LOTS OF POSTS IGNORED BY BLOGGER.....

OR REMOVED ON THEIR WHIM!

ALL POSTS ARE AVAILABLE ON

MIDDLEBORO REVIEW AND SO ON

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE TRUTH OR FACTS!

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE FUND RAISERS AND DELETES

POSTS THAT INCLUDE FUNDRAISING THAT 'VIOLATES THEIR

UNDEFINED COMMUNITY STANDARDS SO ALL 'FUND RAISING'

IS DELETED - CONTRIBUTE AS YOU ARE INCLINED TO SUPPORT

IMPORTANT ISSUES! THESE ARE NOT SOLICITATIONS

Why subscribe? Silence is not an option. Take part in the community so we can drive change together.

---

Showing Trump Who “We the People” Are

While Donald Trump serves himself, his family and his cronies, Americans can soon make clear that “we” are more powerful than “he”

Steven Beschloss Oct 26

At a rally in Detroit on Saturday, former President Barack Obama joined hands with Abdul El-Sayed and Jocelyn Benson, Michigan’s Democratic candidates for Senate and governor, respectively. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/AFP via Getty Images)

We’re making hundreds and hundreds of billions, trillions, of dollars…we’re making money like this country has never made before. [People will say} ‘he’s bragging about making all that money while people are suffering at the pump.’…I don’t give a damn. I’m going to say it: We’re making a fricking fortune. —Donald Trump on Saturday

In just eight days, the American people will make clear which party and which candidates should lead us into the future. America is on a precipice, and the decision voters make will decide whether we will pull back from the edge and toward something better or accelerate over the cliff.

The binary choice is not particularly nuanced. Stick with the Republicans who have chosen cruelty and chaos, corruption and incompetence. Or vote in Democrats—the only remaining American party—who recognize the crisis facing our democracy, can hold the criminals accountable and are motivated to pursue a more equitable and affordable future.

Let’s rewind to underscore what’s at stake. The preamble to the U.S. Constitution, signed in 1787, begins with “We the People” followed by a succinct mission statement:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Those words, “We the People,” and the question of who “We” includes have been at the center of our nation’s complicated history, including America’s bloodiest war. When the Civil War launched on April 12, 1861, Black people were still defined as property in many states.

Slaveholders took strength from the infamous Dred Scott decision of 1857, which asserted that Black people of African ancestry possessed “no rights which the white man was bound to respect” and can claim “none of the rights and privileges which [the Constitution] provides for and secures to citizens of the United States.”

The great Frederick Douglass’ refutation of this argument, written by Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, dissected who “We the People” referred to in the Constitution’s opening words:

‘We, the people’—not we, the white people—not we, the citizens, or the legal voters—not we, the privileged class, and excluding all other classes but we, the people; not we, the horses and cattle, but we the people—the men and women, the human inhabitants of the United States.

This decision, which former slave Douglass denounced as a “vile and shocking abomination,” was made by the nation’s highest court “while four millions of our fellow countrymen are in chains—while men, women, and children are bought and sold on the auction-block with horses, sheep and swine—while the remorseless slave-whip draws the warm blood of our common humanity.”

Soon, the nation took up arms and more than 600,000 Americans died in a four-year war that contested who counts as “We the People.” This led to constitutional amendments to end slavery (13th) and assert who has the rights of citizenship (14th). It would take until 1919 for Congress to pass the 19th Amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote, that is, to include women in the preamble’s opening words.

Which brings us to today. At a campaign rally for losing GOP Senate candidate Mike Collins, Trump spewed these grotesque words which I quoted above: “We’re making hundreds and hundreds of billions, trillions, of dollars…We’re making money like this country has never made before…We’re making a fricking fortune.”

And who is this “we” to which he refers? “We” is he. “We” is the Trump family. “We” are his billionaire cronies profiting off of the corruption and crime. “We” are the oil and gas executives who gave millions and millions to his campaign with the promise that he would serve their interests once he was re-elected. This is the “we” who Donald J. Trump cares about—always has, always will.

The struggles of ordinary Americans clearly bores him. He keeps telling people—and showing—that he will not act in Americans’ best interest.

And forming a more perfect union? Establishing Justice? Insuring domestic Tranquility? Promoting the general Welfare? Securing the Blessings of Liberty?

These fundamental concerns of our founders, expressed in the prized territory of the Constitution’s preamble? If there’s any chance that Trump ever read it, we can be sure these words bounced right off him, possessed of no meaning to him, simply a distraction from his depraved and bottomless hunger to exploit our country on the ruins of public liberty.

In a matter of days, we can learn that this reality finally sunk in with a tsunami-level of Americans.

As of yesterday evening, more than 28 million Americans had cast their ballots either in person or by mail. This pace is well ahead of the 2022 midterms. And the breakdown by party registration: 45.1 percent Democrat and 30.7 percent Republican. As The Guardian observed, “The party gap is particularly pronounced in North Carolina, Kansas and Iowa—all states that traditionally favor Republicans.”

In eight days, Americans have the chance to say in a loud and resounding voice that enough is enough. This is the moment when Americans can make clear that “We the People” demand respect, demand to be heard, demand to be excluded no more by a man and his party that are singularly focused on serving themselves.

It’s more important than ever to support the survival of our democracy. I remain committed to raising my voice as vividly and fiercely as I can. I hope you’ll consider becoming a paid subscriber for just $50 a year or $5 a month to show your support and enhance your engagement—to share your thoughts in the comments sections and access all content.

                                                                                                                                                                                        

LOTS OF POSTS IGNORED BY BLOGGER.....

OR REMOVED ON THEIR WHIM!

ALL POSTS ARE AVAILABLE ON

MIDDLEBORO REVIEW AND SO ON

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE TRUTH OR FACTS!

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE FUND RAISERS AND DELETES

POSTS THAT INCLUDE FUNDRAISING THAT 'VIOLATES THEIR

UNDEFINED COMMUNITY STANDARDS SO ALL 'FUND RAISING'

IS DELETED - CONTRIBUTE AS YOU ARE INCLINED TO SUPPORT

IMPORTANT ISSUES! THESE ARE NOT SOLICITATIONS

Why subscribe? Silence is not an option. Take part in the community so we can drive change together.

---

Morally Rotten and Unfit to Serve

From Moscow to Ohio, odious Trump henchmen sink to new lows

Steven Beschloss Oct 23

Trump’s special envoy is all smiles for the murderous Vladimir Putin, the man he called a “humanitarian.” (Photo by Gavriil Grigorov/AFP via Getty Images)

If you asked me before this Trump era whether I expected to be writing at length about depravity and moral dissolution, I would have doubted it. Yes, past presidents have made obscene choices that led to profoundly unnecessary mass deaths; look no further than George W. Bush with Iraq and Richard M. Nixon with Vietnam. The immorality of such bloodshed should never be minimized because it was carried out under the framework of war, that is, the legitimation of murder.

But the moral failure also extends deep into everyday life. Today we find ourselves held hostage by a hateful regime whose policies force children to go hungry, poison our air and water, make food unsafe, put the lives and limbs of workers at risk, abuse vulnerable populations and make basic healthcare increasingly unaffordable. Behind every dangerously careless policy are men of doubtful moral character who demonstrate contempt for the struggles of everyday Americans and their responsibility to keep them safe.

The last few days have seen a sickening escalation of depravity and degradation, the kind of moral rot that is rarely so visible and yet seems to be infecting a wider and wider circle. At the center of this circle, of course, is Donald J. Trump, a singularly repulsive individual who’s referenced thousands of times in the Epstein files, is an adjudicated rapist and displays his bottomless capacity for abuse—to members of the press, to the rule of law, to our country and its foundational values—virtually every day. All this on top of his treasonous betrayal of Ukraine by openly allying with Vladimir Putin.

Just this Wednesday he could be found abusing CNN journalist Kaitlan Collins: “You’re a dummy. You’re a low-IQ person, you’re a dummy and you work for CNN.” It’s way past time when one of these access reporters—or a whole group of them—finally say that they will not take his nasty bullying any longer.

But just as Trump tears down his perceived enemies in an effort to shame or destroy them, he often does the same with his sycophants, turning them into the worst and most degraded versions of themselves—perfect to do his bidding. Let me explain.

First is the sniveling obeisance this week of Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff—the real estate guy who’s been transmogrified into a diplomat. You may have heard what he said to Putin—morally repugnant words that call to mind Neville Chamberlain’s kowtowing to Adolf Hitler.

“You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian,” Witkoff said to Putin Wednesday in St. Petersburg. “You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that. I commend you, and I thank you again.”

This to a murderous sociopath whose imperialist fantasies have led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians and Russians, with overall casualties exceeding two million. This to the man responsible for kidnapping and starving tens of thousands of Ukrainian children, assassinating journalists and political rivals, happily escalating missile strikes on civilian targets. Witkoff glorified this sadistic war criminal ostensibly because he permitted the release of Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American school teacher who was living in eastern Ukraine and was taken and tortured by Russia after its invasion in 2022.

How soulless must you be to call a man like Putin a humanitarian? How morally rotten must you be to seek business opportunities for Trump in Moscow while your beloved Kremlin business partner is murdering innocent men, women and children?

That, of course, would also be a question for his crony Jared Kushner as they’ve plumbed for billions in the Middle East while the death toll rises in Trump’s war of choice in Iran.

Then there’s the odious, bottom-feeding Vivek Ramaswamy, who decided to release a video highlighting the mother of Amy Acton, his rival for Ohio governor. This is the mother that Acton has not seen since she was 12 years old, when she was removed from the woman’s custody after experiencing years of rape and sexual abuse from her stepfather. Rather than face justice, he became a fugitive and fled—and Acton’s mother went with him.

It’s a miracle that Acton has overcome that horrific history to become a physician and an accomplished public servant. But never mind that for Ramaswamy, who saw an opportunity to shove a seriously unwell person into a political ad and falsely claim that her daughter lied about her traumatic past.

Here’s how Acton’s younger brother described what Ramaswamy did:

After [their stepfather] was arrested and Amy and I were removed from their custody, our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died. This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core—a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants.

And here’s how candidate Acton responded: “I think it was a terrible thing to do this to someone who is not well, as my birth mother isn’t. I know my opponent will stoop to anything to get ahead.”

It’s been encouraging to see politicians from across the political spectrum condemning the ad, including Ohio’s GOP governor Mike DeWine. But of course Ramaswamy—a Trump-bred candidate—has offered no apology. Instead, he has doubled down, spending some $4 million to keep running it.

Now I’ve got a clearer picture of what “scum of the earth” means. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “scum” as “a slimy film on a solid or gelatinous object” or “a low, vile or worthless person or group of people.”

Surely this repugnant event would be an opportunity for the Donald Trump/Peter Thiel-bred JD Vance to do the right thing? Nope.

This Catholic convert, who wears his religion on his sleeve, has been busy conveying his disgust. But not for the hideous ad or the heinous neglect and abuse that a fellow human suffered as a child. No, Trump’s vice president saw an opportunity to score political points.

“I have to admit that I’m a little bit disgusted when I see Republicans across the country who are whining more about that advertisement than they are about what the congressional Democrats and other Democrats want to do to the United States of America,” Vance said at an Ohio campaign rally Wednesday.

It should be no surprise that Vance’s boss Trump also defended the ad, even believing it strengthens Ramaswamy’s case for governor. This is what depravity looks like.

In ten days, Ohioans and all Americans have the opportunity to say what they think about these morally rotten men (and others such as Pete Hegseth, Stephen Miller and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.). I hope voters take Trump’s advice and vote like he’s on the ballot. His poisonous impact is not hard to find among the Republican candidates.

We must not let these depraved Trump loyalists continue to degrade our nation without consequence. Every day they are free to pursue their moral corruption is another day we must spend cleansing the stain they’ve made. We have much work ahead of us.

                                                                                                                                                                                 

LOTS OF POSTS IGNORED BY BLOGGER.....

OR REMOVED ON THEIR WHIM!

ALL POSTS ARE AVAILABLE ON

MIDDLEBORO REVIEW AND SO ON

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE TRUTH OR FACTS!

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE FUND RAISERS AND DELETES

POSTS THAT INCLUDE FUNDRAISING THAT 'VIOLATES THEIR

UNDEFINED COMMUNITY STANDARDS SO ALL 'FUND RAISING'

IS DELETED - CONTRIBUTE AS YOU ARE INCLINED TO SUPPORT

IMPORTANT ISSUES! THESE ARE NOT SOLICITATIONS

Why subscribe? Silence is not an option. Take part in the community so we can drive change together.

---

Watch now

How Worried Should We Be? | Six Questions For Frank Figliuzzi

In this latest episode, the FBI veteran assesses the threat of the Trump regime sabotaging our midterm elections

Steven Beschloss and Frank Figliuzzi Oct 22

My conversation with Frank Figliuzzi, a former FBI assistant director of counterintelligence and a national security analyst, should be a reminder that there are good and capable people committed to combating the illegalities of the Trump regime. Like many of you, I worry about the threat of sabotage before, during and after the midterm elections as Donald Trump seeks to subvert the will of the people. But overcoming Trump’s disgraceful attacks depends on public officials who grasp the danger and are preparing to fight back now rather than wait to see what happens on Nov. 3.

“The signals, the intel are there,” Frank said, noting Trump’s efforts to claim election fraud now and after the election. He expects to see unqualified lawyers positioned as election monitors to claim they witnessed fraud, then FBI agents and Homeland Security officials insisting they need search-and-seizure warrants to seize ballots. The goal: cause disruption and chaos. “I think they will be successful in sowing confusion and a lack of credibility in the outcome of certain elections and in certain places,” Frank said.

Frank also flagged the growing role of foreign interference, noting that it has already started. “I think Putin is very, very desperate to maintain Trump and the GOP in power,” he said. “It literally ties to his existence.”

What does that look like? “I think he will pull out all the stops,” Frank said. “It could be everything from propaganda online and social media all the way to instigating civil unrest, fights and rumors that result in potentially violent action. And again, we have seen these attempts by Russia before.”

Yes, these are reasons for alarm, but Frank’s optimism stems in part from conversations he’s had with four secretaries of state. “They’re ready,” he said. “It doesn’t mean—and this is really important—it doesn’t mean that the bad stuff isn’t going to happen, but rather the secretaries of state and attorney generals are practicing, rehearsing, and the plan is in place with judges and lawyers and 24-7 standby, and they’ll be ready to file. But please don’t confuse that with ready to prevent, but rather ready to challenge— and we should be prepared.”

We too should be ready. That means not being surprised when the cries and lies of fraud grow louder, especially after the election. And the strongest way this attack can be minimized is by continuing to work to increase voter turnout, making the outcome too big to rig.

I hope you’ll give this conversation a listen (and check out “The Frank Figliuzzi Show” that Frank hosts in partnership with Lincoln Square). I am making this recording available to everyone today, not just paid subscribers, because it’s important that we all are informed and not surprised by what will likely come. Please do share it—and if you’re not a paid subscriber, I hope you will support this work by becoming one.

As we near the midterms, it’s more important than ever to support the survival of democracy. I remain committed to raising my voice as vividly and fiercely as I can. I hope you’ll consider becoming a paid subscriber for just $50 a year or $5 a month to show your support and enhance your engagement—to share your thoughts in the comments sections and access all content.

You're currently a free subscriber to America, America. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.

                                                                                                                         

LOTS OF POSTS IGNORED BY BLOGGER.....

OR REMOVED ON THEIR WHIM!

ALL POSTS ARE AVAILABLE ON

MIDDLEBORO REVIEW AND SO ON

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE TRUTH OR FACTS!

BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE FUND RAISERS AND DELETES

POSTS THAT INCLUDE FUNDRAISING THAT 'VIOLATES THEIR

UNDEFINED COMMUNITY STANDARDS SO ALL 'FUND RAISING'

IS DELETED - CONTRIBUTE AS YOU ARE INCLINED TO SUPPORT

IMPORTANT ISSUES! THESE ARE NOT SOLICITATIONS 

Why subscribe? Silence is not an option. Take part in the community so we can drive change together.

What Issue Concerns You Most?

A Saturday Prompt

Steven Beschloss Oct 17

Oh, the company he keeps: Trump with now-ousted Katie Zacharia and his always-there aide Natalie Harp. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/AFP via Getty Images)

The joke is that Katie Zacharia’s exit as White House Press Secretary after five days is barely half a Scaramucci. (Recall that Anthony Scaramucci lasted just 11 days as Trump communications director back in 2017.)

You would be right to think that her rise and fall is a story of incompetence—both hers and the people who hired her. I would also suggest it’s another example of the gargantuan levels of corruption of Donald Trump and his so-called government: Zacharia was barely vetted (no one questioned her claims that she was a lawyer?), she wasn’t given the time to prepare for her first press conference, she was clearly plucked for the job because she is a Trump sycophant and an Ivanka-lookalike rather than an outstanding communications professional.

A Fox News poll released this week offers a powerful indictment of the Trump regime. When voters were asked about what issues they were “extremely” or “very” concerned about, corruption in government topped the list. In fact, a massive 88 percent said they were either extremely or very concerned about it. That’s Fox News, not typically the outlet you would expect to provide information that gives an honest appraisal of the current occupants of our White House. (The poll’s respondents self-identified as Democrats and Republicans in roughly equal measure: 43 percent and 41 percent.)

But there it is: As we approach the midterms, we can be encouraged to know that voters are grasping the reality of the sickening scale of corruption—and they’re mad as hell about it. What were the other top issues that these voters were concerned about? Inflation and high prices (85 percent), gas prices (83 percent), healthcare (80 percent), government leadership (79 percent), the war in Iran (75 percent) and crime (73 percent).

Fox noted in its report that “Democrats lead on 10 out of 13 issue concerns,” as well as this encouraging morsel: “If the election were today, 54% of voters say they would back the Democratic candidate in their House district and 45% would support the Republican. That is outside the margin of error.”

So what about you? What issue concerns you most? How confident are you that others share your concern? If corruption tops your list, which example angers you most? And what issues do you think will get people to the polls?

November 3 is barely two weeks away and early voting has already begun. No Kings events around the country today aim to boost early voting and turnout. You can check here to find an event for this “Day of Action” near you.

As always, I look forward to reading your observations and the opportunity of the America, America community to hear from each other. Please do be respectful in your remarks. Trolling will not be tolerated. (Do note the robust comments section that is open to paid subscribers everyday.)

As we near the midterms, it’s more important than ever to support the survival of democracy. I remain committed to raising my voice as vividly and fiercely as I can. I hope you’ll consider becoming a paid subscriber for just $50 a year or $5 a month to show your support and enhance your engagement—to share your thoughts in the comments sections and access all content.