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The Chickens Make More Sense Than the President

Joyce Vance Oct 22

Today, the Attorney General of the United States, Todd Blanche, declined to rule out interfering with the outcome of the midterm elections. “It is never our intention to improperly interfere with elections,” Blanche said, before declining to rule out doing it.

Blanche thinks he works for the president, just like he did when he was his criminal defense lawyer. The AG is a member of the President’s cabinet and works in the executive branch. But Blanche seems to have lost sight of the fact that his obligation to the people and his oath is to the Constitution. He seems to have forgotten that he works for people who didn’t vote for Donald Trump, as well as those who did. And he certainly has no role to play in certifying elections—that’s up to the states.

Blanche is drunk on Trump’s Kool-Aid. His job is public service. Instead, he’s servicing the whims of a president who shows increasing signs of decline, like his outburst earlier this week at Andrew Feinberg, the Independent’s White House correspondent. Feinberg had asked a question about the White House’s ironic new anti-fraud initiative. “I don’t know who the hell you are, but you better be careful,” Trump said to Feinberg shortly after he answered his question.

And so it goes, as we head into the midterms. But on a personal note, in my house, we’re celebrating our second son’s birthday tonight, but low-key, at home with pizza, because we’re all under the weather. So I’m going to take some time tonight to celebrate and then get a couple of extra hours of sleep. First, there are a few developments I want to make sure are on your radar screen. Then, I’ll leave you with some chicken pictures, because they’ve been in rare form today. They certainly make more sense to me than our president.

• The Washington Sun is reporting that State Department foreign service officers who are up for promotion are being asked whether they voted for Donald Trump and told they aren’t eligible for promotion if they didn’t. People seeking promotions were told that their “campaign donation history would be examined and any donation to Democrats would be disqualifying.” Marco Rubio should have resigned in protest instead of permitting this to happen on his watch.

• We’ve been discussing the $10 billion (ridiculous) defamation case Donald Trump filed against the BBC, because Ivanka, Don Jr., and Eric have been ducking subpoenas to testify. Trump announced last week that he would not be sitting for his scheduled deposition because he was busy. So the BBC took him to court, and today, a magistrate judge ordered Trump to sit for his deposition by December 11 or face dismissal of his case. I’ve got dismissal on my bingo card. Trump filed this lawsuit knowing he would be deposed, and given the amount of time he spends on the golf course and on social media, it’s hard to maintain he can’t find a couple of hours for a deposition.

• ProPublica is reporting that their data analysis “shows that delays resulting from the USPS' cost-cutting measures have endangered the validity of ballots mailed in rural areas. Counties that voted for Trump in 2024 have been most affected.” Every eligible American, regardless of who they vote for, should have the right to vote and have their vote counted. Who you vote for is a political decision; the right to vote itself is one of the fundamentals of American democracy. That this administration is so incompetent that it ends up burdening its own voters, along with Democrats, is just another reason we need to be done with Trump and MAGA.

• A federal judge has told DHS to discontinue its practice of sending out armed, uniformed agents to target certain homes, knock doors, and ask residents about their immigration status and whether they're registered to vote. It’s reminiscent of intimidation of Black voters during the Civil Rights era. I wrote about that here (strongly encourage you to read if you missed it). UVA Professor Larry Sabato had this take on it. Whatever historical antecedent you prefer, this is nothing but flagrant voter intimidation by a desperate administration.

• New Mexico’s state AG, Raúl Torrez, filed a civil case in federal court against Jeffrey Epstein's longtime lawyer Darren Indyke and his accountant Richard Kahn. The lawsuit alleges that they facilitated the financing and helped to conceal Epstein’s sex trafficking operation. Torrez has been trying to get DOJ to turn over undisclosed parts of the Epstein Files to him so he can pursue his criminal case. The allegations involve Epstein’s Zorro Ranch in Santa Fe County, New Mexico. Torrez is asking the court to block payments from the estate to the two while the litigation proceeds.

• Writing that “lower federal courts” should not change election rules too close to Election Day, the Supreme Court held New Hampshire could continue to refuse to accept student IDs as evidence of identity, citing Purcell.

If you’ve got a little extra time tonight, I joined my friend Harry Litman for a special edition of the Talking Feds Podcast. We covered election threats and preparedness. We’ll stay focused on this topic—there is a lot of preparation going on behind the scenes, and although there is a lot to be concerned about with Donald Trump’s unwillingness to accept the will of the voters, lawyers and activists across the country are prepared to protect our elections. I want each of you to be able to vote without fear and reassure those around you. Our greatest election security will happen through massive turnout of voters, which is exactly why the administration is intent on intimidating people and trying to convince them to stay home.

The chickens, as I mentioned before, have had quite the day. I pulled out some huge late-season basil plants, and they’ve made a feast of it. They are good chickens. They do not call anyone “low IQ” or “Piggy.” They do not ban the press from covering them, in fact, they eat right out of my hands. They welcome anyone who comes to visit, including Tofu, our large Maine Coon Cat who seems to wish he could be one of them, but is not. They are a silly and gentle reminder that life is good, and that we will get through these challenging times too.

Tomorrow, I’ll be back with a special “Five Questions” covering the importance of state Supreme Court races. And we’ll have lots to catch up on this weekend. Thanks for being here with me at Civil Discourse. Your support and your paid subscriptions make the newsletter possible, and I’m very grateful for the community of pro-democracy people that we’ve built.

We’re in this together,

Joyce