I don't think they would actually steal $ from the Treasury because--as full of they are of hubris and self-righteousness--they a) don't need the money, and b) know that would be an obvious crime easily detected and prosecuted. My bigger fear is that with their overconfident, inexperienced, uninformed effing around with agencies' financial systems, they cause some cataclysmic failure that crashes them with potentially incredible and unforeseen rippling effects through not only the U.S. economy but worldwide.
Just read that Leticia James and 12 other AG’s were suing over Elon Musk and DOGE having access to our data. Noted my state, Washington, wasn’t included and plan to call. Is this the kind of AG action you were hoping for Simon, or something else?
At the Treasury rally a few days ago, someone had a sign with a new interpretation of DOGE.
Divisive Oligarchs Grabbing Everything.
I'm not sure if I captured the D word correctly, it might have been degenerate, destructive, dipshit, but I think any of them would work with the O, G, E words.
BTW, I spoke to one of my two banks today (ops person at the branch) about my concerns with Musk/DOGE having access to the Treasury system. First, I think I'm the first to raise the issue. Second, she was unaware of any concerns/activity among the higher ups at the bank. Third, the ops person probably won't raise the issue up unless she hears from more customers. I did mention that I was a member of a 200,000 person organization and that seemed to give her pause.
It is my sense that if DOGE flipped a bunch of Social Security payments from credits to debits, that those would be processed unquestioned. The ops person said that SS would notify a beneficiary before doing that. I said "yeah, maybe in normal times, but these aren't normal times." That seemed to give her pause too.
I asked at my bank, too, and two other women were asking at the same time. There had been nothing from management as of Tuesday, when I asked. We should all be asking all our financial institutions. This isn't a partisan issue - all their customers are at risk!
Good to see my state AG (AZ) is on the list. I'm thinking I should file a complaint of possible privacy and HIPPA violations due to Musk infiltrating the Treasury. I'm on SS and Medicare and count on my check which arrives the 2nd Wednesday of every month.
NM is not one of states currently suing but have just emailed my AG and strongly asked him to sue Musk/ DOGE for the security breach, HIPPA violations and data security violations
WV rare Democrat here saying: the senators, AG , GOVERNOR and most the rest are all (R). As if WV hasn’t been screwed enough the knife is still in the common folk’s back and the (aforementioned) electeds have their hands still on the shaft, raising the prices , kissing the ring, and smiling as they deepen the dagger.
Rest assured though you 70.1% republican voters , that their claim to “make America great again”..WAS.A.LIE…another lie , facts you won’t believe ….until your funds are cancelled out too…as many are already.
YW
Time to ‘stop the steal’ . It’s a new REAL Democratic Bill . Come back ! Cross over!
I'd call my TX AG, but he's the very corrupt Ken Paxton. So that's a no-go. Instead, I called one of my state senators the other day. I will call him and my other senators today.
The elected reps are to help ALL their people. If there are cracks in the system they can’t be fixed?
I haven’t heard anyone saying it’s perfect. Except them..their way is…yet they are the ones who lie and point fingers …they’re going to make America Great?
Seems to me their intent is to create chaos, confusion ,and a constitutional crisis.
Don’t stay in the echo chamber .
PS…Thanks to the judges standing up for laws, order, and our constitution. 🫶
Janet, Minnesota’s AG Keith Ellison is one of those suing the feds for DOgE’s illegal actions. Minnesota is also suing over the changes in immigration policies/ICE violations of civil liberties, and the loss to Minnesota farmers/food processors of more than $70M in contracts to provide goods to USAID. IMO, this is a great use of their time - my immediate neighbor was born in El Salvador. Neighbors down the block are from Somalia. Many neighbors are retired and dependent on SS and Medicare - as I am. I have one friend who farms - he is wondering now if he will survive after the shutdown of the USAID program. The damage is deep, wide and illegal. We need to block with every weapon at our disposal. We won’t win all the battles but it’s worth the effort in my book - as a taxpayer and citizen. And they update us with frequent posts on the AG website here so we can stay informed. I called them this morning to thank them for their efforts. (Sort of caught the agent I talked to by surprise. Their phones are ringing a lot too!)
This is a good snapshot of what and who will suffer(all of us and the world at large) with these evil, illegal actions The specific stories… our Somalian neighbors, our Guatemalan landscapers and field workers, our farmers, those of us receiving SS and Medicare and Medicaid…all by way of a flip of the switch. And we haven’t even felt the craziness and desperation yet. It is just mind-bending how fast this destruction occurred. Now we wait for the fall-out.
Hi Janet, my state AG, Dem. Jeff Jackson, was also missing from the list. I called and left a message and also posted a comment using the contact form on the NC AG website. I don't think I received an email back yet, but it was posted yesterday afternoon so I will cut his staff a little slack, but I WILL follow up next week.
Besides comity, there is absolute no reason for Governor Hochul to schedule the special election for the congressional seat vacated by Elise Stefanik any earlier than absolutely necessary. And we all know how mutual the Republican Party’s sense of comity is!
As Simon has noted, Trump’s approval rating is already a stunning 15–20 percent lower than the approval Joe Biden enjoyed at this point of his presidency. And although Stefanik won her Red district with 61 percent of the vote, with Trump’s plummeting popularity, who knows how "safely Red" NY-21 will be by the time her aspiring Republican successor faces voters.
Please, we need to make Speaker Mike Johnson’s job of herding rabid cats as difficult as possible.
In that case, perhaps it’s more apt to say: "Vought" rhymes with "turncoat" and "cutthroat". As well as dote, moat, creosote, scapegoat, footnote and petticoat.
In January last year, Tesla was the most sold car brand in Norway. This January, almost 40 percent fewer Teslas were sold, dropping their sales to third place behind Volkswagen and Toyota.
Also in the rest of Europa, Tesla has lost significant market share. In Germany as well as France, Tesla sales so far in 2025 have seen roughly a 60-percent drop compared to last year.
It would be a delusional overstatement to say that Elon Musk’s open support of the neo-Nazi AfD party in Germany, and his recent Fascist salute at a Trump rally in DC, is endearing Europeans to Musk and his car company.
To be fair, there is more market competition so Telsa's numbers can drop. He is notoriously OCD on pet projects, like SpaceX, and lets parts of his empire lag. His technology is good but Musk's questionable ethics have become stratospheric
if we could get a global boycott of tesla and X, then we only have Space X and starlink to uncouple from govt $$$. we have given him $14B already. and his thank you for making him the wealthiest man in the world is to dismantle our government (which created him) and our democracy. he just bought an election also for $275M. and if he is in source code for govt agencies mucking around, maybe he mucked around in elections too, which i am sure is child's play compared to govt IT.
I wish someone could prove this because I believe it. An IT person told HCR that a good tech person such as FElon and his mutant ninja turtles can re-write code and leave no fingerprints. So why couldn’t he do that with voting technology? I’d just like a very clear answer as to why this would be impossible. Then I may stop wondering.
Voting rules vary from state to state rules and the equipment may vary from county-to-county. (FYI, there are 3K+ counties in the country) In NC some counties use machines but others strictly use paper ballots. Fraud is a lot harder than the GOP makes it out to be!
In my county, none of the voting machines are connected to the internet. You vote on a machine that physically prints your ballot in plain English (so you can verify the machine didn't flip any votes). That ballot goes into a tabulating machine which collects the ballots in a secure bin the contents of which are physically returned to the county board of elections every evening. I was an official poll observer and I got to observe the opening and closing procedures depending on whether I had a morning or afternoon olunteer shift.
Personally, I think Musk messed with the election through disinformation and of course voter suppression (voter ID laws, moving around polling places so minority voters had longer lines, etc.) and partisan gerrymandering for non-statewide races and to discourage voters in red states that their vote didn't coun .
Lots of American voters are disinterested and disengaged. Not to mention extremely gullible if they believed Trump was going to do anything to help working class voters.
"Since World War II, the main objective of Austria’s foreign policy has been to convince the world that Beethoven was Austrian – and that Hitler was German."
I had a long conversation in the supermarket with an Irish acquaintance, and she'd been vacationing in Spain when Musk gave his infamous salute. She said it was all over the Spanish newspapers. She said that for the Spanish it's a throwback to the days of Franco.
The history of the Beetle is largely forgotten and today it seems largely irrelevant. Whereas Musk earning good money from Resla sales and investing it in the support of Trump, the political campaigns of MAGA Republicans, and to promote AfD in Germany – that matters to a lot of people. Especially to car buyers who might otherwise seriously consider getting a Tesla.
Hi Simon,I keep asking- can't we all (Hopium, All Grassroots orgs., Dem Party, anyone who cares about our futures) get on board to help elect Josh Weil in Florida's 6th COngressional district? I'm in CA, but I worked like Hell to help Tom Souzzi get elected in NY, and George Whitesides get elected in his district (CA-27) CAN"T WE DO THIS COLLECTIVELY IN FLORIDA'S 6th? I know it's heavily Red, but look what just happened in Iowa's State elections that you reported. Thanks for any comments on this issue.
I have addressed these three specials in a variety of places but at this time I cannot recommend any of these races. They are all incredible longshots and we have other opportunities that I feel are higher priorities. The Iowa election is not relevant in these House races for the Rs will spend $100m or whatever it takes to defend them if we go in. I understand that these 3 races are important to many members of our community but at this point I cannot get behind any of them. I only recommend activities that I think have a high likelihood of being successful and we are just not there with these three races. If things change I will adjust.
Money goes farther in (for example PA) State Senate races than in U.S. House races.
There's a 3/25 special election to replace an R who now works for McCormick. Can't tell you how much that R won by in 2022 because the Dems ran no one against him!
NJ Attorney General MJ Platkin joined the charge being lead by the NY State AG Letitia James. She is suing Doge for illegal breaches of government. 12 State AG’s have signed on so far
Just for a small amount of laughter. Borowitz (satire) just write a column about how one of DOGE teenage programmers accidentally donated Musk's Entire net worth to Save the Children. We can dream.
Massive Computer Error by DOGE Donates Musk’s Entire Fortune to Save the Children
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—In a disastrous setback for Elon Musk, on Friday a coding error by a teenaged member of DOGE resulted in the tech titan’s entire fortune being donated to Save the Children.
Treyson Parlow, 16, said that he had apologized to Musk, whose net worth now stands at zero dollars.
“In fairness, he never should have hired me,” the sophomore said. “I got a C in computer science last semester.”
According to sources, frantic attempts by the newly impoverished Musk to reach Donald J. Trump have gone straight to voicemail.
I actually thought that this was serious, but now I see that it's not. I know you're trying to lighten the mood with some humor, but I don't think posting satire like this is very helpful right now. I appreciate laughter--I do--but keep in mind that not everyone will understand satire or deadpan humor.
That's why I called it satire in the post. And if people on Hopoum actually thought a computer programmer actually transferred all of Elon Musk"s net worth to Save the Childten, honestly, I think you need to think harder. I do think it's helpful, and so did 27 others.
All right. I just didn't notice. I'm the type of person who takes things seriously. Sometimes, it's hard for me to know when someone is being serious or is just joking. Not everyone understands satire or dry humor. That's just who I am.
I highly recommend subscribing to Democracy Docket if you have not already done so. I've donated to this group, with pre-eminent voting rights attorney Marc Elias, for several years. I receive emails from him daily. Here is the link to find recent news of lawsuits and court decisions:
Marc Elias is doing terrific work – and his team is fighting back hard in courts across the nation. He’s worth supporting with a subscription, but you can nonetheless sign up for the excellent free newsletter from his Democracy Docket.
The State of Illinois is being sued by trump's "Justice" Department over sanctuary status:
"The federal lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Chicago, claims sanctuary policies in Illinois that keep local authorities from cooperating with the deportation effort are “exacerbating” a crisis at the U.S. Southern border." Our crisis was created during the time Abbott was sending busloads of migrants to Illinois. Many suburbs as well as Chicago put a stop to this with new regulations to arrest the bus drivers and impound the buses. Here is a link to the story.
Yes. The previous presidents may be abiding by the custom that former presidents don't criticize the current president - which by the way Trump never honored.
At a bare minimum, Obama shouldn't have been smiling and laughing with Trump at President Carter's funeral. Biden shouldn't have invited him to the WH - hell, Trump locked Biden out of the WH. Schumer laughing with Trump, etc. Alas, that's in the past, but it's well past the time to throw decorum out the window. Bush? He should speak out as well but he is too busy painting I guess.
He’s a spineless war criminal. His own employee, Nicolle Wallace practically begged him on cable tv to say something prior to the election. She has also repeatedly urged Merrick Garland and Christopher Wray to stand up for their employees during these purges. Where are they? Spineless cowards.
I only receive fundraising emails from the Obamas for the Presidential Library in Chicago and Michelle Obama's foundation, The Girls Opportunity Alliance. and other Obama Foundation projects. I've not seen either of them post on Instagram anything about current events.
At least Michelle Obama did not sit next to Trump at President Carter's funeral. I'd like to think that is why she did not attend. She also did not go to the inauguration. BUT I see your point. The Obamas are not alone in not having a problem with donation requests on their behalf going out. I am not talking about donation requests that help us win elections - I have yet to donate to those as well. However, I do see Simon's point about helping the DNC win elections and Hopium as well. When I am ready to donate, it will be through Hopium.
Check out comments about USAID from Barack Obama here. "USAID has been fighting disease, feeding children, and promoting goodwill around the world for six decades. As this article makes clear, dismantling this agency would be a profound foreign policy mistake - one that Congress should resist." https://www.facebook.com/barackobama
Thank you. I refuse to do Facebook or X. Maybe President Obama will post something on Instagram. I think all of the former Presidents should be speaking out at this very critical time in our lives.
Per Indivisible, it's the second best option after calling and we should try restricting this to when it is not possible to call (like when phone lines were all jammed). Certainly does not hurt, tho.
I have been doing both phone calls and filing out their contact form on the websites. I have only received replies from my State AG and State Treasurer, both Democrats. I've never once received a reply from Durbin or Duckworth. They are not sending out their promised weekly newsletters either.
Agree, Linda. I think filling out the contact form on our reps’ websites is the quickest way to reach them in writing. I used to send postcards via snail mail but who knows if they even get there.
So sorry you’re not hearing back from your senators. I am lucky that my two California senators reply to my messages promptly (via email).
Send them an actual written letter via USPS. From Rick Wilson's, "The Enemies List" podcast today, elected officials take written (analog not digital) communications seriously.
Our MI Senators both seem to be MIA. No calls are returned. No emails. Nothing.
No staffers answering their phones, per several dozen people I have asked directly - many of whom worked on Slotkin’’s campaign. More than a bit maddening that there is nothing coming from them to the public. There was was some questioning of certain Cabinet nominees, but their voting was mostly a disappointment - waiting to see if they come back later claiming to be part of any “resistance”.
Our Rep has been responsive - but our experience is that those staffers have always done well in responding.
Indivisible suggests getting a couple, or more! people to go visit your MOCs local office to speak to a staffer. If you get a group together, notify the press and get coverage if possible.
Yes, it is effective. You can call more frequently and your opinion is counted. So it's really your choice. If you don't get a response, they may be overwhelmed with calls and emails.
1) What is he doing about the illegal firing of 18 IGs?
2) What is he doing about the illegal shuttering of USAID?
3) What is he doing about the illegal firing of government employees in the FBI and DOJ?
The staffer who answered said she doesn't work on these issues but will pass the message along. I said, I want a real response, no more form letter responses to my emails and calls. I gave my number and was told I would get a call. Let's see.
Apologies if this off-topic: Can "messengers" go on Fox News like Pete Buttigieg did? Viewers need to know that the "'working class'" President is abusing the shit out of his workers," and more.
Simon, do you know WHO or WHAT organization is behind these annoying begging texts and emails from Democrats? Is ActBlue selling donor info to campaigns? Is the DNC? I’m so sick of receiving up to 15 a day from candidates and it’s only February. I know I’m not the only Democrat to get the texts and begging letters and everybody’s sick of them. I assume Republicans do the same thing but that’s no excuse for our doing it.
Reply STOP and report junk on the texts. On the emails you can unsubscribe or report phishing and block. I use Outlook email. I'm getting these also, including from those planning to run in 2026.
Not everyone is sick of them - I enjoy the news and pictures they send. just reply STOP to the text and they take you off the list [but I know it's important to you to take up thread space complaining about democrats]
I am suddenly getting begging texts too, from Dem groups I have never heard of. Am unsubscribing & blocking them all. I don’t have my phone number listed on my ActBlue account so who knows how they got my number.
Sadly this is just the start of bad economic news for us. We have to label all of this for what it is, the Trump Economy. Everywhere. Edited to say that I know this hashtag is already out there (Blue Sky and elsewhere). But when we talk to neighbors, etc., just always say Trump Economy.
I’m afraid things are going to get so desperate that people won’t be in any kind of mind to reason. I am very worried about what happens next. Desperate people do desperate things. Just think of the already nearly 10,000 USAID employees.. how will they pay rent/mortgage, keep their kids in school, etc., etc. and this is just the tip of the iceberg.
He is not immune. The Supreme Court said he is immune from orders, etc. that are part of his Presidential powers. Many of these "orders" are not part of his powers, but Congress's. Unfortunately, it takes awhile for the courts to catch up.
I don't think they would actually steal $ from the Treasury because--as full of they are of hubris and self-righteousness--they a) don't need the money, and b) know that would be an obvious crime easily detected and prosecuted. My bigger fear is that with their overconfident, inexperienced, uninformed effing around with agencies' financial systems, they cause some cataclysmic failure that crashes them with potentially incredible and unforeseen rippling effects through not only the U.S. economy but worldwide.
Just read that Leticia James and 12 other AG’s were suing over Elon Musk and DOGE having access to our data. Noted my state, Washington, wasn’t included and plan to call. Is this the kind of AG action you were hoping for Simon, or something else?
Here is the link to the article about the 13 AG's suing musk and DOGE.
https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-trump-doge-states-47912249bf4b79477cbe211565c9743c
At the Treasury rally a few days ago, someone had a sign with a new interpretation of DOGE.
Divisive Oligarchs Grabbing Everything.
I'm not sure if I captured the D word correctly, it might have been degenerate, destructive, dipshit, but I think any of them would work with the O, G, E words.
I like dipshit - that's a word that grabs attention
BTW, I spoke to one of my two banks today (ops person at the branch) about my concerns with Musk/DOGE having access to the Treasury system. First, I think I'm the first to raise the issue. Second, she was unaware of any concerns/activity among the higher ups at the bank. Third, the ops person probably won't raise the issue up unless she hears from more customers. I did mention that I was a member of a 200,000 person organization and that seemed to give her pause.
It is my sense that if DOGE flipped a bunch of Social Security payments from credits to debits, that those would be processed unquestioned. The ops person said that SS would notify a beneficiary before doing that. I said "yeah, maybe in normal times, but these aren't normal times." That seemed to give her pause too.
I asked at my bank, too, and two other women were asking at the same time. There had been nothing from management as of Tuesday, when I asked. We should all be asking all our financial institutions. This isn't a partisan issue - all their customers are at risk!
Good to see my state AG (AZ) is on the list. I'm thinking I should file a complaint of possible privacy and HIPPA violations due to Musk infiltrating the Treasury. I'm on SS and Medicare and count on my check which arrives the 2nd Wednesday of every month.
NM is not one of states currently suing but have just emailed my AG and strongly asked him to sue Musk/ DOGE for the security breach, HIPPA violations and data security violations
WV rare Democrat here saying: the senators, AG , GOVERNOR and most the rest are all (R). As if WV hasn’t been screwed enough the knife is still in the common folk’s back and the (aforementioned) electeds have their hands still on the shaft, raising the prices , kissing the ring, and smiling as they deepen the dagger.
Rest assured though you 70.1% republican voters , that their claim to “make America great again”..WAS.A.LIE…another lie , facts you won’t believe ….until your funds are cancelled out too…as many are already.
YW
Time to ‘stop the steal’ . It’s a new REAL Democratic Bill . Come back ! Cross over!
#notgivingup💙
I'd call my TX AG, but he's the very corrupt Ken Paxton. So that's a no-go. Instead, I called one of my state senators the other day. I will call him and my other senators today.
The elected reps are to help ALL their people. If there are cracks in the system they can’t be fixed?
I haven’t heard anyone saying it’s perfect. Except them..their way is…yet they are the ones who lie and point fingers …they’re going to make America Great?
Seems to me their intent is to create chaos, confusion ,and a constitutional crisis.
Don’t stay in the echo chamber .
PS…Thanks to the judges standing up for laws, order, and our constitution. 🫶
Call Paxton anyway, he's AG. They need to squirm.
Yes, you're right. I dialed his office yesterday but was put on hold. I'll try again.
Nightime is a good time to get through and leave a message. I’ve had to do that.
I have been contacting my state AG (Michigan) about this every day, and now will switch to mentioning this lawsuit specifically.
I thanked AG James on Bluesky.
Janet, Minnesota’s AG Keith Ellison is one of those suing the feds for DOgE’s illegal actions. Minnesota is also suing over the changes in immigration policies/ICE violations of civil liberties, and the loss to Minnesota farmers/food processors of more than $70M in contracts to provide goods to USAID. IMO, this is a great use of their time - my immediate neighbor was born in El Salvador. Neighbors down the block are from Somalia. Many neighbors are retired and dependent on SS and Medicare - as I am. I have one friend who farms - he is wondering now if he will survive after the shutdown of the USAID program. The damage is deep, wide and illegal. We need to block with every weapon at our disposal. We won’t win all the battles but it’s worth the effort in my book - as a taxpayer and citizen. And they update us with frequent posts on the AG website here so we can stay informed. I called them this morning to thank them for their efforts. (Sort of caught the agent I talked to by surprise. Their phones are ringing a lot too!)
It’s an all hands on deck moment!
This is a good snapshot of what and who will suffer(all of us and the world at large) with these evil, illegal actions The specific stories… our Somalian neighbors, our Guatemalan landscapers and field workers, our farmers, those of us receiving SS and Medicare and Medicaid…all by way of a flip of the switch. And we haven’t even felt the craziness and desperation yet. It is just mind-bending how fast this destruction occurred. Now we wait for the fall-out.
Great stuff. The key is to attack, attack, attack. Feels like there needs to be multitude of lawsuits from different groups on a daily basis.
Will contact our Washington State AG as well. I will urge that we join in with other states to sue for the raid on personal data in DC.
Good to see that my NJ AG is among them. As of yesterday, they hadn't actually sued yet, just announcing their intention to sue.
Yay! So glad one of my calls got results but frankly my AG would have thought of that all by her wonderful self I am sure
Hi Janet, my state AG, Dem. Jeff Jackson, was also missing from the list. I called and left a message and also posted a comment using the contact form on the NC AG website. I don't think I received an email back yet, but it was posted yesterday afternoon so I will cut his staff a little slack, but I WILL follow up next week.
LET MIKE HERD RABID CATS!
Besides comity, there is absolute no reason for Governor Hochul to schedule the special election for the congressional seat vacated by Elise Stefanik any earlier than absolutely necessary. And we all know how mutual the Republican Party’s sense of comity is!
As Simon has noted, Trump’s approval rating is already a stunning 15–20 percent lower than the approval Joe Biden enjoyed at this point of his presidency. And although Stefanik won her Red district with 61 percent of the vote, with Trump’s plummeting popularity, who knows how "safely Red" NY-21 will be by the time her aspiring Republican successor faces voters.
Please, we need to make Speaker Mike Johnson’s job of herding rabid cats as difficult as possible.
Off topic of your comment, but you like I have been asking how to say Vought. Finally heard it - "Vote" - now that he's confirmed 🤷♀️
Thanks, Susan. Am bummed that his name rhymes with such a positive civil and human right. (He probably wants to cancel voting altogether)
Ironic, is it not?
In that case, perhaps it’s more apt to say: "Vought" rhymes with "turncoat" and "cutthroat". As well as dote, moat, creosote, scapegoat, footnote and petticoat.
MUSK THROWS TESLA UNDER THE BUS
In January last year, Tesla was the most sold car brand in Norway. This January, almost 40 percent fewer Teslas were sold, dropping their sales to third place behind Volkswagen and Toyota.
Also in the rest of Europa, Tesla has lost significant market share. In Germany as well as France, Tesla sales so far in 2025 have seen roughly a 60-percent drop compared to last year.
It would be a delusional overstatement to say that Elon Musk’s open support of the neo-Nazi AfD party in Germany, and his recent Fascist salute at a Trump rally in DC, is endearing Europeans to Musk and his car company.
To be fair, there is more market competition so Telsa's numbers can drop. He is notoriously OCD on pet projects, like SpaceX, and lets parts of his empire lag. His technology is good but Musk's questionable ethics have become stratospheric
Wikipedia says, I believe Tesla is the source of his wealth
if we could get a global boycott of tesla and X, then we only have Space X and starlink to uncouple from govt $$$. we have given him $14B already. and his thank you for making him the wealthiest man in the world is to dismantle our government (which created him) and our democracy. he just bought an election also for $275M. and if he is in source code for govt agencies mucking around, maybe he mucked around in elections too, which i am sure is child's play compared to govt IT.
I wish someone could prove this because I believe it. An IT person told HCR that a good tech person such as FElon and his mutant ninja turtles can re-write code and leave no fingerprints. So why couldn’t he do that with voting technology? I’d just like a very clear answer as to why this would be impossible. Then I may stop wondering.
Voting isn't centralized in the US.
Voting rules vary from state to state rules and the equipment may vary from county-to-county. (FYI, there are 3K+ counties in the country) In NC some counties use machines but others strictly use paper ballots. Fraud is a lot harder than the GOP makes it out to be!
In my county, none of the voting machines are connected to the internet. You vote on a machine that physically prints your ballot in plain English (so you can verify the machine didn't flip any votes). That ballot goes into a tabulating machine which collects the ballots in a secure bin the contents of which are physically returned to the county board of elections every evening. I was an official poll observer and I got to observe the opening and closing procedures depending on whether I had a morning or afternoon olunteer shift.
Personally, I think Musk messed with the election through disinformation and of course voter suppression (voter ID laws, moving around polling places so minority voters had longer lines, etc.) and partisan gerrymandering for non-statewide races and to discourage voters in red states that their vote didn't coun .
Lots of American voters are disinterested and disengaged. Not to mention extremely gullible if they believed Trump was going to do anything to help working class voters.
My clever niece, who is a federal employee: "Volkswagen must be so thrilled to no longer be the main car company associated with fascism."
That’s brilliant! Here is another off-topic joke:
"Since World War II, the main objective of Austria’s foreign policy has been to convince the world that Beethoven was Austrian – and that Hitler was German."
At least future Americans can make a good case that Musk was South African, I guess. Trump, though, is harder to "offshore."
A degenerate jackass criminal is a degenerate jackass criminal regardless of place of birth.
I had a long conversation in the supermarket with an Irish acquaintance, and she'd been vacationing in Spain when Musk gave his infamous salute. She said it was all over the Spanish newspapers. She said that for the Spanish it's a throwback to the days of Franco.
Of course! And for us Norwegians, it’s a throwback to Nazi Germany’s occupation of our country.
As a Norwegian, I consider that someone else's history.
I never thought of my Beetle as fascist, but we didn't chat much.
The history of the Beetle is largely forgotten and today it seems largely irrelevant. Whereas Musk earning good money from Resla sales and investing it in the support of Trump, the political campaigns of MAGA Republicans, and to promote AfD in Germany – that matters to a lot of people. Especially to car buyers who might otherwise seriously consider getting a Tesla.
Ok, I know I am old and irrelevant. I was being a smartass because it keeps me kinda sane.
Hi Simon,I keep asking- can't we all (Hopium, All Grassroots orgs., Dem Party, anyone who cares about our futures) get on board to help elect Josh Weil in Florida's 6th COngressional district? I'm in CA, but I worked like Hell to help Tom Souzzi get elected in NY, and George Whitesides get elected in his district (CA-27) CAN"T WE DO THIS COLLECTIVELY IN FLORIDA'S 6th? I know it's heavily Red, but look what just happened in Iowa's State elections that you reported. Thanks for any comments on this issue.
I have addressed these three specials in a variety of places but at this time I cannot recommend any of these races. They are all incredible longshots and we have other opportunities that I feel are higher priorities. The Iowa election is not relevant in these House races for the Rs will spend $100m or whatever it takes to defend them if we go in. I understand that these 3 races are important to many members of our community but at this point I cannot get behind any of them. I only recommend activities that I think have a high likelihood of being successful and we are just not there with these three races. If things change I will adjust.
Money goes farther in (for example PA) State Senate races than in U.S. House races.
There's a 3/25 special election to replace an R who now works for McCormick. Can't tell you how much that R won by in 2022 because the Dems ran no one against him!
https://www.friendsofjamesmalone.org/
To your point, state races do count for a lot. A good place to focus.
Thank you for your reply. I always appreciate your wisdom and understanding of things.
NJ Attorney General MJ Platkin joined the charge being lead by the NY State AG Letitia James. She is suing Doge for illegal breaches of government. 12 State AG’s have signed on so far
This was announced yesterday. Hopefully the filing will be soon.
Just for a small amount of laughter. Borowitz (satire) just write a column about how one of DOGE teenage programmers accidentally donated Musk's Entire net worth to Save the Children. We can dream.
Massive Computer Error by DOGE Donates Musk’s Entire Fortune to Save the Children
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—In a disastrous setback for Elon Musk, on Friday a coding error by a teenaged member of DOGE resulted in the tech titan’s entire fortune being donated to Save the Children.
Treyson Parlow, 16, said that he had apologized to Musk, whose net worth now stands at zero dollars.
“In fairness, he never should have hired me,” the sophomore said. “I got a C in computer science last semester.”
According to sources, frantic attempts by the newly impoverished Musk to reach Donald J. Trump have gone straight to voicemail.
https://www.borowitzreport.com/p/massive-computer-error-by-doge-donates
PS. Question of the Day: Now that Elon is broke, how should he make a living? Leave your comments below
I actually thought that this was serious, but now I see that it's not. I know you're trying to lighten the mood with some humor, but I don't think posting satire like this is very helpful right now. I appreciate laughter--I do--but keep in mind that not everyone will understand satire or deadpan humor.
Just my two cents' worth.
That's why I called it satire in the post. And if people on Hopoum actually thought a computer programmer actually transferred all of Elon Musk"s net worth to Save the Childten, honestly, I think you need to think harder. I do think it's helpful, and so did 27 others.
All right. I just didn't notice. I'm the type of person who takes things seriously. Sometimes, it's hard for me to know when someone is being serious or is just joking. Not everyone understands satire or dry humor. That's just who I am.
Thank goodness for Andy.
This made me laugh- thank you!
I highly recommend subscribing to Democracy Docket if you have not already done so. I've donated to this group, with pre-eminent voting rights attorney Marc Elias, for several years. I receive emails from him daily. Here is the link to find recent news of lawsuits and court decisions:
https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts
It's very difficult to keep track of everything and what is being done to fight back. I hope this helps.
Marc Elias is doing terrific work – and his team is fighting back hard in courts across the nation. He’s worth supporting with a subscription, but you can nonetheless sign up for the excellent free newsletter from his Democracy Docket.
The State of Illinois is being sued by trump's "Justice" Department over sanctuary status:
"The federal lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Chicago, claims sanctuary policies in Illinois that keep local authorities from cooperating with the deportation effort are “exacerbating” a crisis at the U.S. Southern border." Our crisis was created during the time Abbott was sending busloads of migrants to Illinois. Many suburbs as well as Chicago put a stop to this with new regulations to arrest the bus drivers and impound the buses. Here is a link to the story.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/donald-trump/2025/02/06/donald-trump-justice-department-lawsuit-jb-pritzker-mayor-brandon-johnson-sanctuary-status
Thank you for that link, Linda.
There was a brief mention in a news summary, appreciate more media coverage of this.
Pritzker is my kind of governor. He is a bada$$.
He really cleaned about the budget mess left by his Republican predecessor. Our debt now has a A rating per Moody's.
Doesn’t every sane person think it’s about time the previous living Presidents should speak out about this insanity? Where are they?
Yes. The previous presidents may be abiding by the custom that former presidents don't criticize the current president - which by the way Trump never honored.
Customs don't apply anymore. Decorum doesn't matter anymore. It's time to speak up about this insanity. Tik-tock!
at a bare minimum bush could speak out about PEPFAR. bill gates went to the WH to beg for it.
At a bare minimum, Obama shouldn't have been smiling and laughing with Trump at President Carter's funeral. Biden shouldn't have invited him to the WH - hell, Trump locked Biden out of the WH. Schumer laughing with Trump, etc. Alas, that's in the past, but it's well past the time to throw decorum out the window. Bush? He should speak out as well but he is too busy painting I guess.
Yeah…I have lost my respect for them.
He’s a spineless war criminal. His own employee, Nicolle Wallace practically begged him on cable tv to say something prior to the election. She has also repeatedly urged Merrick Garland and Christopher Wray to stand up for their employees during these purges. Where are they? Spineless cowards.
Agree 💯
I only receive fundraising emails from the Obamas for the Presidential Library in Chicago and Michelle Obama's foundation, The Girls Opportunity Alliance. and other Obama Foundation projects. I've not seen either of them post on Instagram anything about current events.
At least Michelle Obama did not sit next to Trump at President Carter's funeral. I'd like to think that is why she did not attend. She also did not go to the inauguration. BUT I see your point. The Obamas are not alone in not having a problem with donation requests on their behalf going out. I am not talking about donation requests that help us win elections - I have yet to donate to those as well. However, I do see Simon's point about helping the DNC win elections and Hopium as well. When I am ready to donate, it will be through Hopium.
Check out comments about USAID from Barack Obama here. "USAID has been fighting disease, feeding children, and promoting goodwill around the world for six decades. As this article makes clear, dismantling this agency would be a profound foreign policy mistake - one that Congress should resist." https://www.facebook.com/barackobama
Read about what his foundation is doing here. There is much worthy of support. https://www.obama.org/programs/
Thank you. I refuse to do Facebook or X. Maybe President Obama will post something on Instagram. I think all of the former Presidents should be speaking out at this very critical time in our lives.
Yes, but let's praise Democrats for what they ARE doing. Contacting Barack Obama to convey your suggestion would be more productive.
Instagram is another Meta tool for mining personal information. Don't know why anyone would use it.
Thank you Deborah. I was too lazy to look it up. I know Obama is still out there.
She didn’t get to be president, but Hillary Clinton posted comments.
As far as I can recall, except for a brief period after 2016 election, Hillary has not stopped being engaged.
Maybe the DNC can attract them
Counting their money.
Greetings,
I have a question. (My apologizes if this question has already been answered…)
Is it as effective to write to my elected officials vs. calling?
I have been writing daily, and receiving responses back from those officials regularly.
Initially I receive a generic response, which is followed up with a specific response a few days/hours later.
Just want to be as effective as possible.
Thanks for your advice.
Sincerely,
Valerie
Per Indivisible, it's the second best option after calling and we should try restricting this to when it is not possible to call (like when phone lines were all jammed). Certainly does not hurt, tho.
I have been doing both phone calls and filing out their contact form on the websites. I have only received replies from my State AG and State Treasurer, both Democrats. I've never once received a reply from Durbin or Duckworth. They are not sending out their promised weekly newsletters either.
Linda, I have gotten comprehensive responses from Duckworth, and some from Durbin. I imagine they are overwhelmed. Keep sending to them.
Thank you. I’m still sending the emails. I send them about 5 am.
Agree, Linda. I think filling out the contact form on our reps’ websites is the quickest way to reach them in writing. I used to send postcards via snail mail but who knows if they even get there.
So sorry you’re not hearing back from your senators. I am lucky that my two California senators reply to my messages promptly (via email).
Send them an actual written letter via USPS. From Rick Wilson's, "The Enemies List" podcast today, elected officials take written (analog not digital) communications seriously.
Our MI Senators both seem to be MIA. No calls are returned. No emails. Nothing.
No staffers answering their phones, per several dozen people I have asked directly - many of whom worked on Slotkin’’s campaign. More than a bit maddening that there is nothing coming from them to the public. There was was some questioning of certain Cabinet nominees, but their voting was mostly a disappointment - waiting to see if they come back later claiming to be part of any “resistance”.
Our Rep has been responsive - but our experience is that those staffers have always done well in responding.
Our Governor’s and AG offices have responded.
I’m super disappointed in Slotkin. Keep leaving messages. They keep a log of the calls.
Indivisible suggests getting a couple, or more! people to go visit your MOCs local office to speak to a staffer. If you get a group together, notify the press and get coverage if possible.
Yes, it is effective. You can call more frequently and your opinion is counted. So it's really your choice. If you don't get a response, they may be overwhelmed with calls and emails.
Just called John Thune's office. (202) 224-2321
Asked:
1) What is he doing about the illegal firing of 18 IGs?
2) What is he doing about the illegal shuttering of USAID?
3) What is he doing about the illegal firing of government employees in the FBI and DOJ?
The staffer who answered said she doesn't work on these issues but will pass the message along. I said, I want a real response, no more form letter responses to my emails and calls. I gave my number and was told I would get a call. Let's see.
Well done!
Even if you don't get a response, your issues were counted. It still matters.
Apologies if this off-topic: Can "messengers" go on Fox News like Pete Buttigieg did? Viewers need to know that the "'working class'" President is abusing the shit out of his workers," and more.
I REALLY wish we could get on these platforms to to TRY to tell the truth.
Simon, do you know WHO or WHAT organization is behind these annoying begging texts and emails from Democrats? Is ActBlue selling donor info to campaigns? Is the DNC? I’m so sick of receiving up to 15 a day from candidates and it’s only February. I know I’m not the only Democrat to get the texts and begging letters and everybody’s sick of them. I assume Republicans do the same thing but that’s no excuse for our doing it.
Set up a filter to route these messages to an email folder. Then periodically scan the folder and delete what you don't want to read.
Reply STOP and report junk on the texts. On the emails you can unsubscribe or report phishing and block. I use Outlook email. I'm getting these also, including from those planning to run in 2026.
Linda, I do STOP and report, and unsubscribe, and NOTHING STOPS them.
Did this and it works better: F..k You & Stop. (Spelled out the F word. Thought a long time before but just desperate already.
Try blocking their number.
Not everyone is sick of them - I enjoy the news and pictures they send. just reply STOP to the text and they take you off the list [but I know it's important to you to take up thread space complaining about democrats]
Oh please.
I am suddenly getting begging texts too, from Dem groups I have never heard of. Am unsubscribing & blocking them all. I don’t have my phone number listed on my ActBlue account so who knows how they got my number.
THIS!!!
For anyone at the top who is reading or listening, they are creating a lot of ill will with these requests.
Unsubscribe or move to spam. Actblue does share info. They state that when you give the first time.
Sadly this is just the start of bad economic news for us. We have to label all of this for what it is, the Trump Economy. Everywhere. Edited to say that I know this hashtag is already out there (Blue Sky and elsewhere). But when we talk to neighbors, etc., just always say Trump Economy.
I’m afraid things are going to get so desperate that people won’t be in any kind of mind to reason. I am very worried about what happens next. Desperate people do desperate things. Just think of the already nearly 10,000 USAID employees.. how will they pay rent/mortgage, keep their kids in school, etc., etc. and this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Another suggested message for reps and senators...
"We have a lawless president in an immune from the law presidency, what are you going to do to stop the lawlessness this has created?"
He is not immune. The Supreme Court said he is immune from orders, etc. that are part of his Presidential powers. Many of these "orders" are not part of his powers, but Congress's. Unfortunately, it takes awhile for the courts to catch up.