A Cabinet of Deplorables?

The president-elect told everyone that he would exact revenge and retribution against those who tried to thwart him during his previous term in office. Many thought this was just idle chatter. They are being proven wrong. Although some of the announced choices for posts in the new administration are accomplished professionals, many are not. Some of these choices are people who have voiced opposition to the policies of the departments they are poised to lead. Others are not remotely qualified and may have been chosen to be the undoing of their selected department.

He tried to do an end run around the required practice of “Senatorial Advise and Consent”, common to all Cabinet and other senior position nominations, by suggesting that the Senate recess after his Inauguration, so he could initiate appointments without hearings. He even tried to push forward his choice for the position of Senate Majority Leader, Senator Rick Scott of Florida. The Senate, voting by secret ballot, selected Senator John Thune of South Dakota instead. Thune was the choice of the outgoing leader, Mitch McConnell. So, at least at first, the Senate noted it was not a lapdog. Time shall tell how far this goes as DJT appreciates neither disobedience nor disloyalty. The recess appointments would allow his nominees to avoid those pesky FBI background checks that previously found unsavory tidbits and subsequently derailed candidates for matters such as hiring undocumented workers, drunk driving records, and extra-marital affairs. He appears to have forgotten, or perhaps ignored, the Constitutional principle of separation of powers whereby the entities of Judicial, Legislative, and Executive authorities are each separate and equal bodies not subjugated to any other. He previously disdained the concept of the Rule of Law; I expect, sadly, this will continue.

A few of the early nominees are noted below.

Senator Marco Rubio, the senior senator from Florida, is the nominee for Secretary of State and is a knowledgeable politician with expertise in foreign affairs. In 2016, Rubio ran for president in the Republican primaries against DJT. He has been active in foreign relations and concerns about South America and Taiwan. He is a first-generation American with parents who emigrated from Cuba. Rubio and his wife live in Miami and have four children. His net worth is around $500,000. This announcement received positive responses from legislators.

The budget for State, which includes US AID, is around 85 billion.

Governor Doug Burgham, from North Dakota, has been in office since 2016 and is a billionaire. He ran for president in the 2024 Republican primaries. His wealth comes from success in software, real estate, and venture capitalist businesses. In 2001, he sold his software company to Microsoft for a billion dollars. He has been nominated for the position of Secretary of the Interior. The Department of the Interior monitors many western lands through its oversight of Indian Affairs, the vast western ranges of public lands, and many areas of natural resources. DJT wanted public lands opened for drilling and decreased tribal boundaries and some land protection. These were later restored by President Biden. Burgham is married to his second wife and has two children. Governor Burgham is said to be a supporter of carbon capture and fracking and is opposed to abortion rights. This department’s annual allocation is around 92 billion dollars.

Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota, perhaps best known for bragging about shooting her disobedient dog at a gravel pit, was once considered for the role of Vice-President on the Republican ticket. A former Congressional representative, she was elected governor in 2019. She is a farmer and rancher and lives on her family farm. She and her husband have been married for over thirty years and have three children. Their net worth is estimated to be around three million. Even though her state is not a border state, Noem sent National Guard forces to the southern border and claimed that Mexican cartels were colluding with South Dakota tribal populations. (She was then banned from tribal lands by Native American leaders who considered her remarks outrageous. Reservations comprise about ten percent of her state.) Although she has no experience in public safety or security, other than as a governor, she was nominated for the position of Secretary of Homeland Security.

This department addresses issues such as immigration, Artificial Intelligence, customs, anti-terrorism, and disaster relief and has a budget of over 50 billion dollars.

A Fox weekend TV announcer and National Guard military veteran, Pete Hegseth was the nominee for Defense Secretary. Although he had twenty years of military experience in the Guard, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, he frequently criticized decisions by military officials from his Fox position. Hegseth wrote a book about the military but has no corporation or administrative experience. Between his book sales and TV work, he is estimated to have a worth of about six million. He called the January 6^th insurrectionists patriots and advocated for pardons for others convicted of war crimes while enlisted. Known for disparaging the role of women and minorities in the services, he reportedly said women do not belong in combat units with men. He voluntarily left the service after unit members questioned some tattoos he brandished that some considered associated with white extremist groups. He has been married three times and has seven children. (And this does not include any details about the NDA a woman who accused him of rape, signed after an alleged pay-off.)

The Pentagon budget covers each Armed Service division plus has funds for use with international assistance. It awards contracts as needed to support logistics. The Defense budget for 2024 is $841 billion or 12.5% of the US budget.

Now we come to a position promised to RFK Jr. for his endorsement during the campaign. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. was selected for the position of Secretary of Health and Human Services. Kennedy is known for his anti-vax campaigns, his opposition to Covid care, and the CDC. A lawyer, he won significant protections for many riverways. He is a supporter of conspiracy theories, especially relating to autism, (many of which have been disproven), and opposes many food and drug government regulations. He supports the use of raw milk, which can expose consumers to cowpox, and, possibly, bird flu. Kennedy opposes the use of fluoride in the water supply. Known for his work on environmental issues, he more recently became an advocate against the use of food and drug additives in the American diet. And encourages healthy diets to reduce what he called the “chronic disease epidemic.” He promises to deter the NIH's focus on viruses. RFK Jr. also has alleged sex scandals in his background, said he never claimed to be an altar boy, and admitted to significant drug use in college and beyond. He is married to his third wife and has six children. They are estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of about 15 million.

This Department covers Federal Health programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, CHIP, the CDC, NIH, public health, Indian healthcare, people with disabilities, and addiction services. The HHS budget for 2024 was 144.3 billion in discretionary spending and over a trillion in mandatory spending.

So where do we go from here? These are only a few of the selections so far. I plan to go further next time, but there is so much happening. Writing in The Unpopulist, Robert Tracinski states that this is a cabinet of nihilists who will be loyal to DJT, not their jobs.

He states that “each appointment is a deliberate negation, even a mockery of the function of the government he or she will be in charge of.” He adds these individuals are not merely unqualified, they are disqualified. They are anti-qualified – the antithesis of each office…

‘Tracinski compares Trump to the emperor Caligula, who famously showed his contempt for the Roman Senate, and for any nominal checks on his own power, by proposing to appoint his favorite horse, Incitatus, as a consul.’

Authoritarians do not want to strengthen government, they want to weaken it, according to Bill Kristol who wrote in the Bulwark. By reducing rules and procedures, there are fewer roadblocks toward their exercise of capricious power.

“After all, if Trump isn’t checked now, what are the prospects of checking him later, when he will have succeeded in this first effort at intimidation, and when he will have all the key powers of the executive branch at his disposal?

As the political scientist Jeffrey Tulis recently pointed out, the “process of normalization” of Trump and his authoritarian spirit is very far along. That normalization over the past few years is in fact what made possible his recent electoral victory.

But to yield now to these appointments would be a normalization not just of Trump as a wannabe authoritarian but as actual, governing authoritarian.”

The Washington Post recently reported:

“There’s always been this issue about Trump. Should he be taken seriously but not literally, literally but not seriously, or both literally and seriously? At this point, after the campaign he waged, after sweeping all seven battleground states and winning the popular vote, it seems that taking him literally and seriously is the right way to view what’s happened to date.

Trump appears intent on making good on what he pledged as a candidate. He is going after what he calls “the deep state,” the vast federal bureaucracy that he saw as resisting his wishes during his first term. He is determined to have his way with the Pentagon brass, after several generals who served in his first administration turned on him. And he appears ready to go after those in the legal system who he feels went after him. Trump demands loyalty and in his early appointments is rewarding loyalty. That makes this coming administration far different from his first one.

Trump won the election on a promise again to try to shake up the status quo. Many voters bought it. The president-elect is gambling that those who voted for him were prepared for the amount of disruption that his early nominations suggest is coming.”

So what comes next? The New York Times reports on recent Democratic efforts.

“The Democratic effort will rely on the work of hundreds of lawyers, who are being recruited to combat Trump administration policies on a range of Democratic priorities. Already, advocacy groups have begun workshopping cases and recruiting potential plaintiffs to challenge expected regulations, laws and administrative actions starting on Day 1.

Democracy Forward, a legal group that formed after Mr. Trump won in 2016, has built a multimillion-dollar war chest and marshaled more than 800 lawyers to press a full-throated legal response across a wide range of issues.

Democrats have a growing belief that their efforts must extend beyond the political sphere, trying to go on offense in a splintered media environment where conservatives have amassed more influence. One new liberal dark-money group began prospecting for donors with a pitch that it would unearth unflattering revelations about the Murdoch family and Elon Musk — both pro-Trump media magnates.

The group, called the Two Plus Two Coalition, plans to “target the hidden sources of disinformation and expose them for what they are,” according to a donor prospectus being circulated this past week. The group asked donors for a minimum investment of $1 million, and was aiming for an annual budget of $10 million to $15 million.”

Time will tell. The circus is just beginning. We shall see if the clowns or a Ringmaster is in charge.

Til next week-Peace.

A Divided Country Chooses a Charlatan

 

Painting a dark picture of America today, he set groups against each other. He promoted nativism, racism, and intolerance of immigrants, undocumented persons, and others. He claimed to care about women and vowed to be their protector, even as he fragmented their rights. Alternately misogynistic and demeaning, he claimed his opponent was dumb, despite her several degrees. Cheering on the Dobbs decision, he further denigrated women and made vile sexual comments against his opponent. Additionally, he cheered toxic masculinity and just plain lied about almost everything. Even though he claimed to be a friend of those who felt left out, his campaign was funded by big corporations who have been happily exploiting the same people. The Silicon Valley billionaires who disliked regulations poured in millions of dollars. The oil executives, whom he promised to assist, added millions more. And his super fan, Billionaire Elon Musk used his X site as a propaganda machine, spending over 100 million dollars to pump him up on the campaign trail. The Hedge Fund executives and others on Wall Street wanted a lower corporate tax rate and added more funds to the kitty.

Whoever said you cannot buy a presidency in America was wrong.

There seems to be some collective memory deficit depicting Morning in America applied to the first term he served. It was not a Reagan-esque experience at all. My memory includes a massive worldwide Women's March shortly after his inauguration that protested his election. That was followed by his attempt at a Muslim ban that caused consternation across many countries, including our own. Battles from court to court ensued, jeopardizing many Americans and dividing families. Generations of Middle Eastern families who lived here for years suddenly found themselves targeted.

Soon after came the manufactured immigrant crises and family separations. Because these operations were so poorly planned, facilities were incapable of meeting the needs of those detained and children were separated from their families. We later learned this was intentional and used as a deterrent. Sadly, now many years later, there are still children who have not been returned to their families. I cannot measure the damage this has done to these children.

From there, we go to his promise to build a wall paid for by Mexico. (The US-Mexico border is approximately1,954 miles long.) When that did not happen and Congress denied him the funds, he improperly moved money from the Pentagon budget. Various types of the wall were already in place when he took office. He rebuilt some of this (about 654 miles) and claimed this was new. He added only 80 miles of new construction, according to the BBC.

Then we have the international embarrassment he caused at meetings with other leaders. At a major conference, he rudely shoved other leaders to get in the front of a group photograph. He played up meetings with the cruel dictator of North Korea during several events, which amounted to no break-through between the two countries. And downplaying his intelligence briefings, he supported the denial of election interference by the Russian dictator Putin. He publically admired healthy men and other dictators. He tried to pull the US out of our NATO agreements. Also, he closed the nuclear talks with Iran, which have now led to their closer ability to develop nuclear weapons. He pulled out of the worldwide efforts on slowing global climate change and reducing emissions (The Paris Accords) which President Biden reinstated to some extent. International relations further suffered when he tried to buy Greenland and disdained the continent of Africa.

And then we come to the Pandemic. Nothing could have been more poorly managed than this. His denials, saying this would pass in a matter of days, sorely misled the country. As of May 2023, the number of US deaths from COVID-19 were 1,161,164. Statistics have been aggregated since then, but deaths are still occurring, despite vaccines. The total number of cases of infections here was 106.7 million or about one-third of the population, by that May date. This, of course, does not measure the after-effects of long-Covid or the lives disrupted by lost loved ones. Our leader, DJT, downplayed the pandemic, and told people to inject bleach, take animal medications, or use Hydroxychloroquine to treat the disease, none of which worked. He fought the mask mandates, which may not have been effective, but they kept people apart. He fought against social distancing and school closings and disobeyed those rules himself, endangering others. By blaming the Chinese for the virus release, he caused violence to erupt against Asian Americans.

He stoked racial fears after the death of George Floyd amid the protests that followed. He wanted to invoke the Insurrection Act and use the military to contain lawful protests. At the infamous Lafayette Square photo-op, he asked if the protestors could be shot in the knee. His Attorney General denied the use of the military, instead brought in the National Guard and the Park Police to clear the Square of protesters who were already dispersing. These forces used a chemical irritant, although not tear gas, as many thought.

As for the military, he seemed to like tough-sounding generals, but not the troops who died on his watch or elsewhere. Many military families noted dismissive comments about their service or deaths. Senator John McCain was chastised for getting captured and aides were told to not bring limbless veterans to ceremonies. He ducked out of World War ll commemorative events in Europe. Frequently, he showed a lack of historical knowledge, such as when he noted Hitler did some good things.

Regarding the economy, the Dow Jones average on January 1, 2021, was around 31,272. Today it is 43,988, an increase of 43.6% under the Biden-Harris administration. Oh, and Infrastructure week never happened until President Biden got it going.

The price of eggs was  $1.27 in 2021 and is now $2.52. Many producers took advantage of temporary inflation and raised their prices, but have not lowered them since inflation went down. That and the issues of bird flu also raised some prices. But, some people overlooked the issues above because eggs cost more last week. The price of gas was $2.21 in January 2021 and it is now averaged at $3.10 per gallon. Was that 90 cent change worth giving up your rights?

Then, of course, we have the Insurrection brought to you by our former, and soon to be, next, president. Wherein he callously threw his Vice President and his family to a mob he encouraged that chanted “Hang Mike Pence.” By stalling, using the courts, and spending millions on attorneys, he will probably never be brought to justice, even though he was duly indicted by his peers for his support of the insurrection.

After a conviction of sexual abuse and defamation in the E. Jean Carroll case, the jury determined he should pay millions for those offenses. He was convicted of fraud on 34 counts, but successfully delayed his sentencing until after the election, so it may well be moot, if it is not dismissed. New York State convicted his company of business fraud and fined him millions. A friendly judge dismissed his document stealing case on what most assume were improper grounds. That remains under appeal to a Circuit Court. His tamed Supreme Court instead reworked his immunity claim, rightly dismissed by an appellate court, to be almost all-encompassing.

Who says you cannot buy justice in America?

So, America, you have made your choice.

Are you ready for an administration that promised to reduce your health care, change your social security benefits, and, possibly, your retirement age? Are you prepared for greater inflation and limited federal spending that might cause your state to minimize Medicaid benefits? You must know you will spend more for a new house, electronics, and other goods from China and elsewhere, should tariffs be imposed. See an explanation here of the Project 2025 proposals by Fact Check.

Those of you living in red states who decry the involvement of the Federal bureaucracy in your lives, are you ready to return the monies you receive in greater proportion (calculated on a per person basis) than blue states? Will your local school lunch program run effectively without the Federal subsidies, so loved by the agricultural community? Will your mental health, vaccine, and rehab programs continue without support from government agencies? How will your education budget fund special needs programs when the taxes your Republican governors reduced no longer meet the needs of your school?

You cannot plead ignorance. The information was available if you ever stepped away from the propaganda from right-wing media sources, such as Sinclair News and Fox TV.

A recent article in the New York Times Magazine by Amanda Taub described the issue this way:

Right-wing media has become so partisan that it has a similar impact on viewers that government-controlled media does in countries without meaningful press freedom. Extreme politicians and commentators are rewarded with attention, airtime and an improved national profile, while those who advocate moderate policies or bipartisan cooperation can be iced out of media coverage — and perhaps also donors’ and voters’ good graces.

One result is that many of the institutions that keep the democratic game running no longer fully function on the right. The United States still has a free press, but Republican voters primarily get their news from the right-wing ecosystem, where they won’t hear criticism of Republican politicians. Courts still uphold the rule of law, but when judges have been selected and promoted on the basis of their conservative beliefs and partisan loyalty, that inevitably affects how the rule of law is interpreted and implemented. Republican politicians win elections, but the Republican Party is too weak, as an institution, to discipline candidates or politicians who undermine democracy. Sanctions such as presidential impeachment exist on paper, but in practice are now tools for protecting partisan advantage, not democratic norms.

I am not looking forward to seeing Civil Servants who served for many years lose their jobs because they did not support the president, nor do I wish to see our healthcare system treat our elderly citizens poorly, if benefits are cut. All I can do is watch and call out excesses when proposed. I hope you do as well.

In closing, I remain disappointed that an exceptionally qualified woman was not elected. Kamala Harris espoused the values that Americans say they hold dear, but she was held to a different standard than her opponent, who could make wild pronouncements, while her remarks were placed under a microscope. Was her defeat because of a poor message; I doubt it. People wanted an excuse to not vote for if they said that, in my opinion. Was it because of her race or gender? I believe both of these played a part, and I am disappointed in women of every race who did not support her. Why is it that America is one of the few democracies that has never elected a woman as a leader?

I plan to review these issues in future columns as we make our way through the nightmare I expect to come. If so, then to the Ramparts!

Till next week, Peace.

Kamala Harris for President

As of this date, 77.3 million Americans already voted in early voting. Many millions more are already in the mail.

To those who have not yet voted, I say: There is only one choice for president and that has to be VP Kamala Harris. I know the polls say the race is close, and several say that the former president will win the Electoral College. But, there are shifts in the latest data that lean toward the VP. The Selzer poll for the Des Moines Register considered a reliable poll in Iowa, shows Harris leading in Iowa, which is typically a red state. Their survey of the Iowa Congressional races, now with four seats held by Republicans, shows a significant shift in two districts toward the Democratic candidates.

Nate Cohn of the New York Times noted": The Times/Sienna poll shows a dead heat with Harris gaining along with late deciders in the Sun Belt while the Rust Belt tightens."

Nate Silver from the Silver Bullitin's aggregate of polls shows a 50-50 race. However, in the Swing States, he gives DJT the advantage in five of the seven states. Yet Harris may win the popular vote and lose the Electoral College if she doesn't pick up more swing state voters. He concludes by advising voters "to embrace uncertainty and to not be surprised if the breakdown of who wins each state doesn't neatly follow the current polling averages."

The Economist noted its polling data over the years has shown reluctant Trump voters and missed new and young voters. Silver cautioned against polls that herded or over-corrected, so maybe we shouldn't be hanging on every result, but it is difficult to not do so, especially if you, like me, are so convinced the differences between the two candidates are so stark.

I believe the votes from women might be the deciding factor. Some have noted that women voters over 65, who tend to vote Republican, this time may not be doing so. This might be because of the Dobbs' decision, as rights that these women fought for when they were young and thought were settled law, have now been overturned. On Saturday, thousands of women in cities across the country marched to show support for VP Harris.

Over these many months, I showed my readers why I thought DJT was incompetent, amoral, and probably losing cognitive relevance in his daily actions. Indeed, in just the past few days, he irresponsibly suggested Liz Cheney face a firing squad and someone could shoot up the media. I echoed many others as I described his fascist tendencies and his pride in his divisive remarks. Quite simply, he is unfit to ever sit again in the Oval Office, as Liz Cheney noted.

Here are some editorials from major media outlets in recent days:

The New York Times 11/2/24

"You already know Donald Trump. He is unfit to lead. Watch him. Listen to those who know him best. He tried to subvert an election and remains a threat to democracy. He helped overturn Roe, with terrible consequences. Mr. Trump's corruption and lawlessness go beyond elections: It's his whole ethos. He lies without limit. If he's re-elected, the G.O.P. won't restrain him. Mr. Trump will use the government to go after opponents. He will pursue a cruel policy of mass deportations. He will wreak havoc on the poor, the middle class, and employers. Another Trump term will damage the climate, shatter alliances, and strengthen autocrats. Americans should demand better. Vote."

American Business cannot afford another Trump Presidency NYTimes  Oct 16, 2024.

"Executives who convince themselves that they can shape Mr. Trump's decision-making should consider the record of everyone who has tried to ride the tiger in the eight years since he emerged as the leader of the Republican Party. Those expecting his instincts to be tempered by advisers, as sometimes happened during his first term, will be disappointed. His inner circle has been purged of people who say no. In a second Trump term, the secretary of state would not come from Exxon, and the secretary of the Treasury would not come from Goldman Sachs. The smart — and courageous — people have left the room. What remains are loyalists and ideologues and a decision-making process that begins and ends with the question of what is most expedient for Mr. Trump.

As president, he treated the wide-ranging powers of the federal government as instruments to reward friends and to punish enemies. According to a 2019 report by Jane Mayer of The New Yorker, Mr. Trump repeatedly pressured the Justice Department to block the merger of AT&T and Time Warner because he was mad at CNN, a Time Warner subsidiary at the time. Last month he threatened to prosecute Google because, he said, the company "has illegally used a system of only revealing and displaying bad stories about Donald J. Trump."

Los Angeles Magazine begins its endorsement of Kamala Harris with these words: (remarks in part)

"Los Angeles is a melting pot with diverse people and diverse perspectives. Los Angeles is a city of love and not hate. Donald Trump represents an existential threat to everything we love about Los Angeles. He spreads hate and division wherever he goes, as he did recently here during his visit to Pacific Palisades. On the other hand, Vice President Kamala Harris embodies the positivity, professionalism, law and order, and innovation, that we love about our city……

Finally, Donald Trump is clearly unhealthy and is presenting what could be serious dementia-like symptoms at his rallies. What this means: a vote for Trump is more likely a vote for JD Vance.

America and Los Angeles are so much better than that.

But while I could go on at length about Donald Trump's flaws, more ink needs to be spent on what the positive vision is to take America forward……

Vice President Kamala Harris doesn't get our endorsement simply because she is not Trump. Vice President Kamala Harris has earned our endorsement because she has showed she is the most qualified person in America to lead the pro-democracy coalition of Democrats, classic Republicans, and independents. VP Harris has made her candidacy about protecting the core freedoms of Americans. Freedoms like the rights of women to make their own reproductive health decisions. The rights Donald Trump ripped away by placing three Supreme Court Justices in a calculated effort to overturn Roe v. Wade…….

VP Harris promises to be a President for all Americans.
For us, this choice is simple. This choice is about real patriotism. This choice is about our future. The future of America. The future of Los Angeles. We endorse VP Kamala Harris for President of the United States."

The Economist endorsed Kamala Harris in a somewhat backhanded way–well it's British, you know, by saying: (cropped remarks)

"If The Economist failed to foresee so much in 2016, why heed our warning now? The answer is that today the risks are larger. And that is because Mr Trump's policies are worse, the world is more perilous and many of the sober, responsible people who reined in his worst instincts during his first term have been replaced by true believers, toadies, and chancers.

Good presidents unite the country. Mr Trump's political genius is for turning people against each other. After the death of George Floyd, he suggested the army shoot protesters in the leg. America's prosperity depends on the idea that people are treated fairly, regardless of their politics; Mr Trump has threatened to turn the Justice Department on his political enemies.

Next to Mr Trump, Kamala Harris stands for stability. True, she is an underwhelming machine politician. She has struggled to tell voters what she wants to do with power. 

It is hard to imagine Ms Harris being a stellar president, though people can surprise you. But you cannot imagine her bringing about a catastrophe.

Presidents do not have to be saints and we hope that a second Trump presidency would avoid disaster. But Mr Trump poses an unacceptable risk to America and the world. If The Economist had a vote, we would cast it for Ms Harris. "

So now we wait and wait; I can only hope that the election proceeds without disruption and that our country can move forward with Kamala. I am not the best reader of tea leaves here, but with the polls as they are, tea leaves might work as well as anything else!

To distract you from your worries, I present some views from the Smithsonian Zoo Cam of the newly arrived pandas. Bao Li and Qing Bao are the names of the new pandas who will be in quarantine away from the public until January. Bao Li, a male, is a grandchild of Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, and whose parent, Bao Bao was born at the D.C. zoo. Watch them play and try to not worry too much.

Til later this week, as I hope to have happy news; so with fingers crossed- Peace.

Have YOU Voted Yet?

The 2024 election is upon us. Today I dropped my absentee ballot in a nearby drop box. I expect my board of elections to notify me when it collects my ballot, and, subsequently, when my votes are tallied. Since absentee ballots are not reviewed until after election day, I assume that notice may take a while.

However, during this time, I do not anticipate any controversies about this process. I fully expect my votes to be counted and recorded properly. I spent many years working in the Democratic precinct organization and everything I saw reinforced my belief that many dedicated people are working to assure a fair and reliable system of elections. Across the years, I viewed the functions as both a candidate and as a voter.

Often I saw the same senior citizens working the check-in desk at my local precinct. They would work long hours on election day for the small fees they might earn, but, since they were experienced; they made the process work smoothly. I never knew which election worker belonged to which party, mostly, because each took off their party hat to ensure fair access for local voters. During some years, Maryland used an entirely electronic voting system, which many distrusted after the 2000-2004 elections, since some claimed that the machines could be hacked. Others noted security flaws were not investigated nor fixed in the Diebold Machines then widely in use. There was no ability to recreate a ballot result, no paper trail of any kind. Eventually, Maryland changed to a paper ballot that was electronically counted and which could be retained and recounted. Marked votes cannot be erased. All of this reinforces the integrity of our elections and should be the type of system used all over the country, in my opinion. Then, none should reasonably claim that bad actors from Italy or where- ever, are changing votes from afar.

Anyway, please vote and continue, as most voters do, to have faith in American elections. If you mail your ballot, it must be post-marked by election day November 5. Many states have early voting and activity is already reported as robust across the country. According to the Associated Press, as of this date, more than 46 million ballots have been cast. In Maryland, 440,453 votes were cast in-person and 478,447 mail-in votes have been received. Storm ravaged North Carolina reported over 2.8 million votes, with California showing a total tally of over 4 million, for example.

The Census Bureau reported that in 2020, over 66% of citizens voted despite the problems with Covid. At that time, 43% voted by mail, and 26% chose early voting. This changed the typical get-out-the-vote (GOTV) pushes by the political parties commonly seen on election eve. Voters in blue states voted early or by mail more frequently than those in red states.

158,429,631 votes were cast in the 2020 presidential election. The Census Bureau reported that there were over 250 million Americans of voting age, so many people did not vote. Hopefully, in a year as critical as this is when we are up against a wanna-be-fascist, turnout will be higher.

Many pundits are saying that DJT is pushing the mega-male image to men while answering to “Daddy Don” for women and claiming he will be their protector. Somehow. a predator con-man as a protector just doesn’t cut it for me. While others may promote the inability of a female leader to govern with strength, I present the list below.

History is on my mind. Here's some information for those who do not believe a woman can lead a country. Some women, presented below as a sample, proved their courage as they led wars, dealt with divisive factions, and united their countries.

Golda Meir Led Israel from 1969-1974

Indira Gandhi- Led India -1966-1977, 1980-84, Assassinated

Margaret Thatcher Led the UK from 1979 to 1990

Benizar Bhutto-Led Pakistan, 1988-1990, 1993-1996 Assassinated.

Corazon Aquino- led the Phllipines-1986-1992

Angela Merkel- Chancellor of Germany 2005-2021

 

The US is usually ahead of the curve and is seriously lagging here.

Time to make a change and elect Kamala Harris!

‘

Til next week- Peace!

The Enemy Within, no Joke?

Halloween is coming soon, so we expect to see lots of scary creatures around. My suburban neighborhood showcases the wonders of imagination with skeletons, ghosts, and assorted macabre creatures. All in good fun, of course. No one really expects that zombies and body snatchers will soon wander down the block.

That said, there are some actually scary things happening in the real world of politics. Now is the time, the pundits tell us, when actual everyday voters (unlike we political nerds) first start firming their opinions and paying attention to the pre-election dramas unfolding in our midst. And, in keeping with the season, there are bizarre things happening on the various campaign trails. And, these occurrences are being noticed and reported by mainstream media. Most of them reflect the strange MAGA campaign of the former president.

Recently, DJT has been speaking about "the enemy within", an odd phrase to use when referring to the American people. When VP Kamala Harris was interviewed on Fox, she discussed this use of words and the plan to use the military against Americans. Brent Baier denied this phrase was used. Harris called him out for only playing a part of the clip where the claim was made. Verify validated her claims below:

"Former President Donald Trump has said he would use the military against Americans who he referred to as "the enemy from within" in multiple interviews, as Vice President Kamala Harris claimed.

On Oct. 13, during an interview with Fox News' Maria Bartiromo, Trump was asked if he is expecting chaos on Election Day. The former president said he was not anticipating mayhem from "the side that votes for Trump" but from what he called "the enemy from within."

"I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within, not even the people that have come in and [are destroying] our country — I don't think they're the problem in terms of Election Day — I think the bigger problem are the people from within," Trump said.

"We have some very bad people; we have some sick people, radical left lunatics. And it should be very easily handled, if necessary, by the National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can't let that happen," Trump added.

Later in the interview, Trump told Bartiromo "the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia" and other foreign adversaries of the United States.

"I always say, so we have two enemies — we have the outside enemy and then we have the enemy from within…. The thing that's tougher to handle are these lunatics that we have inside, like Adam Schiff…. Adam Shifty Schiff, who's a total sleazebag, is going to become a senator. But I call him the enemy from within," Trump said. Democrat Rep. Adam Schiff, of California, served on the congressional committee that investigated Trump's role in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Trump made similar comments during a taped town hall with Fox News' Harris Faulkner on Oct. 15.

"Mr. President, Kamala Harris has said you sounded 'unhinged' and 'unchecked power is in our future.' What do you say about that?" Faulkner asked Trump.

"You know, they are… they're a party of sound bites," Trump said in response. "They're very different and it is the enemy from within and they're very dangerous. They're Marxists and Communists and fascists and they're sick."

"I use a guy like Adam Schiff because they made up the Russia Russia Russia hoax…. They're dangerous for our country. We have China. We have Russia. We have all these countries. If you have a smart president, they can all be handled. The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis — these people…. they're so sick and they're so evil," Trump continued.

In a statement, Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign, told VERIFY the former president's "enemy from within" remarks are referring to people seeking to cause chaos on Election Day.

"President Trump is 100% correct — those who seek to undermine democracy by sowing chaos in our elections are a direct threat, just like the terrorist from Afghanistan that was arrested for plotting multiple attacks on Election Day within the United States," Cheung said. These aren't the first instances of the former president using the term "enemy from within."

On Sept. 3, during an interview on the Lex Fridman Podcast, Trump told Fridman: "I believe you have to fight fire with fire. I believe they're very evil people. These are evil people. You know, we have an enemy from the outside and we have an enemy from within. And in my opinion, the enemy from within are radical left lunatics, and I think you have to fight back."

 

(The term "the enemy within" was frequently used by the ultimately disgraced Senator Joseph McCarthy in his failed quest to purge the so-called hidden Communists working in our government.)

 

Appearances before major media outlets brought out strange remarks and wild answers to serious questions, such as noted below by The New York Times about the interview conducted in Chicago by Bloomberg Editor-in-Chief, Mr. John Micklethwait, before the Economic Club of Chicago. DJT even argued with his interviewer about tariffs

"Mr. Trump's refusal to answer questions directly about his relationship with Mr. Putin was consistent with the tone throughout Tuesday's interview, which took place in a ballroom of the Fairmont hotel.

The former president frequently ignored the thrust of the questions he was asked, instead giving meandering responses that included unrelated points and hard-to-follow anecdotes. He frequently dwelt on how nicely or poorly he felt that various people, institutions and corporations had treated him.Toward the end of their conversation, Mr. Micklethwait brought up the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, by some of Mr. Trump's supporters. He asked the former president if he would commit to "respecting and encouraging a peaceful transfer of power this year."Mr. Trump would not commit to one. "Well, you had a peaceful transfer of power," he said, referring to January 2021, as some of the hundreds of business and civic leaders seated in the ballroom applauded.

Mr. Micklethwait expressed his disbelief. "You had a peaceful transfer of power compared with Venezuela," Mr. Micklethwait said. "But it was by far the worst transfer of power for a long time.""As members of the crowd booed, Mr. Trump expressed his gratitude and pointed the finger at Mr. Micklethwait, accusing him of being biased. Then, rather than answering the question, he tried to shift the subject to his false claims of election fraud.Mr. Trump minimized the violence of his supporters and alluded to conspiratorial claims that the events were spurred on by law enforcement officials. And he pointed to his eventual departure of the White House on Inauguration Day — weeks after his efforts to cling to power had failed — as evidence of a "very peaceful transfer" as he rejected Mr. Micklethwait's question. As members of the crowd booed, Mr. Trump expressed his gratitude and pointed the finger at Mr. Micklethwait, accusing him of being biased. Then, rather than answering the question, he tried to shift the subject to his false claims of election fraud."Mr. Trump minimized the violence of his supporters and alluded to conspiratorial claims that the events were spurred on by law enforcement officials. And he pointed to his eventual departure of the White House on Inauguration Day — weeks after his efforts to cling to power had failed — as evidence of a "very peaceful transfer" as he rejected Mr. Micklethwait's question.

At another event, a friendly Town Hall, the room was overheated, (some say because the campaign would not pay for AC) and two attendees required medical attention, so the Q & Awas halted as they received care.

 

According to NPR

"A Trump town hall in Oaks, Pa., Monday night went from a Q&A session to a bizarre musical event in which Donald Trump stood in front of his audience for an extended period while songs played on the sound system.

The town hall portion of the event lasted nearly an hour and was moderated by Kristi Noem, South Dakota's Republican governor, who is a Trump ally.

The questioners were all friendly to Trump, with questions about how he would bring down inflation, as well as boost small businesses.

The town hall was paused twice for incidents in which the crowd called for a medic. Audience members shouted that the room was too hot."

"Trump remained onstage for more than half an hour while an array of songs played, including "Hallelujah" as performed by Rufus Wainwright, as well as "November Rain" by Guns N' Roses.

On Tuesday, Trump, posting on his Truth Social account, called the evening "amazing."

"The Q and A was almost finished when people began fainting from the excitement and heat," he said. "We started playing music while we waited, and just kept it going. So different, but it ended up being a GREAT EVENING!

More from the Bloomberg interview  on msn:

Bloomberg; Critics say your tariffs will end up being like a national sales tax

Trump: Nope, nope. Because the countries will pay.

Micklethwait: If you have, if you have, America at the moment has three trillion dollars worth of imports. You're going to add tariffs to every single one of them. That is going to push up the cost for all those people who want to buy foreign goods. That is just simple mathematics, President Trump.

Trump: It's not. It is, but not the way you've figured. I was always very good at mathematics. Let me tell you, you're saying 3 trillion.

Micklethwait: That's 3 trillion dollars worth of imports.

Trump: And they don't have to pay. And if, by the way, the higher the tariff, the more likely it is to have them come into the country.

Micklethwait: The higher the tariff, the more you're going to put on the value of that, those goods, the higher people are going to have to pay in shops.

Trump: Ready? Ready? The higher the tariff, the more likely it is that the company will come into the United States, and build a factory in the United States, so it doesn't have to pay the tariff. If I have—

Micklethwait: That will take, that will take, that will take many, many, as you know, that will take many years.

Trump: In fact, I'll, I'll tell you, you know, there's another theory is that, uh, uh, the tariff, you make it so high, so horrible, so obnoxious that they'll come right away. When I do the 10%, 10% is really— first of all, 10% when you collect it is hundreds of billions of dollars. The numbers that you're talking, all reducing our deficit. But really, so there's two ways of looking at a tariff. You can do it as a money-making instrument, or you can do it as something to get the companies. "

And, while speaking in the town where Arnold Palmer, the famous golfer, was born, the AP reported:

"Latrobe, Pa. (AP) — Donald Trump's campaign suggested he would begin previewing his closing argument Saturday night with Election Day barely two weeks away. But the former president kicked off his rally with a detailed story about Arnold Palmer, at one point even praising the late, legendary golfer's genitalia."

You can't make this up, folks!

Today the Boston Globe endorsed Kamala Harris for President and said in part: …." that Harris has promised to be a president who leads and listens …..and can show the world that America stands for freedom, opportunity, compassion, dignity, fairness, and endless possibilities. The choice is as clear, as it is vital, send Kamala Harris to the White House."

And the Washington Zoo has Giant pandas in residence again! More TBA.

Til next week – Peace!