Morning all. Naively I was looking forward to a quiet holiday week, a respite from the daily swirl of Trumpian sabotage and chaos. Instead we will need to work next week, demanding, loudly, that our Congressional leaders organize themselves to block/delay/oppose Trump’s corrupt and dangerous surrender to Putin.
Despite the holiday Congress sprung to life yesterday. Senate Democratic leaders released this initial statement:
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Ranking Member on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chair, Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Ranking Member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mark Warner (D-Va.), Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman, Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Ranking Member on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations (SFOPS), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee, issued the following statement in response to a reported deal the Trump administration proposed to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that would require heavy Ukrainian concessions:
“The United States is safer and stronger when democracies like Ukraine are free, stable, and strong enough to deter our adversaries. The deal President Trump is forcing on Ukraine calls on Ukraine and NATO allies to make major concessions or risk losing American support. It goes so far as to hand Russia substantial territory it has not been able to take on the battlefield thanks to the bravery of the Ukrainian forces. This deal will not create a just and lasting peace. It will leave Ukraine vulnerable, Europe unstable, and America weaker. It will not end the war in Eastern Europe. It will only give Russia time to rebuild and rearm before coming back for the rest of Ukraine and then setting its sights on NATO allies.
“President Trump needs to work with Republicans and Democrats in Congress alongside our partners in Ukraine and NATO allies to find a lasting solution that will make Americans and the world safer.
“We support the cause of peace in Ukraine. Ukraine must emerge as a free, sovereign state with the ability to defend itself and deter Russia, and President Putin must learn that aggression does not pay. Ukraine should not be forced into accepting this dangerous proposal, and Congress must make unmistakably clear that we stand firmly against it.
“Let us be clear: this is a war of Russian aggression, led by a dictator who has commanded his troops to commit war crimes, steal children from their families, and torture civilians. President Trump is rewarding President Putin for these crimes while cutting out the Ukrainians who have fought and died for the cause of democracy and our European allies who have stepped up to support them.
“Americans would also have to live with the ramifications of a bad deal: allies and partners who see us as untrustworthy and are less willing to come to our aid when we call for help. A weakened nation on the world stage. Adversaries who know they can simply wait for us to cave. A government in Washington that continues to abandon the principles of separate but equal branches of government.
“We will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine and for American safety and security.”
Politico wrote about the initial steps taken by the bipartisan House Ukrainian Caucus:
A bipartisan coalition of pro-Ukraine lawmakers will seek to force a House vote to impose crippling sanctions on Russia, even as President Donald Trump is moving to swiftly clinch a peace deal between the two warring nations.
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) said in an X post Friday that he and his allies have “officially notified both the Clerk of the House and House leadership of our discharge petition to force a vote on crushing Russian sanctions immediately upon our return” from the Thanksgiving holiday recess.
Trump appeared to be putting pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy with his Thanksgiving ultimatum, but the House lawmakers have their eye on Russian President Vladimir Putin — and they believe they have Trump’s blessing.
House and Senate GOP leaders have held off for months, awaiting a clear signal from Trump, but with the president more determined to impose a peace plan than ever, rank-and-file members are determined to act.
“The President’s appeasement plan to Russia is forcing our hand,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.).
A discharge petition can circumvent the majority leadership if 218 House members sign it; it has been used to pressure Speaker Mike Johnson multiple times this year — most recently to pass legislation on the so-called Epstein files.
Fitzpatrick and other members of the Ukraine Caucus have offered sanctions legislation alongside Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Fitzpatrick filed a resolution earlier this year setting up a possible effort to discharge that bill but did not immediately trigger it.
Lawmakers could also force a vote on a bill from Reps. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) and Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) that would pair Russia sanctions with assistance for Ukraine. The bipartisan Ukraine Caucus is set to hold a virtual meeting Monday to “talk about what the best strategy is to get something done quickly,” Fitzpatrick said in an interview Friday.
“We’re talking about potentially moving them together if the sanctions are not brought to the floor in short order,” Fitzpatrick said ahead of his social media post.
Fitzpatrick said he has been talking to Johnson about the sanctions bill and believes the speaker is supportive of the legislation.
I am urging everyone in this community to call your Senators and House Rep on Monday - and every day - to demand they work to block/withdraw this rancid “plan.” Trump picked Thursday as the deadline for he knew Congress would be scattered due to the Thanksgiving holiday and unlikely to rally in time. It is why we must be very, very loud on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and every day until this “plan” is defeated.
Some recommended reading and a conversation on this terribly corrupt and dangerous “plan” -
My new interview with Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee
Well, yesterday came and went and, drumroll please….no secondary sanctions have been announced. Now, Chinese, Indian and Turkish oil companies can get back to business buying as much Russian oil as they want/can. Soon Russia will be making more than they were.
btw, the Chinese probably never stopped buying Russian oil, but that is a piece for another day.
Instead, what actually happened on November 21 was that the Trump Administration came for Ukraine—as they always intended to do. The Secretary of the Army, Dan Driscoll, a very close associate of VP JD Vance, went to Kyiv and tried to bully the Ukrainians into accepting Trump’s 28 Point Plan to neuter Ukraine. Driscoll formally presented the plan to divide Ukraine now, and end it later, and the reality of what Ukraine and Europe was facing finally sunk in. Here was how the Atlantic story on the meeting began.
The most depressing thing from the above story was that the diplomat was surprised at what the administration was doing; or I should say that the unnamed diplomat had fallen for the Trump Administration’s long con. The long con was that they would ever do anything meaningful to hurt Putin and help Ukraine, that somehow they were honest brokers in this war. They never were. They have always wanted Putin to get the best deal possible and they have always wanted to severely weaken Ukraine. Whatever steps the administration took to seem to help Ukraine were performative; steps that were designed to make it look like they would be tough on Putin, but in the end never were more mirage-like than anything else.
Will Trump’s surrender to Putin be the event that causes a functional bipartisan pro-America opposition to Trump to finally form? We saw early signs of it when the Senate voted three times to roll back his terrible tariffs a few weeks ago. We then saw the American people give a very loud vote of no confidence in him in the November elections. We saw it this week in Congress with the extraordinary 427-1 vote to force him, finally, to stop the cover up and release the Epstein files. We’ve seen it in the warnings and panic coming from Republican political operatives and pollsters that 2026 is shaping up to be a rout. We’ve seen it in the incredible, ongoing transformation of Marjorie Taylor Greene into a leader of the opposition.
As I wrote yesterday I think the Capital is waking up to what a disaster Trump has been for the country; how unpopular he is; how corrupt and venal; how old, ailing and just delusional and bat-shit crazy he is. It is just too much. He has gone too far. The ridiculous scenes with Mamdani yesterday confirm how erratic and unhinged he has become. As do posts like this from this morning. It is just not clear that he understands what is happening around him any longer, and Congress must step in and start taking the keys away from him:
level of delusion here is deeply, deeply concerning
Trump is doing enormous harm to the country and it is long past time for Congress to rise up and challenge him far more forcefully. Could this dangerous Russia sell out be the moment that his Congressional coalition truly fractures, and a functional bipartisan, pro-democracy, pro-American coalition emerges? I don’t know but we should do everything we can now to make it happen. It’s why we need to be very, very loud on Monday. For those of you involved in grassroots groups please encourage them to organize calls to Congress this week. We have to fight this with everything we got……
Let’s Get To Work Everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In a new essay I talk about how one of the ways we win the 2026 midterms is by providing early support to our candidates and parties to allow them to staff up now, be loud now, define the terms of the debate now, before the inevitable onslaught on AI slop, Russian disinfo, and Trumpian lies funded through bribes and corruption wash across the land. The midterms could be won or lost in these next few months - not in the fall of 2026 - and we need be fighting now with everything we got.
Winning The Midterms - Support Our 2026 Candidates
Hopium Winning The House Campaign (2026) - $15,000 raised, $50,000 goal - Donate to all four endorsed House challengers with one click | Learn More | Watch our new interviews with Christina Bohannan (IA-01) and Jo Mendoza (AZ-06)
North Carolina and Ohio - Learn more about our 2026 opportunities in Ohio in this conversation with David Pepper, and in North Carolina in this new interview Anderson Clayton
Defending America, Winning The Big Arguments With Trump - We have two recommended actions today:
1 - Call Your Senators and Member Of The House And Demand They Act Upon Our Four-Part Agenda - We need to be loud people, very, very loud and make the case for our four part agenda:
Stand with Ukraine and our European allies, and far more forcefully challenge Trump’s traitorous efforts to sell out the US and the West to Russia by getting Congress to rebuke/issue a no confidence vote on his 28 point “plan”
Roll back Trump’s terrible, illegal tariffs that are re-igniting inflation, driving up prices, shifting the tax burden from the wealthy to working people, hurting small businesses and farmers, reviving tyrannical “taxation without representation,” and alienating governments and people throughout the world
Defend our democracy, rule of law, and our liberties by blocking the expansion of ICE, restoring due process for immigrants across the country, vigorously defending the 1st Amendment, warring against his outrageous targeting of his domestic political opponents, and ending the use of the military on our streets and the unlawful occupation of our cities
Fight Trump’s war on science, higher education and our public health; reverse - not delay - the cuts to the ACA and Medicaid; support and co-sponsor Rep. Haley Stevens’ effort to Impeach and remove Robert Kennedy
2 - Celebrate America, Our Constitution, Our 250th Birthday By Bringing Our Resolutions Project To Your Community - Next year, on July 4th, America celebrates it’s 250th birthday. We need to make this holiday, a celebration of our Declaration Of Independence from a mad king, our day, and not allow it to become his.
One way we can do this is by bringing our Resolutions Project to your community or state. Imagine if by July 4th of next year a large number of towns, counties and states had passed formal resolutions, in the spirit of our Declaration of Independence, defending our Constitution and condemning the “injuries,” “abuses,” and “usurpations” of our mad king. For as our Founders wrote in the Declaration:
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
So far Hopium members have introduced or passed resolutions in 85 communities in 23 states. In the coming days we will be convening to discuss how to bring this campaign to more places and start planning to Own The Fourth next year.
Finally, please self-reportyour activities to our daily paid subscriber chat. These reports help inspire all of us to do more and fight harder!
Keep working hard all, and remember Hopium is hope with a plan. We don’t just hope tomorrow will be better than today.
Amen, Simon. Trump has assaulted and debased the values our nation has championed and fought for around the world, and for which so many Americans have their lives. It’s disgusting and demoralizing. One has to wonder what the side deal is between Putin and Trump.
Amen, Simon. Trump has assaulted and debased the values our nation has championed and fought for around the world, and for which so many Americans have their lives. It’s disgusting and demoralizing. One has to wonder what the side deal is between Putin and Trump.
I can only hope he gets rebuked by Congress. Everything I’ve read makes my stomach churn for Ukraine.