Dear Everybody:
The big news today is that the same federal judge who had blocked Trump’s mail-in ballot order has blocked it again, saying it imposes onerous requirements and threatens to disenfranchise voters and harm states.
–The Supreme Court said the judge’s first order was invalid because the rule hadn’t been finalized. They said they were not ruling on the constitutionality of the order, just the technical aspects. Now the order has been finalized by the USPS, so the judge is now able to block it.
–A bunch of state Attorney Generals and other groups, led by the League of Women Voters, have sued to have Trump’s order invalidated on the grounds that the Constitution says plainly that the executive branch has no power over elections.
–Sandy James: “Mail-in voting is essential for shut-ins, military personnel, myriad citizens. A mailed ballot can’t be switched by technology. And mail-in ballots increase participation in elections. Why do Republicans want to stop it? Because when voters turn out and vote, they LOSE.”
–The judge’s hold on Trump’s order only applies for 14 days, but by then voting will have begun in a number of states.
–This is still very good news for a Friday afternoon. And it’s good news that Marc Elias and Norm Eisen and a bunch of other great lawyers are on our side here.
The other news today was all about Trump’s dementia/madness:
–First, he went to NASA and gave his usual rambling, ranting speech while the audience of NASA employees stood in stony silence with absolutely no expression on their faces at all.
–Trump was more than an hour late for the Medal of Honor event at NASA Johnson Space Center and the producers of the event were reduced to playing long videos to fill the time as Trump continued to post madly on Truth Social.
–Trump: “I had an uncle who was a great scientist, a great man, he was at MIT for 41 years, Dr. John Trump, and he loved space, he used to tell me about space, space, all space, he’d throw in the word ‘nuclear’ once in awhile, he loved space, so I guess we have genetically–sort of, I believe in that stuff, I love it, I find it so interesting, it’s very special.”
–Trump got on a landline with the space station and talked to the astronauts. Trump: Don’t forget, I gave you Space Force, When you look at Venezuela, when you look at what we’ve done with the drug people coming in by boat and by land not so much , we get all that information from space…When I went to Florida to the Kennedy Space Center, it was closed and had grass growing through the cracks, a lot of cracks, lot of grass growing through, very sad, sad time for our country.”
–Trump: “It was limping along, and now I’m back…this country is doing great right now, never did anything like it. 81 stock market highs, they broke it again yesterday for the 81st time, $19.2 trillion dollars is being invested from outside for our country (not true.) That’s why I call it the golden age.”
–Aaron Rupar: ‘Trump is speaking to complete silence at the NASA center. Not a single person is applauding or reacting to anything he says during his brazenly partisan speech.” (Even though he made them stand behind him in uniform.)
–He couldn’t say “Biden.” He tried twice and only got out “B-b-…”
–He claimed “we lost our ability to send astronauts into orbit at all.”
–Trump: “Everyone thinks I ran in 2016, I actually announced in 2015.”
–Wab Kinew: “You know when a rock band is really over the hill and you see them in a casino playing some song from like fifty years ago? I think that’s the part of Donald Trump’s presidency we’re at now.”
–Trump actually came to Houston to do a big fundraiser with rich donors, and this speech is just cover to make it look like he was here on official business, but it isn’t working.
–Kelly Miller: “How bubbled is his administration that someone thought a Trump stump performance at NASA was a good idea”
–Natalie Harp was with him on the trip.
Then, in other Trump dementia/madness news, Trump signed an executive order changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America.
–He did this to get back at the province of Ontario, whose premier said some really mean things about him. When asked what message he was trying to send, he said, “No message.”
–Unfortunately, Lake Ontario is NOT named after the province of Ontario. It comes from a word used by the Iroquois and Huron tribes that is understood to mean, “Great Lake” or “Lake of Shining Waters.”
–Grand Chief Pierre Picard of Wendat Nation in Quebec: “President Trump is trying to erase our history.”
–The majority of the lake lies on the Canadian side, but Trump says the deepest part of the lake is in the US, so…
–Canadian columnist Andrew Coyne: “Now do you believe me when I tell you he is completely insane?”
–Amanda Katz: “God, I am so embarrassed.”
–Mapquest announced they are not changing the name of the lake, but they have created an app so users can name it whatever they want. The responses have been great.
–Senator Bernie Sanders: “No, President Trump, the American people don’t want to rename Lake Ontario Lake America. They want affordable healthcare, childcare, housing, education and nutrition assistance–all of which you have massively cut in order to pay for your $1 trillion tax break to the top 1%.”
–Republicans Against Trump: “The laughing stock of the world.”
–CPO1: “Canada has just renamed the Alaskan Highway to:Â CLOSED TO US CITIZENS.”
–Nicholas Grossman: “We’re somewhere between General Esposito declaring underwear must be worn on the outside and Dr. Evil’s father claiming he invented the question mark.”
–ScottinMarin: “Congratulations, everyone! We are officially living in the dumbest time in American history. And the enablers of this idiot will forever be tainted by his stench.”
–He is also talking about changing the names of both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. Trump: “We have a gulf and we have a lake. Now all we need is an ocean. So maybe we’ll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or Pacific. Maybe we’ll change them both.” (WHY doesn’t anybody in his orbit seem to notice that he’s barking mad?)
Republicans were once again left trying to defend the indefensible. GOP Rep Rich McCormick on Trump’s renaming of the lake: “President Trump is very good at leverage. He wants to do things that irritate people who he’s negotiating with so he can get a better deal.”
–ProudDetroiter: “Except he never gets a better deal.”
–glwt: “I wouldn’t call the entire world laughing at you leverage.”
–Dave: “President Trump is excellent at all the classic negotiation tactics, like holding your finger just inches away from the other party and repeatedly saying, ‘I’m not touching you,’ and repeating what someone says but in a dumb voice.”
–Todd from Canada: “Doesn’t do anything with our negotiations except solidifying the fact we’re dealing with a toddler who shouldn’t be trusted or taken seriously.”
–Joe is Me: “As someone who routinely negotiates for a living, I can tell you that irritating your business partner is an incredibly stupid tactic that usually leads to someone looking for an alternate supplier.”
–Only 30% of Americans approved of Trump’s renaming of the Gulf of Mexico, and it looks like this renaming will be even less popular.
In Iran war news:
–Today the war with Iran, Trump’s “little excursion” that was going to take three or four days, reached its six-month mark.
–Trump says he’s “not in a hurry” to end the war, and he says, “Iran is on the ropes.”
–The Pentagon quietly added 600 more wounded to the Iran War casualty count. (They did not say when or how they were injured.)
–He posted a “Mission Accomplished 2026” AI picture which, believe it or not, included a photo of Bush. (Bush’s premature “Mission Accomplished” announcement on the prow of a battleship during the first weeks of the Iraq War came to haunt him for years, a symbol of a statement that turned out NOT to be true, and you would think it would be the last thing Trump wants to compare himself to, but apparently not.)
–He also posted an AI picture of him standing in front of a landscape where multiple things are blowing up and are on fire. He’s wearing sunglasses and holding a machine gun, and the caption reads, ‘NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”
In Kennedy Center news:
–Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says he’s now in charge of the Kennedy Center instead of Trump’s hand
–Trump claims the leadership of the National Symphony Orchestra was “in my office when we made the deal, and the leadership started crying. Because they didn’t know how much the president loves them.”
–Lutnick was asked why they didn’t just wait and put Trump’s name on the building in two years after the renovation is done. “Isn’t that usually how it works?” Lutnick: “Actually, that’s not usually how it works. When you have the greatest philanthropist, you just need him to agree. He is the most credible person in the world.”
–Lutnick said that the Kennedy Center can only be renovated if President Trump is the construction manager. Lutnick: “Only he (Trump) has the power and the expertise to renovate this building in a spectacular fashion in the next two years and have a grand, grand opening.” (You mean like the Reflecting Pool?)
In Cracks in the Dam news:
–A GOP congressional candidate in Kentucky, Ralph Alvarado, has removed all references to Trump from his campaign site along with a photo of the two of them together. The website originally said, “America First Fighter–Trump Needs Allies in Congress to Advance His Agenda” and now says, “Independent Leadership for Kentucky.” All references are gone from both the campaign site and the website.
–A black voter in Florida was asked, “Youâre a voter, youâre from his home state, why do you think your opinion doesnât matter to him?” Voter: “Because Iâm not rich.”
–They’ve been interviewing Trump voters who are now sorry they ever voted for Trump.
–Lifelong Texas Republicans say they’re likely to vote for Democrats over the massive benefits given to data centers.
–3-time Iowa Trump voter: “I’m over the Trump thing…stop the bullshit.” (He was wearing a t-shirt that said, “SUCK SQUEEZE BANG BLOW.”
–A 20-year-old Trump voter in Iowa: “I would just look him in the face and just say, ‘Fuck you.’ That’s about it.”
–Ron Filipkowski: “We are now getting deeper into the phase where many Trump supporters know they got played but donât want to admit it. But they know.”
–And Trump is now polling consistently in the low thirties. Molly Jong-Fast: “I don’t think there’s a historical precedent for this.” Pollster Larry Sabato: “Not in the polling era, with the possible exception of Nixon in his final days.”
In other news:
–Norway’s King Harold the V died (he was 89) and his son now becomes King Haakon VIII.
–Trump is planning to skip the 9-11 ceremonies because they wouldn’t let him speak at it.
–January 6er John Bunuelos was convicted of firing a gun at the J6 insurrection and said, “Trump is going to be in office in six months so I have nothing to worry about.” Sure enough, Trump pardoned him, but now he is back in jail and charged with kidnapping, sexual assault, and assault and battery, charges which may get him a life sentence. They are state charges, so Trump can’t pardon him for this. (Note: Nearly 100 J6ers have been charged with new crimes.)
In good news:
–A new study shows that older patients who got the Shingrix vaccine are 24% less likely to get dementia.
–A federal judge blocked Trump’s puritanical changes to the Teen Pregnancy Prevention program, changes that would have affected Planned Parenthood and others.
–The Vatican is building a renewable energy plant to power the entire nation of Vatican City and sell the excess to Italy.
There’s been so much bad news this week–Dolly Parton, Tim Curry, new depredations by Trump et al–that I thought you might need something to cheer you up heading into the weekend. So here’s Fred Astaire: In 1970, Fred Astaire was asked to present an Oscar at the Oscar Award ceremonies, but once he got up there, Bob Hope demanded that he dance. He did. He was wonderful. You can see it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnrbdNjf-aw
And to remind you what a beautiful universe we live in, these photos of the Milky Way over Yellowstone taken by David Lane:Â https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/jjtn9u/impossibly_beautiful_shots_of_the_milky_way_over/
Best comment of the day, from Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo: “History is long. No one is in the saddle forever. It is critical for an opposition to give the people a vision of forward trajectory in time, that this isnât the end of the story, that consequences can be delayed but not evaded…Think even of the longest lasting fascist or authoritarian dictatorships. Franco? About 35 years. Pinochet? 16 years, ousted by a referendum. I donât imagine this will last for even a tiny fraction of that length of time.“
Keep calm and carry on,
Connie Willis
