AP FACT CHECK: Trump exaggerates his gains for veterans

President Donald Trump claimed to receive a 2016 award from military veterans that didn’t exist and falsely denigrated the record of the late Republican Sen. John McCain on veterans affairs, whose widow endorsed Democratic rival Joe Biden for president.

A look at some of Trump’s claims Wednesday:

TRUMP: “I was honored to receive the endorsement of the Bay of Pigs Veterans Association in 2016, and they gave me a beautiful award. And I have it very proudly on a wall of great importance to me.” — White House ceremony honoring veterans of the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba.

THE FACTS: There is no official award. (Read More)

Most in US balk at GOP’s Supreme Court plan

Four years ago, when Senate Republicans launched an unprecedented, 10-month blockade against a sitting president’s Supreme Court nominee, GOP senators insisted they were merely trying to give voters a voice in the process. “Let voters decide,” Republicans declared, arguing that the winner of the next presidential campaign — six months away — should fill a vacancy.

In 2020, those same Republicans have decided they no longer agree with themselves. To defend their nihilistic hypocrisy, many GOP senators are saying they’re simply reflecting voters’ will: Americans elected a Republican president and Republican-led Senate, so they’re justified in ramming through a high court nominee while millions cast their ballots. (Read More)

Every masochist requires their sadist

There is an old saying – “Every masochist requires their sadist”. That seems particularly true for Trump supporters. The Founders knew that the Republic they brought to life depended on an educated, engaged and informed polity that understood and voted their enlightened self-interests. That expectation fit well with the colonists of the time. They were self-reliant, engaged and had a clear idea of what was in their own interests. King George and the English were the sadists that they forcefully declined. Americans of that time were not masochists. They did not suffer from a psychological need to be abused. They reflexively rebelled against such abuse.

Fast forward a couple of centuries plus and things are different for a large and growing percentage of the population of the United States. Both political extremes. The left settled on the mostly benign and impotent Sanders. But the right, seems to be made up of self-loathing masochists who are constantly in search of a more effective sadist. And they seem to have found their ideal tormentor in Donald Trump.

Most Trump supporters have little or nothing. No retirement resources, nothing in the way of savings and are living paycheck-to-paycheck – or social security check to check. A large percentage of them would have no healthcare protection if it were not for the Affordable Care Act. But they hate government almost as much as they hate themselves.

They are at risk from an out-of-control pandemic and a declining economy made much worse by the inept responses of the current Administration. Yet they support a man who has done little to make their lives better, is openly dedicated to pursuing his self-interests above all else, to making his wealthy friends wealthier as fast as possible, to denigrating American heroes and to destroying the reputation of the country internationally. None of this is open to question. Trump’s almost four year in office has clearly demonstrated each.

Safe in His Bubble

Far From the Infecting Crowd

Here is an example of how much abuse these masochists are demanding. Trump says indoor rallies are OK as long as he’s safe: ‘I’m not at all concerned’. “Trump defended his indoor rally in Nevada by saying he was far away from the crowd and thus not afraid of getting the virus.” How little self-value does a person who attends such a rally have to have to overlook the stark implications of this statement? They are the ‘crowd’ that Trump is far from. Trump is safe from the risk they represent. – safe in his bubble. How much do his supporters have to hate their lives to support a man who will knowingly expose them to a dangerous virus, put they, their family and friends at risk and justify all that by saying : “I’m on a stage, and it’s very far away. So I’m not at all concerned.“

Lenin coined the term ‘useful idiots’ to describe the hard core of Communist believers. Trump is going far beyond that. He is the sadist who is demanding that his followers put their lives at risk in service to his personal political ambitions without any return benefits. They know he does not care a bit about them and their lives. In order to suffer such abuse, each has to sign a paper that absolves Trump and his campaign from any liability. They are canon fodder; useful only to advance his ambitions. It is the kind of one-way transaction that sadists demand of masochists. Why to they do it?

As the political center struggles to reform, it is clear that the very definition of American is in play. The two roads that diverge in the Yellow Wood of the 2020 Presidential campaign are different almost beyond comprehension. One leads to the dark dungeons of a sadomasochistic relationship between the governed that their masters. The other leads to an opportunity to rediscover the American experiment in self-governance and the pursue the more perfect Union that the founder of the Republican Party so revered.

As the dice roll down the table towards election day, the horrible thought occurs that the Party of Lincoln – that man who is credited with saving the Union – one of the most revered Presidents in history – that Party may be the one that finally extinguishes the light that was the last, best hope of humanity.

So, why?

A masochist derives gratification from their own pain or humiliation.

A sadist derives pleasure from inflicting pain or humiliation on others.

Political extremists are locked in a hate-hate relationship. They hate themselves because they have failed to live up to the vision of Abraham Lincoln. They have no ‘better angels’. They need to be punished for their failings and need the hate of their sadistic demi-god to deliver that punishment.

The only way to truly understand this dynamic is through the lens of religious extremism. The fallen are condemned to hell and eternal torment and eternity might as well start here on earth. Evangelicals are Trump supporters not because they want more pro-life judges but because they ardently desire the punishment of the fallen to be visited on the living. Trump, who is the embodiment of everything they despise, is their chosen Satan – the Antichrist of their nightmares.

When a large percentage of any population becomes intend on committing mass suicide, there is little that can be done. The only hope is that the 2020 election will trigger an awakening of the center. Maybe – but also, maybe not!

Nobody has ever spent a *billion* dollars to go down 10 points. Don, you got conned. https://lincolnproject.us/video/don-the-con/

The Republican Schizophrenic Schizophrenia

And so am I!

It has never been truer that the next election is a battle for the future of the country. Americans will either continue down the disastrous path of treating politics and their own future as a reality TV show and pay an unimaginably steep price for what follows or begin to be citizens rather than members of the peanut gallery – get off their butts and social media and become the active, informed citizenry that the Founders knew to be the basis for any viable democracy.

The world is holding its breath. American hegemony or American tragedy? Schizophrenia or sanity? (Read More)

Look! A Distraction!

I am sure you have seen them – the ads running on TV proclaiming that the Administration is trying to put socialist price controls in place on drug prices. Ads paid for my tax exempt organizations that are using US taxpayer dollars to protect their profits. They go on and on about American innovation and threats to your healthcare. Let me translate for you. The underlying message goes something like this:

“Dumb-ass Americans have been paying multiples of what the rest of the world pays for the same pharmaceuticals. We have spent hundreds of millions of dollars buying politicians and crafting legislation for them that allows us to rip you off every time you needed life-saving drugs. And now, it looks like the current President is about to turn on us just to improve his meager chances of being reelected. We are going to have to spend massive amounts of money distracting you from the fact that we have been screwing Americans since the day each of you were born.”

“Our ability to continue to rip you off is at stake. We do not care about the US healthcare system. Look at the response to the pandemic. It is a massive clusterf*ck. What is important is the bonuses of our senior executives and the dividends we send to our wealthy investors. The 1% must be seen to! So, call your representatives – you know the ones we have bought – and tell them to protect our right to keep charging you more than any other country in the planet. The American way is on the line.”

At some point, Americans are going to wake up and realize that almost all their reality is a con and a trap designed to keep them as passive consumers while the wealthy bleed them dry. The real question is, “Will that happen while it still matters, or will it be a deathbed awakening?”

Three Roads Diverged In An Orange Wood:

Things are moving much more quickly behind the scenes then they might appear on the surface. Keep an eye on the Southern District of New York. Recent news about Deutsche Bank’s compliance over a year ago with the Attorney General’s subpoena is the tip of the iceberg. The fact that Facebook has finally acted against Trump’s postings is going to be significant based on his campaign’s over-reliance on that platform. Also, watch the down ballot races, particularly in swing states. The outcome is far from certain. The time of momentous decision is fast approaching. Let’s look at three possible scenarios: https://www.dr-smith.info/three-roads-diverged-in-an-orange-wood/

A Call for A New American Revolution:

A recent article by Sarada Peri focuses on a debate that is rising within the Democratic Party. The Democracy-Building That Obama Didn’t Do, and That Biden Must. Some Democrats are beginning to admit that the Obama Presidency was, in part, one of missed opportunities and that, the image of Obama aside, the eight years did not deliver on what was needed. https://www.dr-smith.info/a-call-for-a-new-american-revolution/

It Is Not Just One Decision

There is a lot of focus on who Joe Biden will choose as his running mate. The talking heads are spinning theory after theory and, as usual, missing the bigger picture. Their short-term focus misses the fact that it is a two-step process. First you win the election then you pull together an A-level team to repair the damage that Trump and his mob have done. A team that will make sure that the rule of law is reestablished, and wrongdoing is punished. A team that will return the government to serving the people instead of the President and his family. A team that will return America’s reputation as the leader of the free world. Read More

This is an IQ test. Now focus!!!

Which of these statements do you believe?

Dr. Fauci explained to a House subcommittee that the U.S. has seen more cases than European countries because it only shut down a fraction of its economy amid the pandemic.

Dr. Donald & Your Health

Trump’s response: “Wrong! We have more cases because we have tested far more than any other country, 60,000,000. If we tested less, there would be less cases.”

Okay, he’s illiterate – the proper wording is fewer cases. But illiteracy aside, one is making a statement based on the science and evidence while the other is making an argument something along the lines of “if you don’t take a pregnancy test you can’t possibly be pregnant.”

Who do you believe? Are you really willing to put your life in the hands of someone who can ignore 153,000+ dead because his newest favorite doctor blames the pandemic on alien DNA?

https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB17sgVO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

How Sick Are They?

This is how sick Fox News and the Alt-Right are. “Sally Pipes: Dems use coronavirus to push ‘Medicare-for-all,’ but their ploy is based on bad information.”Over 153,000 dead, the US leading the world in deaths and cases. A President who calls it a hoax that will go away when the weather gets warm. Science deniers, bible thumpers and ‘profit over people’ is emblazoned on the banner.

While the rest of the world has mostly bent the curve, the US is setting new records for cases and incompetence. Over 25,000 dead in July alone. And this clown thinks that advocating taking action to beat the pandemic is “pushing Medicare-for-all”. I’m sure she also believes that, if we just would stop testing, the virus would go away. Read More

A Vampire Does Not Apologize to Its Dinner

Let us cut through all the nonsense and handwringing about the United States having the worst response to the coronavirus pandemic. Most of the frothing and tsk-tsk commentary is not just a distraction; it completely misses the point.

The Trump administration and Congress delivered a massive boon to the donor base in the form of a tax-cut. The trumpet sound that heralded relief for the middle class turned into a jazz riff of avarice and greed. Study after study indicates that the vast majority of the benefits went to a very small percentage of the population. The net effect was to accelerate the growth of income and wealth inequality and settled the country with massively increased debt.

But the celebration quickly turned into gloomy reflection as the realization set in that the game of transferring wealth upward had probably reached its zenith. The donor class had received pretty much all it was going to. And then something happened that opened opportunities that were undreamt of. A pandemic allowed distributions upward that made the tax cuts look like pocket change. Read More

The Blood Dripped from His Fangs as Another Life Was Snuffed Out

This is a parable about a governor of a remote province who put his own welfare ahead of those of the in his care. Aloof in his dark tower, this governor believed in only two things. His own manifest destiny – his superiority over the mere peasants and their meaningless lives. And a blinding love of gold – commerce – wealth – accumulation. For him, too much was never enough.

But, the people had a champion. Someone who cared about them, their lives, family and loved ones. She was the leader of the largest tribe in the region and, unlike the governor who had experienced privilege all his life, had grown up in poverty. They were her people and she wanted to protect them against a plague that was ravaging the land.

The governor opposed her efforts to protect the people and called her before the court. “How dare you defy me? I am your governor. Your lord and master. Superior to you in every way. You are of an inferior race and I the result of generations of breeding. I own you. Bow before me.”

But she was not cowed and stood her ground. A shield between the avarice and ignorance of the governor and the lives she so cherished. The great day came, and the judge sat high above the courtroom. A decision was at hand. Shall it be the governor or the people? The gavel called the proceedings to order.

(Stay tuned for Chapter Two!)

Georgia judge to hear arguments over governor’s bid to stop Atlanta mask mandate. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB170BIc?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

The Insanity Inside the Gun Lobby’s Arguments

The arguments put forth by the NRA, gun lobby and their supporters seem particularly shaky these days. In defense of the 2nd Amendment, they contend that an armed citizenry is required to protect itself against the excesses of a rogue government and in defense of their liberties. But there are two, strangely related, problems with that argument.

The first is the experiences in other countries that have severely limited gun ownership. Countries like Australia and the UK have widely prohibited gun ownership. Why is it that the drastic results of such ‘loss of liberty’ predicted by the gun lobby have not come to pass in those countries? Gun proponents seem to be arguing that the government of the US is far more threatening to individual liberty than those in other countries. Does that make sense? Well, let’s consider the nature of the government preferred by the American gun lobby.

The second problem is that, given the actions by the Federal Government in places like Washington DC and Portland, we seem to have such a rogue government – at least partially, because gun enthusiasts enthusiastically voted for Trump. So, it seems that they voted for the very people they need the 2nd Amendment and their guns to protect themselves from!

To put it another way, is the largely positive experience in Australia, the UK and most of Europe – in Japan and Korea – where the murder rates have dropped significantly after guns were removed from the society – possible because Australians, for instance, elect a governments that does not threaten their liberties while the citizens of the US have to protect the 2nd Amendment because they elect governments that do?

That would seem to add a new meaning to the term ‘American Exceptionalism’!

Wanted Immediately: New leadership for a political party that had been taken over by an organized crime family.

We expect to have all top management positions open by mid-January of 2021 as the former leadership struggles to keep out of jail.

Here is your chance to get in on the ground floor of an effort to clean out, fumigate and revitalize a political party. Such an opportunity comes once in decades and, should you be up to the task, your name will go down in history as one of those who saved not only the party but the government of the United States. https://www.dr-smith.info/to-be-posted-on-all-media-outlets/

White Privilege on Parade.

Here is the classic example of how wealthy whites get a pass for behavior that would put a black couple in jail. Missouri’s Republican governor, Mike Parson, said Trump “doesn’t like what he sees and the way these people are being treated.” You would think that Trump was talking about the peaceful protesters who had guns pointed at them by a white couple. But, with echoes of Charlottesville, Trump is talking about the wealthy whites who are under review for criminal charges. It is bad enough that the couple who pointed guns at the protesters are only “under review’. In most states threatening someone with a gun is a crime. But maybe in Missouri it is okay if the persons pointing the guns are white and wealthy and the people being threatened are demonstrating for social justice. But for the President of the United States to support such criminal behavior? Why didn’t he just shout ‘open fire’? https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-intervening-case-missouri-mansion-couple-pointed-guns-governor-2020-7?fbclid=IwAR1nRDoYd6dw-AXyATpvThXVu3qdpQjT-cVOyfybXCtsU1nidlFK-BH__BA

The Orphan Who Trump Adopted

He had always been second banana to strong men – what is called a bottom on some cultures. Throughout his life he has sought out ways to offload personal responsibility in service to a leader that he could adore. In a fundamental way, he was an orphan seeking a surrogate father to take the place of the one he had left behind. But he would always remain a blank slate that each successive ‘father’ could erase and then rewrite in his own image. And his life became a series of rewrites in the image of others. Not a self-made man but one made by others.

The Angry Orphan

In the 1980s, it was the military that provided an unending stream of daddies and the law which provided the theology that he so desperately needed. It was in West Germany that this defining part of his personality began to flower – that the orphan emerged. The military provided the ROTC stipend to help get himself and his younger sister through college.

Over the years both the best and worst of this ‘daddy need’ came to flower. Throughout most of his career in the Senate, he was closely allied with a man of strong integrity and moral principles. John McCain provided the keel and rudder for Lindsey Graham. He was moderate and so Lindsey was moderate. McCain worked across the aisle when rising partisanship distained it and then, following daddy, so did Lindsey. It seemed that the orphan had found his forever home. But the tragedy struck. McCain died. And the orphan was again homeless.

From the campaign trail in 2016, Donald Trump took notice of the wandering orphan. Graham’s short-lived presidential campaign revealed a man who desperately needed as top to his bottom. Forgetting that his whole campaign was based on the idea of American leadership around the world and that Trump was running on an America First doctrine, the mating dance began and Graham entered it with relish. He quickly, and apparently easily, forgot that he had called Trump a ‘jackass’, ‘nutjob’ and a ‘race-baiting, xenophobic, religions bigot”. Daddy was calling and Graham slipped right under his new top.

By the time Trump was inaugurated in 2016, the adoption process was complete. Lindsay did as daddy commanded – with an absolute and instant obedience that was stunning in its excess. The man with deep ties to the military, to the rule of law, and to an old-fashioned idea of American patriotism and American responsibility in the world became a Trumpchimp almost overnight.

Oliver Twist and Fagin

Graham made excuses for Trump’s abuse of power. He downplayed the evidence that the president had attempted to manipulate foreign courts and blackmail a foreign leader into launching a phony investigation into a political rival. Graham abandoned his own stated support for bipartisanship and instead pushed for a hyper-partisan Senate Judiciary Committee investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son. He made excuses for Trump on television, supported the president even as he slowly destroyed the American alliances—with Europeans, with the Kurds—that Graham had defended all his life. In short, the orphan off-loaded the very core of his beliefs in a frantic effort to please his new daddy.

Although Lindsey Graham is not the only one who has made this deal with devil, he is certainly its most extreme example. Jeff Sessions, Trump’s earlies and most vocal ‘legitimate’ supporter has lost it all. Mitch McConnell will go down in history as the man who destroyed the idea that Congress is the first branch of government. Bill Barr will be remembered as the Attorney General who politicized DOJ and eroded the rule of law. But Lindsey Graham will always be remembered as the orphan that Trump adopted and, as Oliver Twist was molded by Fagin, became the evil twin of John McCain’s sidekick.

The man who killed the GOP – and it’s not Trump. Jeff Sessions bet HUGE on Donald Trump — and lost. Sessions is arguably the man who made Trump president. When the rest or the Republican establishment was shunning him, Sessions became his first ‘credible’ advocate. He will also go down in history as the man who triggered the destruction of the GOP. As the lemmings followed him into the cult of Trump, the battle-cry became anybody but Hilary. Anybody meaning the Donald. New Yorkers knew he was a shallow, narcissistic con man and tried warning them. But Sessions sprinkled enough holy water around to induce them to follow the grifter. Standing next to Trump on the stage, wearing his red hat and chanting irrationally – “lock her up” and “Obama is a secret Muslim” – Sessions showed that you could sacrifice every moral principal and allegiance to the truth and gain the temporary benevolence of his newest idol. “Come into the limelight”, was his chant. “Come into my parlor”, said the spider to the fly was Trump’s chant. And now, having embraced the tar baby, the GOP finds itself sinking into the abyss with no way to avoid drowning. Following Jeff into the depths of despair. Like Sessions, it’s now every fool for himself and no way out. The tar baby does not release its prey. The spider will have gorged himself on the tattered reputations of men once thought of highly. And the desiccated carcasses will litter the landscape in the elephant’s graveyard. the soul-eater will grin and pick his teeth with the bones of those foolish enough to sell their souls for nothing more than a smile and a pat on the head before being devoured. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB16LO60?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Who Is Really The Adult In The Room? Republicans who oppose Trump are leading the way. It is long past time that Democrats take a page from their successful playbook and enter the fray as adults playing to win. The future of the Republic is hanging in the balance. Americans are disparate for another FDR or JFK. They do not need another Millard Fillmore. Read More

John Gault Owns You All

It can seem sadly charming to listen to a libertarian wax eloquently over the writings of Ayn Rand. As the wax melts under the sunlight of the real world, you might feel a rising pity for the intensely juvenile spectacle. But, if you stop to look deeper, there will be a rising concern that may turn into panic.

From Zuckerberg to Trump, John Gault has risen. And he is not the benevolent boon to humanity, the visionary, the highly ethical man that Rand described. He is an angry, manipulative sociopath with a thirst for power and enough hubris to fill the world with disconnected and marginalized ‘little people’.

Tolkien said it best through the Wizard Gandalf. “There is only one Lord of the Ring, only one who can bend it to his will. And he does not share power.”

Read More

Here is the latest example of how delusional Fixed News has become as the walls close in on their Godfather. John Yoo recently wrote that the Supreme Court smacked Trump and delivered a body blow to the office of the presidency. “Chief Justice Roberts and the four liberals on the Court have raised their opposition so high that they are upending the constitutional structure and dooming future presidents to years of harassing investigations that will interfere with their performance in office.” Wait, wasn’t the vote 7 to 2? Who were the others who voted with Roberts? Surely they were liberals!!! Ahhh, yes – the two Trump nominees. You would think that Yoo would at least recognize the thinness of the gruel he is offering up – that any thinking person would ask who made up the majority in the decision. Clearly he is suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome – a disease of the mind that leads him to barf crap and have everybody accept his description of it as caviar. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/john-yoo-supreme-court-smacks-trump-and-delivers-body-blow-to-the-office-of-the-presidency/ar-BB16xWu2

Hell Hath No Fury Like a Narcissist Scorned

You are in the crosshairs of the growing visceral hatred of a professional hater. Trump has realized that he is not going to win in November. That he is not up to the job. That he is a failure as President. That history will not treat him kindly. And, that a rapidly growing percentage of the population are coming to realize that the grifter is a fraud and only interested in himself.

As the sure knowledge of all this and more has settled in, Trump’s hatred of those who would deny his omnipotence has grown until it now dominates everything that he does. His fury is focused on those members of his mob family that let him down – the Republican Party and all those who attended his rallies and wore that red hat. They, not him, failed. A narcissist can come to no other conclusion.

After a life of corruption, Trump finally stands naked and exposed and a fiery anger has spawned a determination to make the faithless pay as dearly as possible.

When Nixon came to realize that his Presidency was not likely to survive, there were people around him who made sure that he did not respond erratically and strike out in anger and resentment. They made sure that Nixon did not take out his frustrations over his failures on the American people. The system held and justice was done.

That was when the Republican Party was dominated by men and women of honor who put country above party. But that is not now the case. The enablers of Trump are in full protection mode. Their Godfather must never be questioned or constrained. As Trump decides to punish those who turn away from him – to cost them their health, future, children, and future – the carnage will increase until he is finally removed from office. The enablers will assure that maximum damage is done to you and yours.

When you go into the voting booth in November or fill out your paper ballot, remember that it was not just Trump who put your children at risk. It was not just Trump who made the US the example of failure. It was not just Trump who engaged is a systematic effort to enrich himself from public service. Remember those who enabled him. The disease Trumpism needs to be cut out root and branch. Vote your interests not your idolatry. Vote for the country. Turn away from Trump and choose America.

Watch the video and then support The Lincoln Project. They are working to protect you from Trumps narcissistic vengeance. https://youtu.be/-vZp3FAQZvU

This is how moronic the loony right has become. Anybody who does not kiss the rind of his orange god is deemed a traitor who “hates” America. Mob mentality – anybody who does not swear allegiance to the Godfather is an enemy of the family. This is not an american. This is a fascist! Tucker Carlson: Can the left really lead a country it hates? https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB16rof5?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

How many months did these Republican governors have to organize an effective response to the pandemic? While they were laughing at New York State and kissing the ring of their godfather, the chance to protect their citizens faded away. And now the people who elected them are paying the price for their governor’s allegiance to Trump when they should be benefiting from his allegiance to them. If anybody in Florida or Texas is still deluded enough to think that Trumpists have their best interests in mind, they should look at the exploding numbers of cases and deaths and ask, “why did you throw away the chance to protect us?” The silence that follows should be all they need to know! My fellow Americans are dying and guys like this are more interested in currying favor with Trump than protecting the people who elected them. Look into his eyes and tell me if you can honestly believe that he cares whether you live or die. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/florida-shatters-single-day-record-with-more-than-11000-new-coronavirus-cases/ar-BB16kPDp

How many months did the Trump administration have to organize an effective response to the pandemic? While he was laughing at New York State, calling people childish names, playing golf, visiting his properties and telling the country that the virus would go away magically, the chance to protect American lives faded away. We are now the laughingstock of the rest of the world and the example of how not to respond to a crisis. America has the most expensive government in the world, the most expensive healthcare system in the world, the most expensive and militarized police forces and the most impotent national government. The only thing that the Trump administration has been good at is increasing the wealth of its donor class and blaming others for its failures. It is time Americans woke up and realized that their lives are meaningless to most of the people they have elected. The poor, deluded fools in Florida and Texas who wear the red hats and crowd into Trump rallies, need to understand that they are cannon fodder for a group of people whose only concern is their own enrichment. These are the people who can turn away from Trump and rediscover the true Republican party – the party of Lincoln, Eisenhower, and Reagan. When they take off their red hats and turn away from Trump, they well begin the healing. But, it is their choice and, until they make it, the carnage will continue. As Trump gaslights America about coronavirus, Republicans face a critical choice: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/as-trump-gaslights-america-about-coronavirus-republicans-face-a-critical-choice/ar-BB16nbMp

Donald Trump’s America: This is what three years plus of Donald Trump has brought America to.

We were once the envy of the world. First in science, technology, engineering, math – first in promising a brighter future for generations to come – first in freedom and citizen participation – first in showing the rest of the world the golden path to the future – and first in meeting challenges head on.

The shining city on the hill is now ruled by a group of incompetent retro-bible-thumping, science denying, freedom hating. corrupt, angry and wealthy old white men who have turned the country into an embarrassment to be isolated in its incompetence.

The next time you swear allegiance to the flag and country, this is what you are pledging allegiance to. And, it is not their fault, the fault is ours. We allowed this happen.

The insanity must be brought to an end. This must not continue. It is past time that the real spirit of America awoke and took back the country. If we are really them, then we are lost forever. If we are better than these incompetent retro-bible-thumping, science denying, freedom hating corrupt, angry and wealthy old white men, then American will charge back to leadership in the world. As ever, the decision is in the hands of the citizens. November approaches. Decide.

EU to reopen, bar travelers from US: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB169MiL?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

This is how morally corrupt these Trumpists are. Pence claimed that “the US had flattened the curve,” even though it reported a record number of new cases on Thursday.

The Lesson: Pence, Trump and all the little Trumpists will risk your lives for their political gain.

This is how intellectually challenged these Trumpists are. “We want the American people to understand that it’s almost inarguable that more testing is generating more cases,” Pence said. Medical experts have pushed back on that claim.

The Reality: Hey, meathead – testing identifies more cases – it does not “generate” them. Go back and finish the third grade.

Read the whole article: https://www.businessinsider.com/first-coronavirus-task-force-briefing-in-two-months-pence-national-accomplishment-flatten-the-curve-2020-6?fbclid=IwAR2w-CCd_P_RoU-j7DXoqxAug-OWCup9_i5ze6wzajHiIAZ7shv5VJNa0gc

It’s time Americans stopped paying any attention to these grifters and focused on 1) removing them from office and 2) providing for their long-term incarceration. They are not just traitors to America; they are traitors to humanity.

The Delusion Of The Losing Side – The Anti-Americans Begin To Sound Retreat: The latest example of the hypocrisy and delusion of the right comes in the form of an opinion piece by Tucker Carlson posted (where else because who else would publish such stuff?) on Fox News. In it he makes some truly outrageous statements. Here are just two examples: https://www.dr-smith.info/the-delusion-of-the-losing-side-the-anti-americans-begin-to-sound-retreat/

A Tale of Two Ads: I live in DC and this morning watched two political ads run back-to-back. One by the Trump Campaign and the second by the Biden Campaign. The first was a whiny attempt at character assignation that looked like it was produced by tabloid journalists. The second was a polished and substantive critique of the failures of the Trump Administration. Skipping over why the campaign would spend money running an ad in a market that he is sure to lose massively, Trump’s ad reminded me of how small-minded and vindictive he is. It also brought to mind his history of advancing bogus conspiracy theories – https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15SAzO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare. Biden’s ad reminded me of his years of service and experience. In a minute, the choice was made clear. A petulant little Mary or a decent man who loves his country more than himself.

Danger Will Robinson: It is not going to get better for Trump. His numbers are not going to improve. Five months out from the election, his only viable options appear to be corrupting the electoral process to steal the election and inviting interference from foreign governments. The country is turning away from him in disgust. The voters who held their nose and voted for him rather than for Hillary Clinton are finding Joe Biden an attractive option. Unlike Richard Nixon, who was reelected in a landslide, Trump faces reelection and is likely lose by historic margin. This is making for a very explosive cocktail. It is time for those few remaining members of the Republican Party who can put country above party to step up as patriots and take control of the situation. The rabid dog must be muzzled, or the disease will rapidly spread out of control. https://www.dr-smith.info/danger-will-robinson/

This is what dictators in waiting do. They gut the government and fire principled professionals who are dedicated to the rule of law so that the Rule of Trump can hold sway. Trump and Barr know this. Putin and Kim understand this. Do you? And you are okay with it? No? Then what are you going to do about it?

Screw the Rule of Law. Bow down before the Rule of Trump!

Let me make it as clear as I can. If Biden wins, it is not enough for him to rehire these people and make speeches about how DOJ is independent again. Gerald Ford sold out the rue of law when he pardoned Nixon. Obama sold out the rule of law when none of the people who almost destroyed the international financial system, through greed, corruption and deceit, went to jail. Both made it clear that there was a rule of law for ordinary people and a separate one for the wealthy and powerful. If that is the kind of country you want to live in – Trump is your man! If it is the kind of country Joe Biden wants to live in, kiss Madison’s Republic goodbye.

We must not go back to the old normal. Much like the sea change in race relation discussions centered around law enforcement, real change is what is needed not merely changed rhetoric. The rule of law must be reestablished as the law of the land with all equal before it. Wealth or powerful friends should not be a ‘get out of jail free’ card. and ‘let’s turn the page’ should not be accepted as a just result.

If Biden does not appoint an Attorney General who will aggressively pursue corruption, the election will be for naught and the Republic lost to authoritarianism. Reestablishing the rule of law begins with bringing those who violated it before the bar of justice. If he does not do this, you will be reading headlines like this one in as little as four years: Trump Fires U.S. Attorney Who Investigated His Associates: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15LrxQ?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Billy Barr has handed Joe Biden yet another campaign issue on a silver platter and, this time, it is a trifecta! He has proven the critics right – that Barr is politicizing DOJ and acting as a Trump political toady. He has demonstrated personal incompetence by failing to anticipate how Berman would respond to his attempt to fire him. And, he has highlighted the lack of experience of Trump’s chosen successor. Biden could wish for no more than to have Barr on his side in this matter and helping to show that the Trump administration is truly a Ship of Fools. Barr Seeks to Fire Attorney Who Investigated Trump Associates: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15JHcW?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Newtclear Dogma: He is at it again – the Angry White Old Loony (AWOL for short). In a Fox News opinion piece (Where else? No professional news service would publish such a thing!), the professor of ‘lets go to Washington and destroy the government – somebody bring Beauregard’s battle flag – the south will rise again and finally win the war of northern aggression’ makes a series of truly un-American statements. https://www.dr-smith.info/newtclear-dogma/

When I hear some Democrat talk about new programs after Biden takes office, my instinct is to ask them how things are in Never-Never-Land and ask them to say hello to Tinkerbell for me. By the time Biden assumes office, the Treasury will be bare, the United States will be deep in debt, the economy will be in ruins, and the GOP will have distributed trillions to their donor base. Americans will face a reality that they had to face only once before during the Great Depression. The cupboard will be bare and their hollowed-out government will not be up to the task. Trillions in stimulus unchecked while the watchdogs have been kept toothless: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15Bl1H?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

We’ve seen giant public companies scoop up relief meant for small businesses, an inspector general fired, promises made to muzzle independent oversight,” Senator Elizabeth Warren said in a statement. And, as usual, Democrats will be a few trillion dollars short and a thousand days to late!

The only way forward will be for Biden to appoint a strong Attorney General and give them the power to pursue these scofflaws and claw back the funds. If he decides, “well the robbery took place on somebody else’s watch” the nation will quickly decide that have made a second big mistake.

Would the real Lindsey Graham please show your face! “As good a man as God ever created” That’s how Graham described Joe Biden before he slipped obediently under his Donald. The citizens of South Carolina have the option of reelecting him – but which one will they get. The moderate who was John McCain’s wing-man and who worked closely with Biden or the angry old white man whose idol has lost in a landslide? There are real consequences to the state because, if they get the latter, South Carolina will be stuck with Loony Lindsey during a time of massive reform and will daily remind the country of how extreme and irrational the politics of the state are. https://ruleoflawrepublicans.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=41df14e6667a85d0f6e4a4f5e&id=fd2ba9b2d4&e=58f8d7d9b5

Have Some Covid-19 My Stupid Useful Idiots!

Here is a stark example of the Republican leadership’s attitude towards their supporters. It’s not black lives matter – it’s no lives matter except our political lives. They are willing to risk the lives of their supporters to give Trump a photo op.

“A Republican senator from Oklahoma took to the air on Sunday to argue that the rally will be safe, although the Trump campaign has asked attendees to sign waivers promising not to sue if they get the virus that causes the disease covid-19. “Everyone needs to take responsibility for their own health,” Sen. James Lankford said on ABC’s “This Week,” adding that he intends to go to the rally.”

Translation, I will be behind the glass wall while the peasants struggle in the germ pool cheek to jowl. – yelling and screaming as they help the virus to spread. Come kiss the ring so that our deal leader does not throw a tantrum and then you are on your own. Enjoy the disease!!! Just remember to vote in November for those who risked your lives for political gain. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15ufgC?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

The Most Cynical Trumpism Yet! In what will go down as one of the most cynical strategies by any American political party, the GOP through the Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. campaign is demanding that people who attend a political rally – essentially a march towards the coronation of Trump for a second term – sign a liability waver that exempts the campaign from any liability the arises from bringing masses of people together during a pandemic. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-most-cynical-trumpism-yet/

The Panic Room President: We hear from Republican voters every day: “I’ve had enough. I can’t defend this anymore. I won’t vote for Trump.” But there are so many Republicans who still don’t know we’re out here, fighting for what makes America great against Trump’s abuses and embarrassments. Click Here to Watch the Video

A Two-Do List For The Biden Administration. America is at an inflection point. One outcome represents a certainty. If Trump is reelected, the American experiment will be at an end. Government of, by, and for the people will have officially become government of, by, and for the wealthy and corporations. The other outcome is still clouded with uncertainty. At Gettysburg, Lincoln rose to reestablish the fundamental principles of the American experiment of self-governance. Biden may not be Lincoln, but he must convince the American people that he will follow in Abe’s footsteps and save the Union. For there to be true reform, at least eight things must happen. https://www.dr-smith.info/a-two-do-list-for-the-administration/

Weep not Lady Liberty. Stand up and take back your country! Be the America that its citizens can be proud of. Show the world that we are not the Trumpism and corruption that it despises!

The greatness of America is not in Washington. It’s not Trump’s hate and moral corruption hiding behind his fence and turning the people’s house into a fortress. It’s not in Mitch McConnell who was more focused on getting rich as a Senator rather than serving the interests of the people of Kentucky. It’s not in the moral corruption of the likes of Lindsey Graham and Rand Paul who have sold their souls to the devil incarnate. It’s not in the fascism of the Republication Party – a party that Lincoln would disavow. The greatness of America is with the people who who abhor what these anti-Americans are doing to their beloved country. For these destroyers of America, the protesters of terrorists. But, for the vast majority of Americans they are heroes standing for important principles. The large majority back protesters: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB15eTjO?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare They are the Americans that needs to clean house and show their fellow citizens and the world that none of these despoilers represent what the country stands for. Lock them up!

It is McCarthyism pure and simple and Republicans, particularly those in the Senate, are bowing before it and kissing the ring. But, like McCarthyism as it reached its zenith, Trumpism is becoming increasingly difficult to genuflect before publicly. The latest example is the senior senator from Alaska. Sen. Murkowski says she is “struggling”. Apparently, that’s what constitutes backbone or an ethical/moral compass in the Republican Party. Trump has politicized every branch of government, he is trampling the Constitution, has relegated Congress to a subservient part of the executive branch, he has threatened American citizens with the military and turned the people’s house into a fortress. And Murkowski is “struggling”? In the Republican Party, this passes for courage. That is not what’s required. This is what’s required: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-H3KaLZsbv0

It’s not a game of tit for tat. It’s the contrast between serious people defending important norms and a child calling people names and throwing tantrums. The child needs to be restrained! Tensions flare between Trump, military figures over Floyd unrest: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB151U5M?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare “Tensions have exploded in recent days between President Trump and a batch of current and former military officials who are critical – to varying degrees – of how he’s handled the unrest in the wake of George Floyd’s death in the custody of the Minneapolis Police Department.”

The Confederate Flag is a Banner of Treason https://youtu.be/5w7kwtLJtVc It is time that Americans woke up and realized that those who pledge allegiance to this symbol of treason are dedicated to the overthrow of the government. That is what it stood for then and that is what is stands for now.

Reverend says she was tear-gassed for Trump photo op: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14UVWr?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

The joke of the day! A one woman box of crackers. GOP Senate Candidate Blames Protest Violence On Secret Obama Army – https://breakingnewsusa.com/2020/06/01/gop-senate-candidate-blames-protest-violence-on-secret-obama-army/ ““Jo Rae Perkins, the QAnon conspiracy theorist who is the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate in Oregon, streamed a video on Facebook last night in which she called for the National Guard to be mobilized against “the army that Obama put together” that she believes is behind the nationwide protests that are occurring following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer last week.”

I guess they didn’t have a personal phone chat with Trump? Facebook employees criticize Zuckerberg’s inaction over Trump: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14RhMo?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare Zuck’s despicable double standard – tagging an ad by The Lincoln Project criticizing Trump then giving Trump a free reign to lie – is clearly unacceptable to the men and women of honor at #Facebook!

Now from the Zeus-Without-A-Penis category – Court ruling suggests little legal traction for Trump’s anti-Twitter campaign: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14G2n7?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Opinion: Republicans Think They Can Get Away With It. They Might Be Right. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14F2SW?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare “In a democracy, leaders of a governing party shouldn’t act as if they can brazenly defy large majorities of voters and still hold onto power. The alarm bells only get louder when you begin to examine why current Republican leaders think this way — and why they might be right.”

If there was ever a way to totally destroy the Trump presidency and the GOP, this is it. The social media platforms should stand up to the bully and become heroes. Trump can shut them down and no American under 50 would vote for any Republican! https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14FjIC?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

So, let’s compare the theories of QAnon with results. According to the Q mythos, Trump is actually a secret, Machiavellian super-genius and uber-patriot, leading a counter-intelligence operation from within the White House against the so-called “Deep State”—an evil cabal of no-goodniks ensconced in the power structure of Washington D.C., and the country as a whole.

Here is an example of how Trump is battling the Deep State. Does that seem a bit odd to you? If Trump is as much of a genius as they say, why has be bungled the pandemic so badly? If he is on the side of the average American, how come they are dying is such large numbers during his watch? And why, as the death count approaches 100,000, is he on the golf course rather than rallying the troops in defense of the citizens?

Are we what we used to be?

In 1971 the Supreme Court decided New York Times v. United States. Often referred to as the “Pentagon Papers” case, the landmark Supreme Court decision involved the publication of a secret government study on American involvement in Vietnam. The government sued to prevent further publications of the study. In a 6-3 decision, the Court dissolved the restraining order and allowed the Times to continue with publication.

The Pentagon Papers showed that politicians were sending young Americans to die in the jungles of Vietnam to assure their reelection and to avoid being accused of losing the war. Men and women were dying to protect the political interests of politicians.

Two questions come to mind. The first, would the current Supreme Court rule in the same way – in favor of the first amendment and against the entrenched powers of the Trump Administration. Second, what has the US government become if things like this can occur? https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB14fZjw?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Biden says he would not pardon Trump. It’s hard to overstate how important this pledge is but it has to go much farther. Biden has to commit to appointing a strong Attorney General and to letting an independent DOJ prosecute all wrong doing during the Trump administration – all of it. If the disease of Trumpism is going to be purged from the national character, people will have to go to jail. The reestablishment of the rule of law requires it, Biden should name his nominee for AG ASAP. It’s far more important than naming his VP nominee. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB146KzA?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

It’s Broken: This is a far broader problem than the unemployment system being broken. Citizens want their government to work but, when they refuse to pay for its upkeep and allow government to become socialism for the rich, they are surprised when it doesn’t! Its like not maintaining your car and then finding it won’t start just when you need to get your kid to an emergency room. Opinion: US unemployment system is broken by design: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB141Rkr?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Think Wall Street gives a damn about ordinary Americans? Think the fat cats won’t sacrifice your lives to keep their fat salaries and stock options flowing? Listen to Jim Cramer as he agrees with Elon Musk.

Cramer said Musk is a “zealot,” referencing rants about state stay-at-home orders since the company’s first-quarter earnings were released late last month. Musk has described the restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of Covid-19 as fascist, and he urged governments to ease restrictions.

https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13YPRd?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Billionaires will feed you into the flames of their own greed and laugh at your pain. Mother died from corona? Grandfather died of corona? Husband died of corona? Tough crap! They don’t give a damn. Since millions have lost their jobs, the market has rallied. Investors are feeding off your pain. Wake up America, these people are out to screw you.

No matter how he spins it – no matter how many lies he tells – here are the facts about Trump’s mishandling of the coronavirus response – day by day – lie by lie – death by death. This is Trump’s legacy. https://youtu.be/kOhs-tzVm1g

Here is a clear indication of how butt stupid politicians are. How long has every thinking being know this? From an article in The Washington Post: “Republicans finally realize Trump will drag them under” https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13UCmU?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare And these intellectual giants are the ones who we have trusted with our future? It’s time to put a ‘stupidity screen’ between candidates and elected office.

Atlanta mayor refers to Arbery’s death as ‘lynching’ https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13S6Hi?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare

Pandemic shows contrasts between US, European safety nets: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13Rea7?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare “In Europe, the collapse in business activity is triggering wage support programs that are keeping millions on the job, for now. In contrast, in the United States more than 33.5 million people have applied for jobless benefits and the unemployment rate has soared to 14.7%.”

Here is a link to the ad by The Lincoln Project that is driving The Donald up the wall. It is also the ad that Facebook is labeling as false. Watch and decide for yourself. I urge all who find this video accurate to donate to The Lincoln Project and share this posting with your network. Send a message that this is not what you find acceptable from your government. https://secure.anedot.com/the-lincoln-project/cfc0ed467fd7fd566cf29

A Platforms for Political Oppression or a Propaganda Arm? Facebook is no longer just a platform. It is acting as an agency of the Trump Administration and actively punishing his opposition. Here is the paid ad that Facebook is slapping a “false” label on. Apparently Trump grabbed Zuck by the short hairs and Facebook folded! Watch it and decide for yourself who is telling the truth and who is acting as a political Toady. I urge all who find this behavior unacceptable to donate to The Lincoln Project and share this with your network. Send a message that this is the USA not Putin’s Russia. https://secure.anedot.com/the-lincoln-project/cfc0ed467fd7fd566cf29

As the greed of the ‘80s and ‘90s turned into the avarice of 2007, Americans were shocked to discover that the American Dream was owned by the 1% alone. In 2020 they discovered that without a well-funded and competent government, a virus could overturn their lives, destroy their economy and erase their future. A government which serves the wealthy, income and wealth inequality and socialism for the rich, these are the gifts Americans have given themselves. And they are bitter pills to swallow for a once great people. It’s time that Americans woke up from their fantasizes of greatness and realize that the US is no longer the greatest country in the world. Not even close. The most honest three minutes in television history. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=10153709292087125

Guilty Until Proven Innocent? Occasionally, a member of the chattering class makes a statement so bizarre that it stuns the sensibility. Recently Jonah Goldberg, writing for something called the Tribune Content Agency, published “Opinion: Burden of proof is on Biden to deflect Reade accusations”. https://www.dr-smith.info/guilty-until-proven-innocent/

The Hypocrite from Kentucky: Top GOP: Liability protections ‘essential’ for next virus bill. Do you believe Biden’s Accuser? McConnell: “Yes, absolutely”. Do you believe the accuser of Kavanaugh and the 25 accusers of Trump? McConnell: “No, not at all.” Should the government protect businesses against liabilities when opening? McConnell: “Absolutely.” Should the government protect American citizens against dangerous business practices? McConnell: Silence and waving the flag. This is what the citizens of Kentucky consider a man – a lying political hack who puts party above country. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13txFK And, should they reelect him, the citizens of Kentucky will tell the country and the world just what kind of people they are.

Mitch McConnell said Thursday that Joe Biden will have to release all information re: the allegations of sexual assault from Tara Reade. He has not made the same request for the dozen-plus sexual assault allegations leveled at President Donald Trump”. https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13qyKT

The Pot Calling the Kettle Black? This from the Administration that brought you the most inept national response on the planet: U.S. crafting retaliatory actions against China over virus – https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13qzzL Blame everybody else and take no responsibility for any failure. That’s the Trump way.

Compare this to the response during the FDR Admin. The Coronavirus Stimulus Package Is a Mess: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13o1ct No jobs program, the Trump Admin is busy giving money to corporations & donors. This is what US government has become! Government for the rich; dust for the poor

The wheels are coming off in this slow-motion train-wreck. Wonder how far down the Republican Party will stay with Trump? This has the makings of a mass-extinction event! Sources: Polls had Trump lashing out at own camp: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB13onMY

Breaking News: The US Improves It’s #1 Standing in Cases and Deaths: Confirmed Cases: 2,740,000 (Global), 891,000 (US – 32.5% up from 32%) Deaths: 192,000 (Global). 50,399 (US – 26.2% up from 25%) 4.25% of the world’s population has 32.5% of the Coronavirus cases, 26.2% of the deaths. So much for the “best healthcare system on the planet”. Nope, just the most expensive one!

Here is an example of today’s great American Dream – or should we say Nightmare? She got a forgivable loan. Her employees hate her for it https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB132POb She is getting wealthy by paying her workers less than unemployment benefits? And workers are taking the jobs? An over-paid, under-productive “entrepreneur” is living well off of workers who aren’t taking home a living wage. When did the American worker – once a lion – become a domesticated farm animal?

Coronavirus by the numbers – April 22, 2020: The US represents 4.25% of the world’s population but is a clear leader in both cases and deaths from the virus. Here are the numbers as of today: Cases: 2,585,468 Globally and 825,306 in the US (32%) Deaths: 178,845 Globally and 45,075 US (25.2%). If we have such a great healthcare system, why is 4.25% of the world’s population so far out front in cases and deaths?

Swimming Against A Strong Tide: As a political and social theorist, I focus on the future. To mangle Thomas Paine, “These are the times that try political and social theorists’ souls.” We may not be getting out of a Higgins boat on Omaha Beach but sometimes it feels like it. https://www.dr-smith.info/swimming-against-a-strong-tide/

Coming Together While Being Driven Apart: Russia may have interfered in our elections but politicians, political activists and talking heads are interfering in our society. https://www.dr-smith.info/coming-together-while-being-driven-apart/

Echoes from the North Woods: To experience yourself abstracted from your native social context can be jarring. Frustrated addictions can lead you to feel depressed and angry. Humans are not meant to be alone for any extended time. And, the stronger your addiction, the more quickly the frustrations mount. But there is an alternative to being a victim. It begins by realizing that the isolation will end and that you have been given a gift – a time apart – an opportunity to get to know yourself better. https://www.dr-smith.info/echoes-from-the-north-woods/

The Latest Coronavirus Numbers Are Sobering but The Future Looks Far Worse: There is bad news and very bad news – and only a glimmer of good news. And finally, there is more tragic incompetence, stupidity and a darkening future on the horizon. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-latest-coronavirus-numbers-are-sobering-but-the-future-looks-far-worse/

Trumpsters & Delusions of Grandeur: It’s the current epidemic that defines a Republican. Hubris, self-love, self-pity, incompetence before a challenge, disregard for fellow citizens, ideology before humanity. Let’s call it what it is – Trumpism. https://www.dr-smith.info/trumpsters-and-delusions-of-grandeur/

Everybody should watch this and share it with all their contacts: Wisconsin Republicans Have Lost Their Voters’ Confidence (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThqavCmGfHU&utm_source=Republicans+for+the+Rule+of+Law&utm_campaign=55de8068de-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_04_14_10_09&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c575f164d5-55de8068de-80221429) This is about politicians putting the lives of citizens at risk for political gain. No one, including the president and republicans in Wisconsin should be allowed to do that. Please share this. It is time for citizens to stand up and say, “I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!

We’re Number One! Brought to You by Trump and His Supporters Everywhere! The United States has the worst statistics when it comes to the coronavirus. We have more cases, more deaths and curves that just keep going up. No other country comes close to the insanity that is the American response to the pandemic. And that is just one gift that Trump supports have placed in your Easter basket this year. https://www.dr-smith.info/were-number-one-brought-to-you-by-trump-and-his-supporters-everywhere/

In the category of “why can’t Trump and Republicans speak in whole sentences?” GOP Lawmaker is First to Call for Dr. Tony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx to Step Down. https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/04/breaking-gop-lawmaker-first-call-dr-tony-fauci-dr-deborah-birx-step-audio/ “The Arizona Republican had this to say about Dr. Fauci,

“He has said last week in one of the meetings I was on a conference call with that he has not taken into account societal, economic or social concert impact to any of his policies. And at the same time that I think that we are doing things that are right we are also doing things that are not right. In the sense that you got 17 million new people that are unemployed today based on Fauci’s policies.”

Rep. Andy Biggs is currently the head of the House Freedom Caucus.

Answer: because they are that stupid!

Freedom of Speech – I Don’t Think So! How can you claim freedom of speech when nobody is hearing what you are saying? What is freedom of speech worth when the only place you can really practice it is in public places? What does freedom of speech really mean in a society sharply divided and where tribal taboos proscribe what the faithful can say and demonize what the others are saying? And, given all of that, what is the First Amendment about except to prohibit the federal government from engaging in societal oppression? A prohibition that I would argue has been ignored since the adoption of the Amendment. https://www.dr-smith.info/freedom-of-speech-i-dont-think-so/

Cabin Doors and Political Insanity: There is an old Zen saying, “If you understand, things are just as they are. If you don’t understand, things are just as they are”. It seems to me that the challenge that humanity is facing is whether people’s addiction to their virtual world is so strong that they will continue the debate over the color of the cabin doors all the way down to the bottom of the ocean. https://www.dr-smith.info/cabin-doors-and-political-insanity/

The New Normal We Made for Ourselves: Futurist have mostly focused on avarice, governmental excesses, war, nuclear bombs and aliens when they wrote about the threats to humanity. Big things. Maybe it is the smallest of things – too small to even be thought of as living – that is our greatest challenge and most lethal adversary. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-new-normal-we-made-for-ourselves/

The New Normal and The Dinosaurs: If you listen to the pundits, we are on the road to flattening the curve and returning to normal. Maybe it will be in the fall, but Americans will be back to normal – going to ball games, having picnics, attending concerts, wandering through museums and standing in unreasonably long lines just to exercise their right to vote. I enjoy a visit to Never-Never Land as much at the next, but this is getting on my nerves. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-new-normal-and-the-dinosaurs/

Do you want to learn why Wall Street is the enemy of Main Street and the American people? Read this: https://a.msn.com/r/2/BB12o0Ak People are losing jobs by the millions, small businesses are going belly up or getting ready to, a pandemic is ravaging the country, the Chair of the Federal Reserve is telling us that the economy is deteriorating with alarming speed and the markets are up sharply. Investors love your pain – it means profit for them.

Sadness for The End of Things: The American Revolution of 1776 has played out. Colonists will be turning in their grave. The result of their sacrifice will be a government worse than the one they rebelled against. https://www.dr-smith.info/sadness-for-the-end-of-things/

What the Hey Is Going On? April 6, 2020: You’re sick and feeling that your life is in danger? Maybe you’re infected with the virus Who would you rather turn to – the nation’s top infectious disease expert of a White House trade official? https://www.dr-smith.info/what-the-hey-is-going-on-april-6-2020/

Take Off the Gloves, Please! Every candidate for President promises to be the President of all the people. Trump is the first President who promises to be the President of Trump, only Trump and Trump forever. Nothing is more important to him than winning reelection. https://www.dr-smith.info/take-off-the-gloves-please/

Typical Trump: Every Trump undertaking eventually ends in failure. Sooner or later the tracks in the snow overwhelm the self-promoting propaganda. And, as a serial loser, Trump knows how to make an exit after other people have lost everything and he is on to his next con. But this time there is a hitch. https://www.dr-smith.info/typical-trump/

The Rule of Law Is Only Real If The Law Rules: There is no greater challenge for the next administration than restoring the rule of law and the people’s faith in it. Sure, the economy, environment, inequality, healthcare, the massive federal deficit and many more areas need attention. But the rule of law is so fundamental to Madisonian Republicanism that, without it, everything else falls.https://www.dr-smith.info/the-rule-of-law-is-only-real-if-the-law-rules/

Politicians Ronald Reagan (R) and Richard Nixon campaigning. (Photo by Dirck Halstead/The LIFE Images Collection via Getty Images/Getty Images)

How Republicans Are Proving Reagan Right and Destroying Madison’s Republic In The Process: The enemy of American Democracy is a party that is dedicated to destroying that democracy. The enemy is a group of greedy and ideologically self-serving individuals whose only loyalty is to themselves. The enemy of majority rule are those who would overturn it to their own advantage. The enemy of American Democracy is the Republican Party! https://www.dr-smith.info/how-republicans-are-proving-reagan-right-and-destroying-madisons-republic-in-the-process/

Strict Constructionists and Citizens United: As a political and social theorist, I often come in contact with self-proclaimed “strict constructionists”. Their mantra is, “the constitution is that it says and what the Founders intended it to mean.” Conversations often take a weird turn when we begin discussing a particular Supreme Court decision. https://www.dr-smith.info/strict-constructionists-and-citizens-united/

Nations of Pigs: The Trump administration is the realization of Goebbels’ vision. Without the messy necessity of war, a substantial percentage of Americans have become addicted to a constant diet of manufactured news and simplistic, intellectual trash. https://www.dr-smith.info/nations-of-pigs/

The Ugliest Fact Of American Politics: It is said that the best revenge is one that is self-inflicted on the victim. If you can manipulate your enemy into committing suicide, you will have committed the perfect murder. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-ugliest-fact-of-american-politics/

The Competence Question: Right the ship during the storm and then we can focus on our differences. For now, it is all-hands-on deck to save it. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-competence-question/

The Death of a Republic: The tragedy of America during the early decades of the 21st century is that the center is not holding. As Americans rush to their tribal corners, they are abandoning the vision that the Founders had when they established the Republic. As the country descends farther into political chaos, the sense of being an American is sacrificed to political extremism. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-death-of-a-republic/

Co-Founder Of Students For Trump Is A Confessed Felon: The man pretending to be a supporter of the man pretending to be a human being got caught pretending to be a lawyer. https://www.dr-smith.info/co-founder-of-students-for-trump-is-a-confessed-felon/

The Swamp People: Republicans are the Swamp People! Creatures from the Black Lagoon. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-new-swamp-people/

This Is What Lawyers Do … and why they should not be trusted as politicians: https://www.dr-smith.info/this-is-what-lawyers-do/ Republican and Democratic lawyer/politicians – lawticians – have been trained to serve those who pay them. So, it should come as no surprise that lawticians get elected determined to serve donors and lobbyists.

The Sad Truth For Senate Republicans: https://www.dr-smith.info/the-sad-truth-for-senate-republicans/ By a single vote, Republican Senators will change forever the nature of American government and governance. Citizens will become subjects of an unaccountable executive – the very nightmare that the Founders feared, and the revolutionary war was fought to overcome. It will have come full circle. Americans will serve under a far more powerful king than George III.

As The Saying Goes “When You Lie Down With Dogs … https://www.dr-smith.info/as-the-saying-goes-when-you-lie-down-with-dogs/ McConnell is finding out that he is small ball and that sacrificing him, and control of the Senate, is worth the gain of defending Trump. And Trump will learn that he is only a useful idiot. When Putin is finished with all of them, the files will come out. They must. It’s the only way Vlad can demonstrate power lethal to his next targets.

Alan Dershowitz Is George Orwell’s Nightmare Become Real: https://www.dr-smith.info/alan-dershowitz-is-george-orwells-nightmare-become-real/ Senate Republicans are standing ready to ratify the Dershowitz vision of American governance. The big question is, “Are American citizens standing by to ratify that vision or defend their Republic?”

The Corruption of The National Archives: A partisan, political agency remakes historical documents into propaganda that hides criticism of their favorites and highlight the sins of their adversaries. And that is exactly what the National Archives did. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-corruption-of-the-national-archives/

The Unmasking Of Susan Collins – This Is What A Trump Republican Looks Like https://www.dr-smith.info/the-unmasking-of-susan-collins-this-is-what-a-trump-republican-looks-like/ The Senate trial will accomplish many things but one of the most important is that it will unmask just how uniformly disgusting Republicans are as human beings.

All The News That’s Fit To … Why Woodward And Bernstein Had To Be Replaced With Sean Hannity And Chuck Todd: https://www.dr-smith.info/all-the-news-thats-fit-to-why-woodward-and-bernstein-had-to-be-replaced-with-sean-hannity-and-chuck-todd/

You don’t have to be a billionaire to follow the lead of Bloomberg and Steyer – you just must develop a spine and go after Trump directly. Warren attacks Mayor Pete and gives Trump a pass? Sanders attacks Biden and ignores the fact that anything Joe has done pales against that Trump is doing? It’s time these people removed their heads from a posterior orifice and got into the real game – defeating Trump! https://www.dr-smith.info/how-lame-do-you-have-to-be/

How Lame Do You Have To Be …: Of all the people who are taking on Trump, only the two billionaires seem to understand how it needs to be done and are ready to do it. Both Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer are advancing three arguments. https://www.dr-smith.info/how-lame-do-you-have-to-be/

The Ticking Time Bomb: In politics, there is a simple recipe for disaster. First you build a bomb. Arm it. Strap it to your chest. Then launch your re-election campaign. The talking heads tend to look only as far as the impeachment trial in the Senate. Most Republican senators who are up for reelection in 2020 seem to be doing the same. The rationale, once the trial is behind them, they will be free to engage in local politics. But that may be Pollyannaish to an extreme. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-ticking-time-bomb/

A Suggested Roadmap for The Lincoln Project: As a longtime supporter of the idea that Republicans need to stand up and oppose what Trump and his followers have done to the party of Lincoln, I applaud the launch of the Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln). I offer the following observations in the hope that they will increase the contribution that this effort can make toward saving the Republic. https://www.dr-smith.info/a-suggested-roadmap/

Is This the Kind of Country You Want To Live In? By the end of the Senate trial, we may find ourselves living in a country we no longer recognize. King Donald will rule over us all – unchecked and with no accountability to anyone but Vladimir Putin. The rule of law will have been consigned to the dustbin in exchange for primitive political gain. And Americans will no longer be citizens in their own country but subjects of an out of control sociopath. Every American needs to ask themselves, “Is this the kind of country I want to live in?” https://www.dr-smith.info/is-this-the-kind-of-country-you-want-to-live-in/

Trump: The Criminal Who Confesses By Accusing – Trump’s playbook on display! When you are committing crimes, accuse the other side of doing exactly what you are doing. https://www.dr-smith.info/trump-the-criminal-who-confesses-by-accusing/

If You Support Trump, It Means …: Let’s listen to what it means to be a Trump supporter as told by Trump supporters in their own words. https://www.dr-smith.info/if-you-support-trump-it-means/

MSNBC anchor Nicolle Wallace showed us how it’s done when she cut the “president” off on Deadline in the middle of his news conference in which he repeatedly lied in order to defend himself against his latest scandal. Wallace wasn’t having any of it as she said, “We hate to do this, but the president isn’t telling the truth … what Trump appears to be trying to do is to turn his own impeachment into a big deflection.” https://politicaltribune.org/msnbc-anchor-cut-away-from-trumps-news-conference-we-hate-to-do-this-but-the-president-isnt-telling-the-truth-2/

Here’s an idea for Uncle Joe: “I will testify in the Senate trial as long as Donald Trump does. Same rules for both of us. All documents on the table. What do you say Donald? Do you have the stones or are you a coward? I have nothing to hide, do you? Personally, I don’t think you have it in you!” https://www.dr-smith.info/trump-the-criminal-who-confesses-by-accusing/

Tulsi Gabbard Drops a Big Hint About Running a Spoiler Campaign for Trump – if you think that the only Russian assets are Republicans, read this article and wake the hell up! http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/10/tulsi-gabbard-third-party-campaign-russia-spoiler.html When did it become okay for an elected official to aggressively represent the interests of a foreign adversary over that of the US?

This Is the Real Bill Barr: The man who is supposed to make sure that the laws are faithfully executed is making sure that his god’s law supplants the laws made by congress and interpreted by the courts. He sees Trump as a combination Pope and Führer – the incarnation of god as man. When you look at what Trump does, remind yourself that this is Barr’s image of god come to earth. Don’t believe me. Here are some Barr room quotes: https://www.dr-smith.info/this-is-the-real-bill-barr/

This Is What It Means to Be A Trump Republican: It’s very clear what it means to be a Trump Republican. And Republican Senators will most certainly reaffirm that they are Trump Republicans by voting against a clear case of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The American people, watching this demonstration of what it means to be a Trump Republican, will have to decide if this is who they are and if this is what they want their country to stand for. Will the US be the shining city on the hill and the last best hope for humanity or a faint replica of Putin’s Russia? A Federal Republic ruled by the people or just another one ruled by an oligarchy? The most powerful country on the globe or a controlled satellite of a third world country? Nothing short of the soul of the country hangs in the balance. https://www.dr-smith.info/this-is-what-it-means-to-be-a-trump-republican/

If It Walks Like A Duck, Quacks Like A Duck… It’s Definitely A Dog! If we are not careful, George Orwell’s dark vision will come to pass. Big brother will win and Doublethink will dominate us all. https://www.dr-smith.info/if-it-walks-like-a-duck-quacks-like-a-duck-its-definitely-a-dog/

Trump: Giuliani Wants to Testify About Ukraine Trip: https://www.dr-smith.info/trump-giuliani-wants-to-testify-about-ukraine-trip/ And here’s how the story ends: “Poor Rudy, he looks so pathetic with those bus tire tracks running across his back!”

The True Internationalists – Trump and The Republicans: A free press is supposed to inform Americans – give them the information that they need to arrive at informed opinions and to act in their own interests and the interest of the country. But these talking heads are not Woodward and Bernstein. Hell, they aren’t even Laurel and Hardy. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-true-internationalists-trump-and-the-republicans/

The Vote That Republican Senators Do Not Want to Cast: Republican Senators have to be willing to sacrifice the constitutional prerogatives of Congress under Article I of the Constitution in order to vote against an Article of Impeachment based upon obstruction of Congress. If they decide to do so, they will be overturning Madison’s Republic in a single vote. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-vote-that-republican-senators-do-not-want-to-cast/

You’re Going to Get Sessioned Billy! Oh, I know what you are thinking. “I am his loyal soldier and he will never turn on me. Trump needs me to protect him.” Billy, Billy, Billy! Remember all those who went before. Not just your predecessor who was Trumps first faithful supporter and ardent advocate. Not just his personal attorney or the litany of those under indictment or in jail. It’s everybody except Trump himself. The Don must survive in a crime family even if it means sacrificing loyal soldiers. https://www.dr-smith.info/youre-going-to-get-sessioned-billy/

Meet Your Pope & Führer Compliments of Bill Barr: Hitler’s Propaganda Minister said, “Let me control the media and I will turn any nation into a herd of pigs”. Paul Joseph Goebbels would feel totally vindicated by the success that Trump and the GOP have had in convincing a substantial part of the American citizenry that up is down, right is wrong, truth is fiction and fiction is truth. The resulting herd of pigs poses the greatest threat to American exceptionalism since the founding of the Republic. https://www.dr-smith.info/meet-your-pope-fuhrer-compliments-of-bill-barr/

Panem Et Circenses: In 1776 the colonists set on a course to free themselves and future generations from the tyranny of wealthy aristocracies and political elites. If the United States is going to remain the last, best hope of mankind, its citizens need to rediscover the common purpose that lead those colonists to stand against the most powerful country on the globe and say, “We the people rule here.” https://www.dr-smith.info/panem-et-circenses/

More Americans are dying young https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/longevity/472127-more-americans-are-dying-young

For the last three years, life expectancy in the United States, the richest nation on Earth, has declined. This decline in life expectancy is being driven by rising death rates in young and middle-aged Americans, according to a new study. These troubling trends place the U.S. in stark contrast to every other developed nation in the world, Greatest country in the world? For whom?

Putin’s Public Army vs. The Pastels: Four birds with one stone! First, it wasn’t the Russians. Second, the Ukrainians were not successful. Third, our man in DC saved the country and destroyed the conspiracy by winning the election and becoming president. And finally, Russia is the king maker in the US with an overt army that can be deployed against its enemies. https://www.dr-smith.info/putins-public-army-vs-the-pastels/

The latest from the orange buffoon. “Trump says he will ‘strongly consider’ testifying in impeachment probe” https://www.cnbc.com/…/trump-says-he-will-strongly-consider… “President Trump suggests he would be open to testifying publicly or in writing as part of the House impeachment inquiry.” Now, everybody who believes that – I have a great deal on a bridge to Brooklyn that you might be interested in. Cowards don’t testify. You want to see a strong, confident and professional heros, look to Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman or Ambassador Yovanovitch, William B. Taylor, Jr., a decorated Vietnam War veteran and the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent, who oversees Eastern European and Eurasian affairs or any of the others who have shown courage an integrity in stepping forth and telling the truth. General Bonespur is a coward and fraud. He is hiding behind executive privilege while complaining that first-hand witnesses are not coming forth to testify. Trump is the reason that they are not coming forth. Like an angry child, he calls people names, runs his bluffs and then turns into the coward we all know he is. Trump won’t testify – he doesn’t have the guts!!!!!

Why Don’t They Ever Learn: Lindsey Graham will continue to make a complete ass of himself. Rudy will do his best to out do Lindsey in destroying his legacy. America’s mayor will go down in history as America’s embarrassment. A mass of Judas Iscariots will clutch their pieces of silver and blink into the harsh light of being unmasked for the evil they are. After leaving office, Trump will be eviscerated, and his family will become professional defendants in an unending series of legal battles. The Trump administration, and all its corruption, will be held up as the new high-water mark of corruption. The name Trump will be synonymous with traitor. So, why do they continue to think that they can get away with it? What is the point of running madly down a road that leads to disgrace? Where is the reason of putting short term gains over long term losses when the losses are clearly going to be so great? https://www.dr-smith.info/why-dont-they-ever-learn/

Rudy Under The Bus: The arrangements are being made. The news is being spread around. Giuliani Associates urged Ukraine’s prior president to open investigations of Hunter Biden and Ukraine interference in the 2016 election. Can you hear the bus revving up Rudy? https://www.dr-smith.info/rudy-under-the-bus/

The Bell Tolls For Thee: The senior crew on the SS Trump is asking you to believe that it was the deck-cleaning crew who did their job incorrectly, acting against the express wishes of the captain, that is the true cause the encounter with the iceberg. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-bell-tolls-for-thee/

Donald Trump Finally Explained: Truth is I didn’t think that the Democrats had it in them. Mark Twain famously said that “I am not a member of any organized political party; I’m a Democrat.” And, like most political and social theorists, I agreed. But this plan is breathtaking in its scope and vision. The execution of the execution is flawless. Only now, when it is far to late, is what is about to happen to them starting to dawn on Republicans. . The lookout on the bow has been screaming “iceberg” for months and now, as their Titanic rushes towards the inevitable encounter, they stand dazed and confused. As recent election results clearly show, Trump is taking down the Republican Party and their right-wing extremists with it. The Manchurian candidate will play his role. https://www.dr-smith.info/donald-trump-finally-explained/

The ugly world of the information-light voters: It is sometimes difficult to separate out the opinions of a talking head from the sources he is referencing. In a recent op-ed piece in the Washington Post, Hugh Hewitt suggested that “If Republicans don’t stand by Trump, they risk losing their base forever.” Is Hewitt opining that Republicans need to remain solid members of Trump’s crime family in order to retain their base or that the Republican base is insisting that the party stay dedicated to Trump’s vision of an imperial presidency and his attempt to remake Madison’s Republic into something more akin to Putin’s Russia? Either way, he seems to be arguing that the Republican party needs to remain on its counter-revolutionary course with the principal objective of delivering the government of the United States into the hands of wealthy, global oligarchs. Hewitt is charting a course that will result in the end of American exceptionalism and relegate the country to being just another one ruled by the wealthy and corporate interests and the end of a government of the people, by the people, for the people forever. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-fantasy-world-of-the-information-light-voters/

News You Can Muse – Trump’s Evaporating Hold on the Republican Party: The rule is clear. If a Don is to keep control over his crime family, he must maintain a level of fear that overrides his soldiers’ sense of morality, fair play and allegiance to any other power. Once some of his soldiers become fearful of some other thing, such as losing their power, position or prerogatives, they begin to waver in their loyalty. And absolute loyalty is the principal requirement for the Don’s remaining in control. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-trumps-evaporating-hold-on-the-republican-party/

The Sorrow of Abraham Lincoln: People like Donald Trump, Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell are depending on your lack of either knowledge or interest in American history. In this Twitter and Facebook age – when truth is what agrees with your prejudice – (which means, by the way, to pre-judge a matter without inquiring into the facts) – the great swindle that they are perpetrating depends on your ignorance of road that prior generations of your country men and women have traveled. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-sorrow-of-abraham-lincoln/

If You Are a Republican – Yours is the Religion of Hatred and Trump’s Your God: Trump supporters attending an event sponsored by American Priority, the true face of the Republican party, gathered at their Don’s Doral golf resort in Miami, Florida to engage in the celebration of hatred and hope for violence that has come to define what it means to be a real-Republican. Part of the entertainment was a video showing Donald Trump slaughtering journalists and political activists who have been critical of him. The video contained logos for Buzzfeed, the Washington Post, Black Lives Matter and Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. It also included the faces of some individual people with whom Mr Trump has feuded, including Mr Obama, Mitt Romney, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. The video also included Trump’s 2020 reelection logo. The message is clear. This is the Republican party under Trump and even Republicans are to be slaughtered is they criticize the Don! And, front and center, was Donald Trump gleefully committing murder in the “church of Fake News”. https://www.dr-smith.info/if-you-are-a-republican-yours-is-the-religion-of-hatred-and-trumps-is-your-god/

Rudy Giuliani needs to keep singing but in a different key!

Well, to be fair, that’s not what Team Trump is saying. Their version is “Rudy Giuliani needs to stop talking.” Many of Trump’s senior advisers have been begging their Don to muzzle Giuliani. Apparently, the tsunami of inconsistent, combative and occasionally cringe-inducing media interviews over the last few weeks has been providing too accurate a description of the corruption and self-dealing that has come to define the Trump administration.

But it’s too late – the horse’s ass has already left the barn. The arrest of two of Giuliani’s close associates and the fact that he is now under investigation has made it almost certain that Trump’s fixer will turn against him just like Michael Cohen did. The process of being thrown under the bus by Trump has already started. The only road to redemption for Rudy is to keep talking! To shut down the pro-Trump crap, get down on his knees and beg for forgiveness from his fellow citizens and follow Michael Cohen’s example. It’s all going to come out and Giuliani’s only choice is to be the teller or the told about. So, Rudy – keep singing but change your tune. (https://www.politico.com/news/2019/10/12/rudy-giuliani-trump-interviews-044791 )

‘Eye-Popping’: Analysis Shows Top 1% Gained $21 Trillion in Wealth Since 1989 While Bottom Half Lost $900 Billion. You think that companies like Amazon and Apple are your friends? You think that the CEOs of these companies really care about you? It’s time that you woke up to the fact that consumerism is a trap and that the 1% are your enemies. They gained $21 Trillion in wealth while you and yours lost your share of $900 Billion. How’s capitalism working for you Flunky?

Matt Bruenig, founder of the left-wing think tank People’s Policy Project, broke down the Federal Reserve’s newly released “Distributive Financial Accounts” data series and found that, overall, “the top one percent owns nearly $30 trillion of assets while the bottom half owns less than nothing, meaning they have more debts than they have assets.

‘Eye-Popping’: Analysis Shows Top 1% Gained $21 Trillion in Wealth Since 1989 While Bottom Half Lost $900 Billion. “The top one percent owns nearly $30 trillion of assets while the bottom half owns less than nothing.”

The growth of wealth inequality over the past 30 years, Bruenig found, is “eye-popping.” “Between 1989 and 2018, the top one percent increased its total net worth by $21 trillion,” Bruenig wrote. “The bottom 50 percent actually saw its net worth decrease by $900 billion over the same period.”

“We have the worst inequality in this country since the 1920s,” wrote Jayapal, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. “Three wealthiest people in America have as much wealth as the bottom 50 percent.”

“https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/06/14/eye-popping-analysis-shows-top-1-gained-21-trillion-wealth-1989-while-bottom-half

Lindsey Graham Vows To Have Whistle-Blowers Testify Publicly If Democrats Impeach Trump: The citizens of South Carolina should be proud that they have such a patriot representing them in the US Senate. Any South Carolinian who votes for him, will be admitting that they want to live under King Trump with Jester Lindsey at his feet and on a tight leash. Of course, they won’t have a Senator any longer – just a pet poodle that does his master’s bidding. But maybe that will be okay with south Carolinians. Graham will be a stain on the State long after Trump is gone and headed for jail. https://www.dr-smith.info/lindsey-graham-vows-to-have-whistle-blowers-testify-publicly-if-democrats-impeach-trump/

News You Can Muse – Trump’s Greatest Gamble: The greatest risk that Trump faces is an ego-driven, bloody-mindedness that results in a massive defeat in 2020, an expansion of the Democratic majority in the House, a turn of the Senate and a population that has finally comes to understand that he is a grifter who scammed them. Even the most diehard Republican partisan must recognize the possibility of such an outcome but, the morning after the election, Trump will face the music and it will not be a lullaby. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-trumps-greatest-gamble/

News You Can Muse – The Sunday Morning Puppet Show: Now, with credible grounds for impeachment on the table, Trump’s rising desperation is the principal risk to the nation. With Nixon, Republicans finally realized that they had to put the interests of the country above their loyalty. And they did that in part because they realized that the risks were rapidly escalating. As with Watergate, the future of the country hangs not so much with Democrats but with Republicans. Not so much with Trump’s adversaries but with his supporters. The puppets need to cut the strings and shut down this dance macabre. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-the-sunday-morning-puppet-show/

News You Can Muse – Republicans’ America In Sharp Focus: If Trump succeeds in his coop, the United States as it has existed for well over 200 years will cease to exist. The march towards fascism will have taken a giant step forward. And, once the Republic is lost to Oligopoly and Fascism, the last, best hope for humanity will be extinguished and American exceptionalism will fade into the history books. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-republicans-america-in-sharp-focus/

News You Can Muse – The Delusions Of Donald Trump: The most amazing thing about their dedication Trump is that they continue even when the true facts of his personal history are clear for all to see. In his whole life, Trump has never been loyal to anyone. Sooner or later, he always throws them under the bus. He has a history of reneging on contractual obligations, stiffing small businesses, declaring bankruptcy and losing other people’s money. He was so bad at business that he ended up marketing his name for other people’s projects because, as a recent book details, everything that Trump touches dies. And these supporters think that they will be treated differently? That is the true meaning of delusion. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-the-delusions-of-donald-trump/

News You Can Muse – The Republican Pattern Of Deception And Distraction Is Failing: The American public is catching on. The members of Trump’s crime family give away their own criminal agenda by accusing the Democrats of the crimes that Republicans are committing. It’s what’s called in poker a “tell”. And I am sure that those serious about the rule of law and accountability have caught onto the pattern. Just look at Republican behavior in the areas that they are accusing Democrats of criminal activity. https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-the-republican-pattern-of-deception-and-distraction-is-failing/

The Ugliness That Is American Conservatism: This is what conservatism in the US has become. It’s not about small government of fiscal responsibility, It’s not about Christian values, family or patriotism. It’s about slandering those who have a different vision – believe differently – worship differently. Conservatism in the US had become Fascism and is constantly providing echoes of Franco, Mussolini and Hitler. It’s time that Americans stood against these mob tactics and bullies and returned to the noble ideals of the founder of the republican party – Abraham Lincoln. And it’s time that Republicans returned their party to the vision of one of the greatest American who ever lived. https://www.dr-smith.info/the-ugliness-that-is-american-conservatism/

News You Can Muse – Ring Kissers, Limp Wrists And The NRA Wins Again! This week has brought three very depressing developments. Trump has been on a mission to absorb every part of the Federal Government into his crime family and his in the verge of a major capture, Americans have witnessed a display of lack of resolve by the Democrats and a there was a major victory for the NRA and the Leader of the Senate Majority. You may want to keep a barf bag hand yas you read on! https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-ring-kissers-limp-wrists-and-the-nra-wins-again/

Lewandowski Displays Trump’s True Colors: I am reminded of something that Mark Felt said – Deepthroat in All the President’s Men – “Forget the myths the media’s created about the White House. The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.” Even assuming that Lewandowski is not the brightest bulb on Trump’s tree -and that seems a safe assumption – if this is the opening act of the impeachment process, make lots of popcorn and get ready for a farce. https://www.dr-smith.info/lewandowski-displays-trumps-true-colors/

News You Can Muse – The Real Donald Trump: “Where’s my favorite dictator?”: Inside a room of the ornately decorated Hotel du Palais during last month’s Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, France, President Trump awaited a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi. Mr. Trump looked over a gathering of American and Egyptian officials and called out in a loud voice: “Where’s my favorite dictator?” https://www.dr-smith.info/news-you-can-muse-the-real-donald-trump/

The President’s Personal Taxpayer Funded Law Firm – DOJ: One of the first objectives of an authoritarian movement is to gain control of the resources provided by citizens – the taxes they pay and the credit they make available – and use them to turn the government against their interests. The history of Fascism if rife with examples. Hitler, Mussolini and Franco all became dictators using the national resources of their countrie