POKING AROUND ON DAY 150

Today is day 150 of the failing attempted fascist coup against America. There are 502 days to the mid terms.

After yesterday’s Unsupreme Court shitshow, Maladministration II has ordered the LGBTQ+ suicide hotline shut down by July 7 as a “cost saving measure.” The hotline has received 1.2 million calls and texts since 2022.

Another one of Elmo’s toy rockets blew up last night. It was the big “Starship” and this one didn’t even get to the launchpad. It blew up in a static test. This is the rocket he’s going to get to Mars in, but Will Lockett, an expert on the topic, has written several articles on how it is impossible to load a Starship with even a small cargo and enough fuel for it to be reused, without setting it up to explode. Elmo has spent $10 billion on it so far and it has yet to work. As is usual with Elmo’s sloppiness, the fuel system doesn’t have big enough safety factor designed in. It does seem like this is the Cybertruck of toy rockets. Yes indeed, he’s the Chief Engineer. In his dreams.

Today is Juneteenth, the celebration of the announcement in Texas on June 19th, 1865, that enslaved Americans were free. Major General Gordon Granger of the U.S. Army issued General Order Number 3. It read: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.”The MAGAts won’t be celebrating this, but we can.

There are currently 4,000 California National Guard troops in Los Angeles, ordered here by TACO to save the city from burning down in his Potemkin Riot that’s been engulfing the city since June 7. There have been no arrests or violence in the city since early last Sunday morning, and those incidents were the result of the goons from the LA Sheriff’s Department - who are kept as county jail guards for 10 years before being turned loose on the citizens of LA - tried to start a riot Saturday night, shooting rubber bullets and tear gas at people in an attempt to recreate their cop riot against the Chicano Moratorium Against the War back in 1970; it didn’t work. There is so much Nothing Going On that the 8pm-6am curfew in Downtown Los Angeles was lifted Monday. Nevertheless, Tuesday night, Northern Command announced that an additional 2,000 national guard troops were being nationalized and sent to the city to "support the protection of federal functions, personnel, and property in the greater Los Angeles area.” They won’t be here for some time since “The soldiers are completing training on de-escalation, crowd control, and use of the standing rules for the use of force in advance of joining the federal protection mission." That means a total of 6,000 national guardsmen will be crammed into the basements of the downtown federal buildings by this weekend, surviving by the grace of the Taco wagons that come by every day to sell them food - which they are buying with their own money because the fools and buffoons in the Pentagon have failed to issue activation orders to them, which would allow them to be paid. They’re being studiously ignored by everyone but the Taco wagon folks. Faux Snooze is still playing the same 5 minutes of video of the guy with a Mexican flag standing on one of the two burned-out driverless taxis from June 7 when this whole Potemkin Riot began.

My friend E. Jean Carroll - the only person who has managed to find Donnie Dimbulb guilty of his BS - keeps whacking TACO’s ginormous ass every time he tries to weasel out of Paying Up. Yesterday, a federal appeals court panel refused the InJustice Department’s effort to replace Trump as the defendant in Carroll’s defamation lawsuit under the Westfall Act, a 1988 law that protects federal employees from certain lawsuits concerning things they did in the course of their jobs and put itself on the hook for the $83.3 million defamation award E. Jean won at trial from President Trump. The grounds were that Trump did everything he was found guilty of long before he became president, and none of his BS can be considered an “official act.” It’s the latest setback for TACO in his efforts to fight Carroll’s lawsuits at the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Last week, the 2nd Circuit upheld her earlier $5 million jury award. “The American People are supporting President Trump in historic numbers (FACT CHECK: NOPE), and they demand an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and a swift dismissal of all of the Witch Hunts, including the Democrat-funded Carroll Hoaxes (SORRY DUMBFUCKS, BUT THE ONLY HOAX GOING ON IS YOUR EXISTENCE), the defense of which is legally required to be taken over by the Department of Justice (FACT CHECK: UH-UH!) as that charade is fully based on the President’s official acts.” (FURTHER FACT CHECK: NO THEY WEREN’T) a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said in a statement. As with anything coming out of the mouth of a Trumpscum, this is a collection of complete lies, including “and” and “the.” (BTW, E. Jean’s account of all this - “Not My Type” - came out yesterday. I’ve read two chapters so far. It’s great - get it.)

Usually, the Senate can be trusted to “cool” the more inflammatory bullshit that emerges from the House of Representatives, coming up with something at least “not as bad.” Such is not the case with the Big Bad Bill. The Senate version - the handiwork of Senators Skeletor and Dumbfuck (Rick Scott and Ron Johnson) - is far worse that the terrible crap that emerged from the House. Right now, the American people - who are unwilling to lose Medicare, Medicaid, and a host of government services and programs the majority of us have come to depend on, all in the service of making sure that Jeff Bezos and his Plastic Fantastic Bimbo can afford to congest and pollute Venice further with their bullshit wedding, among all the other stupid things the people who daily prove there is no connection whatsoever between the brain and the billfold, i.e., the Oligarchy, can rip us off even more than they already do - “strongly oppose” the Big Bad Bill 2:1, and “mostly oppose” to where it’s 80-20 in opposition. And now when it goes back to the House, having chopped off the SALT Cap among other travesties and crimes against humanity contained in the steaming pile of southern-fried excrement - where Reverend MAGA Mike Fuckwit can only lose 2 votes after it originally passed by a 1-vote majority - to face the SALT Caucus, who know letting this get through without the SALT cap means they are committing political suicide in 2026. Then there are the Senators who actually know they have rural hospitals in their states that will be devastated by the massive Skeletor-designed Medicaid cuts, who very well may kill the thing before it goes over to be hanged by the neck until dead in the House. I’m still holding my bet that this “temple of greed” comes crashing down around TACO and his collection of congressional Gargoyles to start our Fourth of July celebration of saying “Fuck you!” to Kings.

So how fucking dumb are Republicans? I’m not sure there’s a measuring line that can go deep enough to hit their bottom, but here’s another example: faced with opposition from other Senators worried about rural hospitals going under from losing their Medicaid financing, Senate Republicans are proposing a bailout fund for those hospitals at risk of closing because of their dumbfucking Big Bad Bill. Yeah - come up with a separate fund. Surprise surprise, this idea came from Susan Collins. Republicans are currently unsure exactly how large they would have to make this fund, which would eat into the savings they were trying to use to balance the impact of the bill on the deficit in the first place. Did they ever consider that NOT DOING THIS would be a much easier way to protect the hospitals that serve a majority of the rural dumbfucks stupid enough to vote for them? Oh, right, that would be the intelligent move! “Intelligent Republican” is an Oxymoron.

Trump has brought out the Big Endorsement Stick with which to threaten those Republicans in Senate and House who might vote against the Big Bad Bill. While he has endorsed all the sycophants and true believers running for re-election in 2026, he has notably not endorsed any of the Senators or Representatives who are arguing against this or that part of the BBB and threatening not to vote for the final disaster when it comes up. Trump is using the prospect of his endorsement (or non-endorsement) as leverage to make sure they can get to “yes.” This comes as 16% of Republicans in the recent Quinnipiac Poll said they wanted to see their Senator or Representative show more independence from Trump; since the vulnerables are in office by thin majorities in their last election, 16% of people not liking it that they bend over and spread for Trump is the difference between a political future and political suicide. Not to mention all the people who will be pissed off at them over there being no increase in the SALT cap, reductions in Medicaid deep enough to trigger reductions in Medicare, etc., etc. A Republican operative said, “There’s an understanding that none of the in-cycle vulnerable members can afford to vote against the bill.” He went on to say that not only do they have to be seen to be delivering on Trump’s priorities, “they have to be able to say that they extended the tax cuts.” Trump endorsement or no, running after voting for this abomination is likely a political death sentence for the vulnerables.

This one is completely unsurprising: DHS is placing new limitations on lawmakers seeking to visit detention facilities, releasing guidelines in the wake of visits from Democrats that have turned confrontational.Members of Congress have the legal right to make unannounced visits to ICE facilities. But new guidance posted by ICE seeks to rein in that power, asking lawmakers to give 72 hours notice before any visits, while requiring their staff to give 24 hours notice (so the goons can clean the blood off the floors and walls). Though lawmakers retain the ability to make unannounced visits to ICE detention facilities, the new policy blocks them from visiting field offices, where most agency action takes place. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said: “This unlawful policy is a smokescreen to deny Member visits to ICE offices across the country, which are holding migrants – and sometimes even U.S. citizens – for days at a time. They are therefore detention facilities and are subject to oversight and inspection at any time. DHS pretending otherwise is simply their latest lie.”

There’s a ton of other news about the shit these GOP shitbirds are trying to scam us with but I’ve had enough of it for one day. Just remember that Harry Truman was right back in 1948 when he said that “The only ‘good Republicans’ are pushing up daisies.”

Well, whattaya know? There is too some good news!

A new statue on the National Mall is drawing the ire of Whitey’s House. Titled "Dictator Approved," the statue stands 8 feet tall and includes a gold-painted hand that is squashing a replica of the Statue of Liberty. The statue was initially planned to be a rejoinder to the weekend protest against Trump's military parade and was designed to draw attention to the praise Trump has received from authoritarian leaders like Russia's Vladimir Putin, North Korea's Kim Jong Un, and China's Xi Jingpin. Whitey’s House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said the statue is "ugly." “If these Democrat activists were living in a dictatorship, their eye-sore of a sculpture wouldn’t be sitting on the National Mall right now.” The statue also features quotes from Viktor Orban, Kim Jong Un and Jair Bolsonaro.

Elmo has another reason to be pissed off about his AI chatbot, Grok, which has been telling readers that right wing violence is more widespread and more likely to involve attempting to kill opponents than left wing violence is. Today, Grok began telling questioners that TACO’s claim that “250,000 people” attended his failed birthday parade is “exaggerated.” "Claims of over 250,000 attendees at the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary parade in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 2025, appear exaggerated." Gotta work harder on turning your AI into a right wing disinformation machine, Elmo!

Want further proof of how fucking stupid MAGAts are? Check this one: A high-schooler seemed to momentarily confuse MAGA acolyte Charlie Kirk when she asked about the contradictory messaging emanating from his ultra-conservative "Young Women's Leadership Summit." Kirk had told the young women attending that college was a “scam” but a good place to find a husband, admonishing them that “If you’re not married with kids by age 30, the chances of either happening will drop precipitously." During a question and answer session, high-schooler Nicole Hader asked, “I was wondering if you could clarify what the mission of this summit is, because it’s a Young Women’s Leadership Summit, and all of the women that spoke on that stage today and yesterday were there because they pursued a career." She continued, saying that as far as she could tell, "the takeaway from the conference 'was that I should, quote, ‘get married and have babies.'" Murmurs and some giggles rippled across the room at her question. Kirk considered the question, calling it "interesting," as his face "scrunched into a thoughtful grimace," according to the WaPo. He continued, “I wouldn’t say all of them are there because they pursued a career - maybe I’d have to think about the entire career.” He then "stammered a bit before continuing," the report said. “I could flip it on you. The people that pursued a career are telling you to pursue kids. Maybe they know something you don’t know." I think she knows now not to listen to your horseshit, Charlie.

Federal prosecutors are seeking a life sentence for Edward Kelly, a Tennessee man who was pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role in the January 6 Capitol riot – but was later convicted of plotting to assassinate FBI agents and other law enforcement officials. Last November, Kelly was convicted of conspiring to murder agents from the FBI and officers from multiple Tennessee law enforcement agencies after they investigated his role in the Capitol attack. Kelly argued at trial that Trump’s sweeping pardon issued immediately after he returned to the Oval Office in January for so-called “J6ers” like himself should also cover his later conviction. But prosecutors disagree. The Justice Department filed a sentencing memo Tuesday asking a judge to send Kelly, 35, to prison for the rest of his life. Prosecutors wrote: “Kelley created a list of specific people he intended to assassinate,” including agents from the FBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigations and local departments. “To effectuate his plan, Kelley sought the assistance of others to identify his victims’ pattern of life and to murder them at their offices, homes, and in public places.” He planned to attack the Knoxville FBI office using “improvised explosive devices attached to vehicles and drones.” But Kelly’s a “real ‘Murrikin” and a “patriot,” sez TACO.

Brian Klaas (who you should read) gets today’s last word: “The death of the student essay is not merely an academic concern. It is not just a problem for young people hoping to get good grades, nor is it only relegated to the realm of my fellow elbow-patched nerds. Instead, the rapidly improving ability to impressively mimic human language poses an existential threat to traditional methods of crafting smarter minds—which thereby challenges the future of human cognition.”

ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE: Assuming Donnie Dumbfuck doesn’t trip over his shoelaces and end us in World War III, tomorrow’s post will be short, there won’t be one on Saturday, and Sunday’s will be in the late afternoon. That’s due to KarenRN’s arrival at Burbank Airport at 1pm on Friday, and her departure to return to Hood River at 1300 Sunday. During those hours, I shall be “otherwise engaged.” Lucky me.

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