

    Other MJS

    @Chief Oshkosh: It was 2018. Here are the attendees:

    Sen. Richard Shelby (Ala.) — retired in 2023
    Sen. Steve Daines (Mont.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Thune (S.D.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Kennedy (La.) — incumbent
    Sen. Jerry Moran (Kan.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Hoeven (N.D.) — incumbent
    Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) — didn’t run in 2024

  155. 155.

    zhena gogolia

    God, I just saw a still picture of Shithead yelling at Zelenskyy, and I think I’m going to throw up.

    They aren’t worthy of shining his shoes.

  158. 158.

    New Deal democrat

    @Ghost of Joe Liebling’s Dog: This is what they were referring to:

    atlantafed.org/-/media/documents/cqer/researchcq/gdpnow/realgdptrackingslides.pdf

    I’ll just give you a suggestion to take this with a few grains of salt. It is a graph that is updated throughout each quarter as new data rolls in. The nowcast at this point is based on less than one month’s full data. It fell sharply today because spending in January declined half a percent from December. But without getting too much into the weeds, it is “seasonally adjusted,” and the adjustment taking into account that January spending always declines bigly from the Holiday surge may have been a little off this year.

  159. 159.

    sconosciuto

    Republicans are giving it away.

    The very people who have spent the last several decades pounding their chests about how patriotic they are and how much they love the troops.

    I haven’t and will never forget the venom they spewed at anyone who criticized the Warren Terra and the Iraq war, and I sure won’t be able to keep my mouth shut the next times for the rest of my life any of them pull that we’re-so-fucking-patriotic bullshit around me.

    I hope within our lifetimes America will emulate what the Italians did in Piazzale Loreto on 28 April 1945

  160. 160.

    Andrya

    @JoyceH:   @Josie:   IIRC, Adam Silverman endorsed United 24 as legit and effective (and I have been regularly donating to them).  United 24 allows you to choose between “humanitarian” and “defense” (I always choose “defense”).  I will ask Dr. Silverman to confirm my recollection in the comments to tonight’s Ukraine post.

  161. 161.

    Jackie

    @Other MJS:

    @Chief Oshkosh: It was 2018. Here are the attendees:

    Sen. Richard Shelby (Ala.) — retired in 2023
    Sen. Steve Daines (Mont.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Thune (S.D.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Kennedy (La.) — incumbent
    Sen. Jerry Moran (Kan.) — incumbent
    Sen. John Hoeven (N.D.) — incumbent
    Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) — didn’t run in 2024

    Thanks! Chief Oshkosh was replying to me. I was off a year, but that’s the list I’ve been stewing about since then – wondering why it wasn’t a Big Deal for the media then… and still.

  163. 163.

    Gvg

    @geg6: No. I am ashamed they are Americans. Don’t back down. We are the loyal citizens, they are the moles and betrayers, greedy or fools. We are the ones who love the words and dreams about all men are created equal and give us your poor, you’re tired etc.
    They lie to themselves about the words and many of them are lying about what the Bible says too. And hating their way leads to an impoverished nation. They have to go, not us.

  166. 166.

    Gvg

    @cain: The military would IMO disintegrate if it started getting those kinds of orders. Everyone is from somewhere and most have relatives in multiple places AND a lot of them have been stationed a bunch of places. So some might be willing to follow orders, but others wouldn’t and there would be desertions. Trump would fire people, probably the most admired ones, and it would all start coming apart. I am sure Russia would love that.
    And if any foreign adversary made any move then, THAT might trigger the leadership to resort to some sort of coup against Trump, which would cause all kinds of problems. Democratically it’s bad of course. It might be botched. But Trump does not seem to have many real military experts. It’s the police I think are the problem, and the border control.

  168. 168.

    MagdaInBlack

    @Gvg: Thank you. I was also feeling embarrassed, but you’re right. We didn’t do this. We’re the ones who actually believe in the Constitution.

    Mostly I am horrified and angry, at them.

  169. 169.

    UncleEbeneezer

    Shout out to the 3+ Million Dem voters who didn’t vote for Kamala in November (and everyone who gave them the moral justification to do so…).  At least you taught Biden/Harris/Dems a lesson…or something…

  170. 170.

    RevRick

    @cain:

    @Tazj:

    @Citizen Alan:

    Trump’s remarks about the erasure of blue states does not require any invasion. All it requires is for blue voters to become concentrated in blue states, such that we can never win a Presidential election or control of the Senate ever again.  Then, with control of the federal government, they can squeeze us into irrelevance. Purple states need more blue voters.

    I wouldn’t say the general public is acting as if nothing is happening. Quite the contrary. Trump’s popularity has already fallen by 5%, generic polls of swing districts show Democrats with a 5% advantage, and what Musk is doing is overwhelmingly reviled.

  172. 172.

    Jackie

    Watching Lindsey Graham AFTER Vance/FFOTUS’s debacle today… when is his term up? And, exactly WHAT does FFOTUS and Putin have on him?

  176. 176.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @sab: None of the state universities had the backs of Chinese American academics targeted by Wray & the “China Initiative”, so this tracks.

  177. 177.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @MazeDancer: I have had precognitive nightmares where the US is in ruins (not sure I want to go into details here). The precognitive nightmares are different because I can feel the distance in space and time, like it’s coming through a very thick filter with a bunch of Vaseline on it and a lot of noise in the soundtrack.

  178. 178.

    Jesse

    @Gvg: My understanding is that Russia and China are making a play for all those thousands of fired federal civil servants. To turn them. I imagine that a number of them have their back to the wall, financially, and are pretty losses about their government.

  179. 179.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Jesse: Every intelligence agency [formerly] friend or foe will be making plays at the former civil servants. However, the PRC MSS has had several major penetrations into USG networks, & made off w/ massive amounts of data on USG personnel (such as the OPM hack of 2015), it can probably be more discriminating in targeting.

  180. 180.

    beef

    @spanky

    Friday rallies are normal when markets are down all week.  It’s just people buying the dip.

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