I came here to share this news as well- thanks so much, Clinton and Leon for beating me to it!
My husband works for the Federal Govt in the Commerce Department and has been receiving the strange emails from OPM asking for responses. His manager wondered if the emails could be DOGE related. He and his colleagues are very concerned about it.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t it a huge threat to national security among other things to have an alternate email server with contact info of government employees?
I'm so sorry to hear about your husband having to deal with this insanity-- A good civil servant who just wants to do his job. We have a young family member who is also concerned they will lose their job. IDK what I would do, but I might consider hiring a lawyer, if that's affordable (not for many civil servants, I know).
I think it's a huge threat to national security to have an alternate email server, and they (who ever is installing it {ELON}) know it. Just look at the hissy fit they had over Hilary sending emails via an alternate server.
I look forward to reading about ways to push back.
Best of luck to your husband and you during this most stressful time.
Thank you, Jayne, for the kind words and support. You guessed it- it’s difficult to confirm, but it appears as if the emails originate from one of Elon’s former staff members at his company xAI who now works for him in Washington. Can’t even believe I’m typing those words…
The plan for my husband now is to continue his service to his country and not quit voluntarily, which seems like part of what DOGE is angling for. Good point on discussing with a lawyer. We’ll look into it.
I’m also staying tuned about ways to push back and get louder. At this point I feel more motivated than ever to get mobilized!
I get great ideas for being involved and feel emotionally supported by this group.
I posted earlier about how the US Air Force just a couple of hours ago reversed its decision to stop teaching new recruits about the Tuskeegee Airmen, and will continue to teach the course despite Trump wanting to get rid of it as part of getting rid of DEI in all federal agencies. They reversed course because they got pummeled with criticism from the public. We have to get/stay engaged and be loud!!
I had written to the Biden White House asking what they were doing to harden the agencies against this type of hostile takeover. They responded by repeating all the good things the Administration had done over the past 4 years. Not saying they needed to respond to me personally, but their reply left me with a sinking feeling of 'not much'.
There's supposed to be an opposition called the Democratic Party but the leadership is a joke. They are more worried about offending their deep pocket donors than they are about confronting the administration. Our leadership is beyond words. The only time I hear from them is when they want money. Has anyone ever laid out how the billion we gave them last year was spent?
I'm frustrated by this, too. I didn't have a strong opinion on whether or not Biden should step down, but hearing that an element of the decision-making process was George Clooney holding his $14 million (?) donation hostage until Biden exited made me cringe. I don't think that's exactly the "for the people" look we're going for.
And Clooney won't suffer the effects of all of this madness that Trump is inflicting on all of us because, as Simon said in his last video, the wealthy will be insulated from what is to come.
Sorry, his "work" during the campaign of 2016 is unforgivable. And now he wants to run the Democratic party? I don't think so. Part of the problem, not the solution.
I started having panic attacks when Biden announced he was going to run for a second term. He did not hold regular cabinet meetings, press conferences or make appearances on TV. He declined to be interviewed during the 2024 Super Bowl half time. His family was keeping him away from all those normal responsibilities of being President. Then he fed Kamala to the wolves on July 21. But we have to stop thinking about the past and plan for what is ahead of us.
He took the office of the presidency seriously he worked for the country. You would prefer him to have put on straw boater, grab a cane and cake walk across a stage à la the Convict-in-Chief? Interesting how many people forget what he really did for this country and wanted him to be more like a Convict-in-Chief style showman. How easily this country is duped.
Biden did big and important things, but a combination of an absurdly slow roll out for these programs (Electrify America anyone?) and an inaccurate reading of what economically stressed people really needed, led most Americans to not know what he had done for them. Plus, the repeal of the Child Tax Credit was a disaster politically. Thank you, Joe Manchin.
Slow roll out was his fault. You want a slow out? Let's talk about the Convict-in-Chief''s "infrastructure" week." That is a slow roll out, like never. Stop making him responsible for the misdeeds of the MAGAs. The MAGAts robbed his thunder and the Dems, except Pete Buttigieg, did little to correct the record. Such as comparing the roll out of successful programs to the 4 years of nothing being done except killing off how many citizens! Funny how no one mentions that slight inconvenience. Time to, once again, point out the difference between the legislative branch and the executive branch. Stop blaming Biden for non performance of the MAGAt ridden Congress ineptitude of the faux "Praise God" from the back waters of Louisiana.
As for not reading economically stressed citizens, again put the blame where it belongs - the former republican party. Now Fascists masquerading as the cult of the personality party MAGAts one and all.
You are educated and know how the three branches work. Most Americans are… well, I’ll just say, not. Unfortunately they do need to see, hear, and feel things that are working for them. And things have been largely slipping away for the working class for a long time. I am just barely keeping up and have no retirement to speak of. Only what I have in my house, and that may not be much, if anything at the rate things are going. Some if us gave been losing ground for decades. You folks might not know that. There is a lot of anger, fear, and resentment about how the system is rigged. And it is rigged.
"You would prefer him to have put on straw boater, grab a cane and cake walk across a stage..."
For the benefit of other readers... and the country: I would have preferred him to subject himself to a battery of 21st century cognitive tests -- and transparently made the summary available to the American people -- starting in early 2022, and then again annually -- like physical exams.
He's human like the rest of us ... despite the good policies that came from his administration.
I’m really sorry to see this argument re-litigated here in this moment. How is this infighting helping us to protect democracy or make our voices heard? I called my 2 Senators today to express my feelings about the confirmation votes. Taking some direct action seems like a more productive thing to do with my time.
I love what Biden did for our country. So visionary, inclusive and economically smart. And, I also think he was do focused on repairing, and getting us on the right track, even internationally, that he shut out the press. And I hear from reporters that they felt dissed and turned away from Biden, not reporting his accomplishments, letting him sink or swim. Thanks boys… so unprofessional.
Here is a very articulate message from Leigh McGowan, better known as Politics Girl, on the need for our Democratic leaders to be loud, confrontational – and, yes, be an effective obstacle to Trump’s authoritarian ambitions and deranged MAGA policies. Although posted on Hopium before, it merits repetition for those who missed it.
On Civil Discourse from Joyce Vance she had 5 Questions with Timothy Snyder last week. Professor Snyder proposes a shadow cabinet like what they have in the UK. I would be composed of prominent Democrats such as Pete Buttigieg and others who are articulate. They would post on social media, write op eds, speak at public events such as civic meetings and at universities. https://joycevance.substack.com/p/five-questions-with-professor-timothy
I’ve mentioned the shadow cabinet here several times. Thanks for bringing it up again. Snyder has renamed it the People’s Cabinet in one of his recent Substack posts I think to open it up to everyone and to frame it better. It would be good to revisit his thinking on that. However, it seems the Dems could be screeching from the rooftops and the press looks away. Meaning that all of us need to ramp it up in one Huge voice.
That was great! Agree with her 100%. It's frustrating that We The People have to spend so much time screaming into the void at Congress critters who still want to try to play nice with Republicans. That ship has sailed and is now careening towards an iceberg.
I so agree with her. I got a letter from Democrats today and it went into my trash can because Jaime Harrison wrote "as my grandmother often said when faced with unexpected circumstances and difficulties, "This too shall pass". I do not believe ANY of this will simply pass and I fear lasting reverberations. I hear Simon say call our congressmen...I did that Trump 1.0 and my congressmen from Ohio just sent me letters saying why they bowed to the king. It felt like such an utter waste of my time. I agree with Leigh, we have to get loud and we have to be out there about this. I do not know how to make an impact as an individual but I am trying to figure this out. Calling the same old people who frankly don't care what I have to say doesn't seem effective.
Thank you for posting this link. I had sent it from X to Simon too, hoping more people would see it. What I really would like is for someone to send it to Hakeem Jeffries & Chuck Schumer and ask them to answer her question, 'What the F**k are they doing?!?' Their lack of leadership is appalling!
WHAT are you doing to help change this? Do you attend meetings? Do you call your representatives, both national and regional? Negativism is the most effective weapon MAGA has against us. Thumb sucking seems to have become new past time for too many Democrats, or those who say they are Democrats. We have less than 2 years to turn back the tide. We can, but not if we snivel and point fingers. Don't like those who run the Democratic party? Do something to change it. Take a good, long, look at the younger ones now challenging the status quo, if these younger ones are to your liking, do what you can to help them, but please, please, don't sit on the sidelines and throw spit balls. That's what MAGA hopes and prays for.
I try to convince people that the Democratic Leadership is old, slow and out of touch. They lost 2/3 times to a deranged carnival barker. They are losers. They have to go. Pelosi, Clyburn, Hoyer, Durbin, etc. They are all ancient, barely know how to send a text and have no clue about half the voting public. Thank you for your service. Thank you for 2006, 2008 and 2018. But please just retire in peace.
Bruce, you need to stop bringing this sentiment in here or I am going to ask you to leave. It's over the top and ridiculous. You can make your points without this level of vitriol directed towards our own folks.
Actually they are more worried about not being the nice guys. I say, fuck being a nice guy. It is way past time we fought fire with fire. As far as I am concerned the whole lot of them has betrayed their oaths to the Constitution.
Is it time to start funding some billboards or a contantly changing board with the newest promise broken? Or the newest 2025 enactment. Remember during the Carter years when they had how many days the hostages were in Captivity on a tickertape on evening news?
That + misogyny and racism gave dump a decent amount of real support. But on top of that, he and his team stole the election. If I were talking about almost any other Republican, it would be a crazy conspiracy theory, but I'm talking about someone with an extensive history of criminal behavior, who absolutely could not afford to lose this election under any circumstances. He was not about to go straight so late in the 8th decade of his life, not when he could least afford to abandon the methods that have always worked so well for him.
Even if we can't ever prove it, we must confront this reality with an eye towards making sure it can't happen again. If we do not, then all future election results will be predetermined, with MAGA allowing just enough Democrats to win to give us the illusion that the system is working just fine.
Voter suppression is a form of election theft. Although I'm more inclined to believe that Harris votes were flipped to dump votes (remember all the enthusiasm for Harris? Those newly energized people didn't stay home), voter suppression certainly played a part. I think they used both tactics and maybe others.
Simon, with all due respect, they knew they were going to get the shit show. They all saw it for four long years during his first term. And I don't buy that high prices were the main problem; it was a Black woman at the top of the ticket; I agree with Black analysts like Eddie Glaude and Egberto Willies on this. If people sat home instead of voting, then they are complicit in the shit show. I live in a blue state where there are blow up dolls of trump on a neighbor's lawn; there is a cult loyalty here as well, never before seen in our history. No one ever had blow up dolls of Nixon, Reagan or Obama. This is sick. I'm doing what I can; supporting this site and a few others, and spreading the word. But I do hold the voters responsible for this.
The election was stolen. Do I sound like a crazy MAGAt? Not once you consider that dump has never done an honest thing in his life. Why would he go straight so late in the 8th decade, especially at a time when he could least afford to abandon the methods that have always worked so well for him?
Why aren’t congressional dem’s louder & bolder? Agree with the earlier commentator that the Dems are afraid of offending the corporate backers. That is in the past. Get louder and bolder! file lawsuits everywhere! Be on YouTube & lots of social media! What the heck are the congressional Democrats doing?
ABsolutely - - where are they??? We need them NOW. Why did so many vote for some of trump's cabinet picks? Maga didn't need those votes to win. Normalizing - that's what they seem to do. NO MORE OF THAT.
I send email to Coons asking them to get going with public push back messaging. This is ridiculous. Does it have get so bad that we need to go out on the streets to protest?
I had a discussion over the weekend with a local CSA owner. What they told me is quite terrifying. ICE grabbing people from any place they see fit. Her employees are terrified and are getting lawyer representation to have proper paperwork. On another subject, they told me that our food supply is going to be severely disrupted, gas prices will go up by 25% all due to tarrifs. Apparently they have some inside knowledge on that. But the food supply prices going up is a given. I am concerned that Trump will do his mafia thing and start extracting concessions with threats. We need push back.
Here in NJ, ICE has already been spotted at schools. As David Leopold pointed out, this could create a scenario wherein parents are afraid to send their children to school, compromising their education, but I'm equally concerned about the vulnerability of children being approached by ICE without a parent present. It's safe to assume that any guardrails that previously constrained ICE's interaction with unaccompanied minors are now moot.
Separately, I have mixed feelings about the narrative that people don't know what they were voting for. Even if they didn't realize they were voting for cancellation of medical research (source below), if they had a pulse between 2016 and 2020, they absolutely knew a vote for trump was a vote for racism and misogyny.
I share your mixed feelings ... saw many stories, shortly before and after the election, in which Latinos who voted for Trump stated they were convinced that he would only deport "the criminals," not their relatives and friends.
Many of those voters I know have parents and grandparents who were immigrants, and the hatred towards new immigrants is profound, even here in MA. These folks believe they are getting housing and welfare and committing all the crime.
ICE in schools is horrific. A whole lot of people who voted for trump are not going to be OK with their kids' or grandkids' classmates being pulled out of school by scary men with guns. Spare a thought, too, for the teachers and staff now needing to put themselves between ICE and kids. Our good media need to spread these stories or even the possibility of them far and wide.
Trying to stay steady here. I echo people's concern that there is not a unified leadership. I mean this is WAR. I notice that that there are "issues" that have more organized response. EG Women's Reproductive Rights (we have been fighting for years), but ICE/Immigration is a huge horrible humanitarian problem and it's going to be right in our faces immediately everywhere. There is no organized response to this. Thanks for naming it all every day Simon.... When you say Louder Faster Harder.. I really need to know what my TO DOS are. Thanks all.
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is responding to the new immigration policies. Individual states and municipalities like CA and NM are also strategizing with at least 17 Attorney Generals currently taking legal action regarding birthright citizenship.
There is also an organized response among nonprofit (therefore nonpolitical) organizations for legal challenges and being information warriors. https://unidosus.org/issues/immigration/
I agree that we are in a war and we need some generals. Don't tell me "God is on throne". I'm an atheist and the issue is Trump must be gotten off the throne. Our country literally cannot survive four more years of this.
We have a strategy here in Evanston but some Hispanic children are being kept out of our schools because they are afraid ICE is going to show up. There has been community training on how to deal with this and includes calling our local police. Over 100 people signed up for the training. Some of these families have been here for generations. I read about the raids in Chicago. Just so sad I'm shaking and lost my appetite.
Politics Girl’s latest video “What the F***?!” says it all. I tagged Eric Swalwell because he seems to be one of the few who gets it. I told him I feel like the starting gun went off and our feet are glued to the blocks. I fear the Dems are going to lose the grassroots support if they don’t start speaking up. We need to see our leadership doing better. I won’t stop doing the work, but right now I feel like I brought a knife to a gun fight.
Few Americans (including immigrants) would be objecting if the Trump regime really was deporting violent criminals and members of gangs involved in the drug trade and human trafficking, after due process. However, there is Zero indication that this is who Trump is targeting.
Absurdly, Trump claims he’ll be deporting "millions and millions of illegal aliens with criminal records". But those people simply don't exist!
Federal officials have documented roughly 425,000 non-citizens with criminal convictions on the ICE's "non-detained docket", and that’s over the past 40 (!) years. Last year, less than 1% of deported immigrants were kicked out for crimes – that is, crimes other than their initial violation of US immigration law.
No, Trump’s aim is to push a delusional and racist Make America White Again agenda. His aim is to instill fear in immigrant communities, legal citizens as well as undocumented migrants. And lest we forget: his prime objective is a power grab, setting aside established law and legal processes, and sidelining state and local authorities (especially Democratic ones).
We can stop him, slow him down, point out facts and ridicule him – if we’re loud and crystal clear.
Myth-busting fact: Undocumented immigrants seek to avoid coming to the attention of American authorities. This is why they have a much lower lever of violent crime than the migrants who arrived on the Mayflower!
Federal authorities such as ICE and the Border Patrol claim the power to conduct warrantless stops of people and vehicles within 100 miles of the US border. That includes within 100 miles of the West Coast, Eastern Seaboard or Gulf Coast.
What most people don’t know is that "two-thirds of the U.S. population lives within this 100-mile border enforcement zone".
It seems evident to me that in addition to trying to shore up all the holes in the dyke, some of our excellent communicators and present/recent officials, e.g., Buttigeig, Newsom, Harris & Walz, Raskin--need to get out there and plainly articulate and call out the entire horrific project. Articulate and shout out the end goals are of this campaign of multifanged terror. People need to see the forest for the trees, and our folks need get out there accordingly with the biggest bullhorns they can get, and say it over and over and over and over like a talking head on freaking Fox--we've seen with Trump the sheer potential and power of repetition of the most ludicrous claims to sow belief and move the electorate. We can and must do that too, except we have the freaking receipts behind us.
Over 20,000 structures have been destroyed, included schools, libraries, churches, shopping districts, infrastructure. There are 28 people who have died and 22 remaining missing. I do not see how rebuilding can ever be completed. It will take 25 - 30 years and many workers, including the many immigrants who work in construction. Building supplies will be in short supply for years. Paul Krugman wrote about this today: https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-deportation-nightmare-begins
Governor Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta are working on the insurance fraud and denials, price gouging and scams. There is also an arson investigation underway concerning at least one of the fires.
do you think because joe didnt pardon them in advance they dont want to risk it? i really believe Kamala Harris should be front and center as painful as that is. even if its just texting. and interviews that talk about FOTUS and not the election. she should be loud and proud!!
Kamala and Doug may have lost their house in Brentwood as the neighborhood was under evacuation orders. They need time to process all of this after the election. We need to give them time.
I agree that she should. We need leaders, a lot more. You mean pardoning them for what? Bogus Trump admin prosecutions? Would it have been possible to pardon people for unspecified future “crimes”?
Newsome blasted Trump on Saturday regarding his threat to withhold aid unless CA met his 2 demands. Problem is, CA is already using voter ID (whereas 2 states Trump won do not) and CA has consistently been releasing the same amount of water from whatever source since before Trump was president the first time. So Trump is WEAK for demanding CA do something that it's already doing, and Newsom called him out publically on it.
Newsome actually is doing a great job communicating about what his administration is doing about this disaster and pushing back in real time against Trump's lies.
This is good to see - we need more of this ... But why was this letter only co-signed by 20 Congressional Democrats - why not all Democrats in Congress, especially the Democratic leadership??
If one wants a GLIMMER OF HOPE for some progress in the nation - after MAGA (i.e. one day), please take a look at this interview between Don Lemon and the “ex-MAGA Granny”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpMKz-fOZnw . She refused a pardon from #47. Ms. Hemphill clearly defines the MAGA movement as a CULT!!
"I'll tell you what's at the bottom of it," he said. "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you."
Thanks.
P.S.: Do the following now! First, teach civics. Second, register voters. Third, teach civics. Rinse. Repeat.
I found this on Reddit and shared it on Twitter. There's a share button at the bottom. You copy the link and can share or send it anywhere.
https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/comments/1ibbbh7/this_was_posted_about_opm_in_our_union_chat/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
Clinton, so grateful you shared this!
Axios has an article today highlighting some of what is happening in the federal bureaucracy.
https://www.axios.com/2025/01/27/trump-federal-eorkers-inspectors-general
And as I heard, they're all resisting. They came back to work today and Congressional Democrats are pushing back: https://democrats-appropriations.house.gov/news/press-releases/rebuking-late-night-purge-inspectors-general-house-democratic-ranking-members.
I came here to share this news as well- thanks so much, Clinton and Leon for beating me to it!
My husband works for the Federal Govt in the Commerce Department and has been receiving the strange emails from OPM asking for responses. His manager wondered if the emails could be DOGE related. He and his colleagues are very concerned about it.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t it a huge threat to national security among other things to have an alternate email server with contact info of government employees?
This Reddit thread seems to have some good ways to push back https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/comments/1ibamf0/feds_see_something_say_something/
but boy is it scary. Feels like a hostile takeover.
I'm so sorry to hear about your husband having to deal with this insanity-- A good civil servant who just wants to do his job. We have a young family member who is also concerned they will lose their job. IDK what I would do, but I might consider hiring a lawyer, if that's affordable (not for many civil servants, I know).
I think it's a huge threat to national security to have an alternate email server, and they (who ever is installing it {ELON}) know it. Just look at the hissy fit they had over Hilary sending emails via an alternate server.
I look forward to reading about ways to push back.
Best of luck to your husband and you during this most stressful time.
Thank you, Jayne, for the kind words and support. You guessed it- it’s difficult to confirm, but it appears as if the emails originate from one of Elon’s former staff members at his company xAI who now works for him in Washington. Can’t even believe I’m typing those words…
The plan for my husband now is to continue his service to his country and not quit voluntarily, which seems like part of what DOGE is angling for. Good point on discussing with a lawyer. We’ll look into it.
I’m also staying tuned about ways to push back and get louder. At this point I feel more motivated than ever to get mobilized!
So glad to have this group.
I get great ideas for being involved and feel emotionally supported by this group.
I posted earlier about how the US Air Force just a couple of hours ago reversed its decision to stop teaching new recruits about the Tuskeegee Airmen, and will continue to teach the course despite Trump wanting to get rid of it as part of getting rid of DEI in all federal agencies. They reversed course because they got pummeled with criticism from the public. We have to get/stay engaged and be loud!!
Excellent! Thank you for sharing.
I love this and will take every bit of good news I can get. Thank you for sharing. In the meantime, I'm dusting off my megaphone!
I had written to the Biden White House asking what they were doing to harden the agencies against this type of hostile takeover. They responded by repeating all the good things the Administration had done over the past 4 years. Not saying they needed to respond to me personally, but their reply left me with a sinking feeling of 'not much'.
Simon: is not screaming headline news? Loud and Fast??
Disregard. The barn door's already open:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trump-administration-tests-power-email-every-federal-employee-rcna189126
There's supposed to be an opposition called the Democratic Party but the leadership is a joke. They are more worried about offending their deep pocket donors than they are about confronting the administration. Our leadership is beyond words. The only time I hear from them is when they want money. Has anyone ever laid out how the billion we gave them last year was spent?
I'm frustrated by this, too. I didn't have a strong opinion on whether or not Biden should step down, but hearing that an element of the decision-making process was George Clooney holding his $14 million (?) donation hostage until Biden exited made me cringe. I don't think that's exactly the "for the people" look we're going for.
And Clooney won't suffer the effects of all of this madness that Trump is inflicting on all of us because, as Simon said in his last video, the wealthy will be insulated from what is to come.
Ashley, You might be interested in this: https://the.ink/p/hard-truths-interview-faiz-shakir-democratic-national-committee-chair
Sorry, his "work" during the campaign of 2016 is unforgivable. And now he wants to run the Democratic party? I don't think so. Part of the problem, not the solution.
I started having panic attacks when Biden announced he was going to run for a second term. He did not hold regular cabinet meetings, press conferences or make appearances on TV. He declined to be interviewed during the 2024 Super Bowl half time. His family was keeping him away from all those normal responsibilities of being President. Then he fed Kamala to the wolves on July 21. But we have to stop thinking about the past and plan for what is ahead of us.
Really? Here's an article that might put it in perspective. https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5053542-biden-5-things-accomplishments.
He took the office of the presidency seriously he worked for the country. You would prefer him to have put on straw boater, grab a cane and cake walk across a stage à la the Convict-in-Chief? Interesting how many people forget what he really did for this country and wanted him to be more like a Convict-in-Chief style showman. How easily this country is duped.
Biden did big and important things, but a combination of an absurdly slow roll out for these programs (Electrify America anyone?) and an inaccurate reading of what economically stressed people really needed, led most Americans to not know what he had done for them. Plus, the repeal of the Child Tax Credit was a disaster politically. Thank you, Joe Manchin.
Slow roll out was his fault. You want a slow out? Let's talk about the Convict-in-Chief''s "infrastructure" week." That is a slow roll out, like never. Stop making him responsible for the misdeeds of the MAGAs. The MAGAts robbed his thunder and the Dems, except Pete Buttigieg, did little to correct the record. Such as comparing the roll out of successful programs to the 4 years of nothing being done except killing off how many citizens! Funny how no one mentions that slight inconvenience. Time to, once again, point out the difference between the legislative branch and the executive branch. Stop blaming Biden for non performance of the MAGAt ridden Congress ineptitude of the faux "Praise God" from the back waters of Louisiana.
As for not reading economically stressed citizens, again put the blame where it belongs - the former republican party. Now Fascists masquerading as the cult of the personality party MAGAts one and all.
You are educated and know how the three branches work. Most Americans are… well, I’ll just say, not. Unfortunately they do need to see, hear, and feel things that are working for them. And things have been largely slipping away for the working class for a long time. I am just barely keeping up and have no retirement to speak of. Only what I have in my house, and that may not be much, if anything at the rate things are going. Some if us gave been losing ground for decades. You folks might not know that. There is a lot of anger, fear, and resentment about how the system is rigged. And it is rigged.
"You would prefer him to have put on straw boater, grab a cane and cake walk across a stage..."
For the benefit of other readers... and the country: I would have preferred him to subject himself to a battery of 21st century cognitive tests -- and transparently made the summary available to the American people -- starting in early 2022, and then again annually -- like physical exams.
He's human like the rest of us ... despite the good policies that came from his administration.
I’m really sorry to see this argument re-litigated here in this moment. How is this infighting helping us to protect democracy or make our voices heard? I called my 2 Senators today to express my feelings about the confirmation votes. Taking some direct action seems like a more productive thing to do with my time.
I love what Biden did for our country. So visionary, inclusive and economically smart. And, I also think he was do focused on repairing, and getting us on the right track, even internationally, that he shut out the press. And I hear from reporters that they felt dissed and turned away from Biden, not reporting his accomplishments, letting him sink or swim. Thanks boys… so unprofessional.
Here is a very articulate message from Leigh McGowan, better known as Politics Girl, on the need for our Democratic leaders to be loud, confrontational – and, yes, be an effective obstacle to Trump’s authoritarian ambitions and deranged MAGA policies. Although posted on Hopium before, it merits repetition for those who missed it.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zBYoYr7NAZA
Thanks for posting this again
This is the first I've heard of this. (I've been doing other things.) Thanks!
On Civil Discourse from Joyce Vance she had 5 Questions with Timothy Snyder last week. Professor Snyder proposes a shadow cabinet like what they have in the UK. I would be composed of prominent Democrats such as Pete Buttigieg and others who are articulate. They would post on social media, write op eds, speak at public events such as civic meetings and at universities. https://joycevance.substack.com/p/five-questions-with-professor-timothy
Snyder is in Vienna! We need him to be here if he is so serious about saving democracy
I presume you don’t mean Vienna, Maine? (Population 578. For some bizarre reason, Mainers insist on pronouncing it Vaiennuh.)
https://www.viennamaine.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/Aerial%20View%202005%203.jpg
I’ve mentioned the shadow cabinet here several times. Thanks for bringing it up again. Snyder has renamed it the People’s Cabinet in one of his recent Substack posts I think to open it up to everyone and to frame it better. It would be good to revisit his thinking on that. However, it seems the Dems could be screeching from the rooftops and the press looks away. Meaning that all of us need to ramp it up in one Huge voice.
https://open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p/an-alternative-cabinet?r=883wn&utm_medium=ios
That was great! Agree with her 100%. It's frustrating that We The People have to spend so much time screaming into the void at Congress critters who still want to try to play nice with Republicans. That ship has sailed and is now careening towards an iceberg.
Unfortunately, her video expressed my feelings pretty accurately.
I so agree with her. I got a letter from Democrats today and it went into my trash can because Jaime Harrison wrote "as my grandmother often said when faced with unexpected circumstances and difficulties, "This too shall pass". I do not believe ANY of this will simply pass and I fear lasting reverberations. I hear Simon say call our congressmen...I did that Trump 1.0 and my congressmen from Ohio just sent me letters saying why they bowed to the king. It felt like such an utter waste of my time. I agree with Leigh, we have to get loud and we have to be out there about this. I do not know how to make an impact as an individual but I am trying to figure this out. Calling the same old people who frankly don't care what I have to say doesn't seem effective.
Thank you for posting this link. I had sent it from X to Simon too, hoping more people would see it. What I really would like is for someone to send it to Hakeem Jeffries & Chuck Schumer and ask them to answer her question, 'What the F**k are they doing?!?' Their lack of leadership is appalling!
You might be interested in Faiz Shakir's views. He's running for DNC chair. https://the.ink/p/hard-truths-interview-faiz-shakir-democratic-national-committee-chair
WHAT are you doing to help change this? Do you attend meetings? Do you call your representatives, both national and regional? Negativism is the most effective weapon MAGA has against us. Thumb sucking seems to have become new past time for too many Democrats, or those who say they are Democrats. We have less than 2 years to turn back the tide. We can, but not if we snivel and point fingers. Don't like those who run the Democratic party? Do something to change it. Take a good, long, look at the younger ones now challenging the status quo, if these younger ones are to your liking, do what you can to help them, but please, please, don't sit on the sidelines and throw spit balls. That's what MAGA hopes and prays for.
I try to convince people that the Democratic Leadership is old, slow and out of touch. They lost 2/3 times to a deranged carnival barker. They are losers. They have to go. Pelosi, Clyburn, Hoyer, Durbin, etc. They are all ancient, barely know how to send a text and have no clue about half the voting public. Thank you for your service. Thank you for 2006, 2008 and 2018. But please just retire in peace.
Bruce, you need to stop bringing this sentiment in here or I am going to ask you to leave. It's over the top and ridiculous. You can make your points without this level of vitriol directed towards our own folks.
Thank you.
Actually they are more worried about not being the nice guys. I say, fuck being a nice guy. It is way past time we fought fire with fire. As far as I am concerned the whole lot of them has betrayed their oaths to the Constitution.
Is it time to start funding some billboards or a contantly changing board with the newest promise broken? Or the newest 2025 enactment. Remember during the Carter years when they had how many days the hostages were in Captivity on a tickertape on evening news?
Or when Walter Cronkite counted the wounded and dead every night on television. Truth to power.
Ok, as I said before we need portable projectors in public places with messaging to show up.
exactly - this is a great strategy that I've been discussing with folks. How to do, where to start. And, importantly, where to get the money.
Isn't another layer of The Problem the fact that a majority of people did sign up for this with their vote?
Trump did not get a majority; and no, a majority of Americans did not vote for this shitshow. They voted for lower prices.
That + misogyny and racism gave dump a decent amount of real support. But on top of that, he and his team stole the election. If I were talking about almost any other Republican, it would be a crazy conspiracy theory, but I'm talking about someone with an extensive history of criminal behavior, who absolutely could not afford to lose this election under any circumstances. He was not about to go straight so late in the 8th decade of his life, not when he could least afford to abandon the methods that have always worked so well for him.
Even if we can't ever prove it, we must confront this reality with an eye towards making sure it can't happen again. If we do not, then all future election results will be predetermined, with MAGA allowing just enough Democrats to win to give us the illusion that the system is working just fine.
They didn't have to steal anything; old fashioned voter suppression was good enough.
Voter suppression is a form of election theft. Although I'm more inclined to believe that Harris votes were flipped to dump votes (remember all the enthusiasm for Harris? Those newly energized people didn't stay home), voter suppression certainly played a part. I think they used both tactics and maybe others.
Simon, with all due respect, they knew they were going to get the shit show. They all saw it for four long years during his first term. And I don't buy that high prices were the main problem; it was a Black woman at the top of the ticket; I agree with Black analysts like Eddie Glaude and Egberto Willies on this. If people sat home instead of voting, then they are complicit in the shit show. I live in a blue state where there are blow up dolls of trump on a neighbor's lawn; there is a cult loyalty here as well, never before seen in our history. No one ever had blow up dolls of Nixon, Reagan or Obama. This is sick. I'm doing what I can; supporting this site and a few others, and spreading the word. But I do hold the voters responsible for this.
The election was stolen. Do I sound like a crazy MAGAt? Not once you consider that dump has never done an honest thing in his life. Why would he go straight so late in the 8th decade, especially at a time when he could least afford to abandon the methods that have always worked so well for him?
Why aren’t congressional dem’s louder & bolder? Agree with the earlier commentator that the Dems are afraid of offending the corporate backers. That is in the past. Get louder and bolder! file lawsuits everywhere! Be on YouTube & lots of social media! What the heck are the congressional Democrats doing?
A third party is needed if this crap continues.
A left leaning third party only helps Republicans win by more. JMO
Finlandization is my guess.
I suspect they have targets on their backs.
ABsolutely - - where are they??? We need them NOW. Why did so many vote for some of trump's cabinet picks? Maga didn't need those votes to win. Normalizing - that's what they seem to do. NO MORE OF THAT.
We need new leadership in the party.
I send email to Coons asking them to get going with public push back messaging. This is ridiculous. Does it have get so bad that we need to go out on the streets to protest?
I had a discussion over the weekend with a local CSA owner. What they told me is quite terrifying. ICE grabbing people from any place they see fit. Her employees are terrified and are getting lawyer representation to have proper paperwork. On another subject, they told me that our food supply is going to be severely disrupted, gas prices will go up by 25% all due to tarrifs. Apparently they have some inside knowledge on that. But the food supply prices going up is a given. I am concerned that Trump will do his mafia thing and start extracting concessions with threats. We need push back.
I think so
Here in NJ, ICE has already been spotted at schools. As David Leopold pointed out, this could create a scenario wherein parents are afraid to send their children to school, compromising their education, but I'm equally concerned about the vulnerability of children being approached by ICE without a parent present. It's safe to assume that any guardrails that previously constrained ICE's interaction with unaccompanied minors are now moot.
Separately, I have mixed feelings about the narrative that people don't know what they were voting for. Even if they didn't realize they were voting for cancellation of medical research (source below), if they had a pulse between 2016 and 2020, they absolutely knew a vote for trump was a vote for racism and misogyny.
https://www.science.org/content/article/trump-hits-nih-devastating-freezes-meetings-travel-communications-and-hiring?fbclid=IwY2xjawIElYlleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHaqy5CinPRNlTt6S7H26K553rZaMs1q_6QamUAj-pNt7N5-nvM8uGcHNUA_aem_of3pDl9eelA4zgI5xAv84w
I share your mixed feelings ... saw many stories, shortly before and after the election, in which Latinos who voted for Trump stated they were convinced that he would only deport "the criminals," not their relatives and friends.
Many of those voters I know have parents and grandparents who were immigrants, and the hatred towards new immigrants is profound, even here in MA. These folks believe they are getting housing and welfare and committing all the crime.
ICE in schools is horrific. A whole lot of people who voted for trump are not going to be OK with their kids' or grandkids' classmates being pulled out of school by scary men with guns. Spare a thought, too, for the teachers and staff now needing to put themselves between ICE and kids. Our good media need to spread these stories or even the possibility of them far and wide.
Agree 💯.
Trying to stay steady here. I echo people's concern that there is not a unified leadership. I mean this is WAR. I notice that that there are "issues" that have more organized response. EG Women's Reproductive Rights (we have been fighting for years), but ICE/Immigration is a huge horrible humanitarian problem and it's going to be right in our faces immediately everywhere. There is no organized response to this. Thanks for naming it all every day Simon.... When you say Louder Faster Harder.. I really need to know what my TO DOS are. Thanks all.
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is responding to the new immigration policies. Individual states and municipalities like CA and NM are also strategizing with at least 17 Attorney Generals currently taking legal action regarding birthright citizenship.
https://www.kunm.org/local-news/2025-01-21/new-mexico-and-17-other-states-sue-over-trump-order-ending-birthright-citizenship
There is also an organized response among nonprofit (therefore nonpolitical) organizations for legal challenges and being information warriors. https://unidosus.org/issues/immigration/
https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/after-day-one-high-level-analysis-trumps-first-executive-actions
https://www.aclu.org/trump-on-immigration etc.
I agree that we are in a war and we need some generals. Don't tell me "God is on throne". I'm an atheist and the issue is Trump must be gotten off the throne. Our country literally cannot survive four more years of this.
We have a strategy here in Evanston but some Hispanic children are being kept out of our schools because they are afraid ICE is going to show up. There has been community training on how to deal with this and includes calling our local police. Over 100 people signed up for the training. Some of these families have been here for generations. I read about the raids in Chicago. Just so sad I'm shaking and lost my appetite.
Politics Girl’s latest video “What the F***?!” says it all. I tagged Eric Swalwell because he seems to be one of the few who gets it. I told him I feel like the starting gun went off and our feet are glued to the blocks. I fear the Dems are going to lose the grassroots support if they don’t start speaking up. We need to see our leadership doing better. I won’t stop doing the work, but right now I feel like I brought a knife to a gun fight.
Few Americans (including immigrants) would be objecting if the Trump regime really was deporting violent criminals and members of gangs involved in the drug trade and human trafficking, after due process. However, there is Zero indication that this is who Trump is targeting.
Absurdly, Trump claims he’ll be deporting "millions and millions of illegal aliens with criminal records". But those people simply don't exist!
Federal officials have documented roughly 425,000 non-citizens with criminal convictions on the ICE's "non-detained docket", and that’s over the past 40 (!) years. Last year, less than 1% of deported immigrants were kicked out for crimes – that is, crimes other than their initial violation of US immigration law.
No, Trump’s aim is to push a delusional and racist Make America White Again agenda. His aim is to instill fear in immigrant communities, legal citizens as well as undocumented migrants. And lest we forget: his prime objective is a power grab, setting aside established law and legal processes, and sidelining state and local authorities (especially Democratic ones).
We can stop him, slow him down, point out facts and ridicule him – if we’re loud and crystal clear.
Myth-busting fact: Undocumented immigrants seek to avoid coming to the attention of American authorities. This is why they have a much lower lever of violent crime than the migrants who arrived on the Mayflower!
Or our current President.
And also why they don't try to vote!!!
Federal authorities such as ICE and the Border Patrol claim the power to conduct warrantless stops of people and vehicles within 100 miles of the US border. That includes within 100 miles of the West Coast, Eastern Seaboard or Gulf Coast.
What most people don’t know is that "two-thirds of the U.S. population lives within this 100-mile border enforcement zone".
I encourage you to look at this map:
https://www.southernborder.org/100_mile_border_enforcement_zone
don't think there is such a thing as a legal "warrantless" search by any federal agency, ever. but not an attorney.
All the 'good' white criminals were pardoned. The 'bad' brown aliens will be deported.
Yup. Doing the opposite would have been far better for American society and American security.
It seems evident to me that in addition to trying to shore up all the holes in the dyke, some of our excellent communicators and present/recent officials, e.g., Buttigeig, Newsom, Harris & Walz, Raskin--need to get out there and plainly articulate and call out the entire horrific project. Articulate and shout out the end goals are of this campaign of multifanged terror. People need to see the forest for the trees, and our folks need get out there accordingly with the biggest bullhorns they can get, and say it over and over and over and over like a talking head on freaking Fox--we've seen with Trump the sheer potential and power of repetition of the most ludicrous claims to sow belief and move the electorate. We can and must do that too, except we have the freaking receipts behind us.
Newsom has been busy.
Over 20,000 structures have been destroyed, included schools, libraries, churches, shopping districts, infrastructure. There are 28 people who have died and 22 remaining missing. I do not see how rebuilding can ever be completed. It will take 25 - 30 years and many workers, including the many immigrants who work in construction. Building supplies will be in short supply for years. Paul Krugman wrote about this today: https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-deportation-nightmare-begins
Governor Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta are working on the insurance fraud and denials, price gouging and scams. There is also an arson investigation underway concerning at least one of the fires.
He’s good! He needs to mint himself/light some fires. Maybe he can nudge Harris.
do you think because joe didnt pardon them in advance they dont want to risk it? i really believe Kamala Harris should be front and center as painful as that is. even if its just texting. and interviews that talk about FOTUS and not the election. she should be loud and proud!!
Kamala and Doug may have lost their house in Brentwood as the neighborhood was under evacuation orders. They need time to process all of this after the election. We need to give them time.
I agree that she should. We need leaders, a lot more. You mean pardoning them for what? Bogus Trump admin prosecutions? Would it have been possible to pardon people for unspecified future “crimes”?
Newsome blasted Trump on Saturday regarding his threat to withhold aid unless CA met his 2 demands. Problem is, CA is already using voter ID (whereas 2 states Trump won do not) and CA has consistently been releasing the same amount of water from whatever source since before Trump was president the first time. So Trump is WEAK for demanding CA do something that it's already doing, and Newsom called him out publically on it.
Newsome actually is doing a great job communicating about what his administration is doing about this disaster and pushing back in real time against Trump's lies.
“During your campaign, you repeatedly promised you would lower food prices 'immediately' if elected president,” read the letter, which was sent...
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/democrats-slam-trump-not-making-good-promise-lower-food-prices-rcna189179
This is good to see - we need more of this ... But why was this letter only co-signed by 20 Congressional Democrats - why not all Democrats in Congress, especially the Democratic leadership??
seven dem senators voted for kristi noem, the puppy/goat killer and FOTUS toady who watched him dance on stage for 30 mins.
Trump 2.0 -- "American carnage" -- week One. "Underwear will be worn on the outside."
https://youtu.be/ukr3Y3unFhg?si=CxSaJrUlzNehmgP_
Shocking parallels between Hitler's purge of Jews & Trump's purge of Brown Skin people!
Simon et al.:
If one wants a GLIMMER OF HOPE for some progress in the nation - after MAGA (i.e. one day), please take a look at this interview between Don Lemon and the “ex-MAGA Granny”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpMKz-fOZnw . She refused a pardon from #47. Ms. Hemphill clearly defines the MAGA movement as a CULT!!
So, the opposition needs to operate with cult behavior in mind. This situation is beyond politics; think of the drama of the past week. Are eggs lower? Has housing become more affordable? However, there might be more divorces in the MAGA Cult: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYxNkOp0WiQ&list=TLPQMjcwMTIwMjXxZA4cgQhM7A&index=3 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRDfbMCzuEc&list=TLPQMjcwMTIwMjXxZA4cgQhM7A&index=2 . To my eyes, it is about IDENTITY. Remember LBJ’s quote:
"I'll tell you what's at the bottom of it," he said. "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you."
Thanks.
P.S.: Do the following now! First, teach civics. Second, register voters. Third, teach civics. Rinse. Repeat.