“Donald
Trump summoned our military leaders to tell them to prepare to do battle with
the “enemy within” U.S. cities with Democratic Mayors. We should not be talking
about the government shutdown or the administration’s fear of what the Epstein
files reveal. We should be talking about impeaching an unlawful president
intent on using American troops against American citizens, simply because Trump
doesn’t like them. What more will it take before Congress acts?” – Denver Post
letter writer yesterday
"Trump advisers are worried that the GOP will take the blame for allowing healthcare subsidies to expire, raising costs for millions of Americans ahead of next year’s midterm elections, according to administration officials." -
There is now little doubt that the shutdown which started 3 days ago was planned in advance by the traitor defiling the presidency along with his Project 2025 Fascist sidekick Russell Vought. Indeed, the deranged orange fruit cake gave the game away with his social media post yesterday - and I quote:
“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
The post directly embodied Vought's Project 2025 policy blueprint, i.e. that instigating a shutdown would work in the MAGAs favor in further gutting federal jobs and services. In other words, a projected shutdown could be used as a foil or cover to wreak even more damage than Americans have already experienced, from Trump's tariffs, to the DOGE agency cuts of federal workers, to his attack on immigrant workers and universities. No one who has followed the plan from early last year needs a degree in differential geometry to parse it out. Or that Trump, the lying dirtbag, had been 'in bed' with it (and Vought) all along.
Thus, it should be no surprise that a traitor-felon like Trump, stupidly given presidential power last year, is now prepared to exploit that power on steroids, in any craven, reprehensible way. All this, after the orange maggot fungus already wasted the time of over 800 military brass in a deranged and demented spiel three days ago, e.g.
Lawrence: Trump was 'on the verge of outright insanity' in deranged speech to military commanders
Babbling about using U.S. cities as military training grounds in direct violation of the Posse Comitatus Act which bars use of military troops on U.S. soil. But this is what a wannabe dictator like Trump is all about – paving the way to be a full time American fascist dictator.
Now the swine has seized on the government shutdown as an
opportunity to reshape the federal workforce and punish detractors, meeting
with budget director (and Project 2025 designer) Vought yesterday to talk through
“temporary or permanent” spending cuts that could set up a lose-lose dynamic
for Democratic lawmakers.
Trump announced the meeting on social media yesterday morning,
saying he and Vought would determine “which of the many Democrat Agencies”
would be cut — continuing their efforts to slash federal spending by
threatening mass firings of workers and suggesting “irreversible” cuts to
Democratic priorities. Those include
post -9/11 alert agencies, e.g. in NY – the elimination of which will lead to
loss of safety for millions.
But again, this is just what a no count dirtbag, traitor and felon would do. A
guy who should be nowhere near the seat of power but instead rotting in Rikers
after being convicted of 34 felonies by a jury of his peers. And don’t even try
to tell me those were “minor” offenses.
They were not, they entailed paying out hush money to hide his misdeeds
before the 2016 election. The payoffs, the receipts, in the form of actually
signed checks sent to his then consigliere Michael Cohen. And who do you think got time? It was Cohen,
not Trump.
With all that background Trump could bark yesterday on his
social media account:
“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this
unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their
way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
The post was notable in its explicit embrace of Project 2025, a controversial policy blueprint drafted by the Heritage Foundation and Russel Vought, which I’d also warned about. Also that Trump denied, again another of his 30,000 + lies to get boobs and bumblers to elect him. (Vought, in a private conference call with House GOP lawmakers Wednesday afternoon, told them of layoffs starting in the next day or two. )
It’s all clearly an extension of the havoc wrought by DOGE (Department of
Government Efficiency) under Elon Musk that slashed through the federal
government at the start of the year. And the seeds were laid this year in the atrocity of a 'big, beautiful bill, the pukes rushed through 3 months ago.
Why are the Dems continuing to hold the line, and not give in? Basically to stop the impending explosion of health care premiums which will happen this month unless federal subsidies are extended. This is for all the 15 odd million of citizens currently covered under the Affordable Care Act. Those like my nephew Damien who will see his monthly premium rise from $460 to $845. No, that’s not a typo, that’s the coming reality thanks to this criminal administration’s “Big Beautiful Bill” and its reeking effluent which I’d already warned about.
All You Need To Know About The 'Big, Beautiful Abomination' - And Why It Must Be Slain In The House
Yes, I know that in the shutdown 750,00 federal workers are
affected with their furloughs and having to get loans. But what is worse, three
quarters of a million adversely affected
- or 15 million? The Democrats are fighting for the greater number and
as one leading light once said: “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of
the few or the one.”
Make no mistake the fuckers responsible for the misery of this shutdown are ensconced in the White House, where they are also hard at work using millions of taxpayer money to build Trump's mega grand ball room - even after they took $20 billion to bail out fellow fascist state Argentina.
To add insult to criminal injury they are now targeting (ALREADY APPROVED) projects in blue states such as here in Colorado, e.g.
Trump eliminates $550 million in Colorado clean energy projects
Which monies have NADA, NOTHING to do with monies associated with the shutdown standoff. In the words of the Denver Post lead piece:
The Trump administration is canceling $7.6 billion in grants that supported clean energy projects in 16 states — including Colorado, where more than $550 million in funding is set to be eliminated in what the state decried as “politically motivated targeting.”
The U.S. Department of Energy said in a statement Thursday that 223 projects were terminated nationwide after a review determined they did not adequately advance the nation’s energy needs or were not economically viable.
Which is unadulterated horse shit! It is rather part of the Project 2025 package that these political arsonists like Vought and Trump are now seeking to ram through to continue to implement their dastardly designs - thereby enabling an authoritarian takeover.
This assault is happening in all the blue states, including IL, NY, MI, VT and others. It is unconstitutional and unlawful!
We are now at a crossroads and the pivot of history for this nation is in the balance. We either will get a full-fledge Trump dictatorship or come together as one nation to stop it.
See Also:
More Americans blame Trump and Republicans than Democrats for shutdown, poll finds - Washington Post
And:
by Amanda Marcotte | October 4, 2025 - 5:27am | permalink
To hear Vice President JD Vance talk, you’d think the only people who ever see a doctor in the U.S. are undocumented immigrants. He insists that Democrats are refusing to support a Republican budget bill because “they want to give hundreds of billions of dollars of health care benefits to illegal aliens.” As Vance repeats the lie, the number gets bigger. He’s even claimed that it’s a “trillion dollars for medical benefits for illegal aliens.” By the time you read this, Vance might even be saying that Democrats plan to ban all citizens from ever entering a hospital again. After all, if you’re going to shamelessly lie, why not just go buck wild?
And make no mistake: This is a lie. As he usually does, the vice president traps the press into playing his game by saying something flatly, outrageously untrue. Then, when he is called on it, Vance pretends he actually meant [fill in with a much smaller claim]. He did this during the campaign after being called out for his overt lie about Haitian immigrants kidnapping and eating people’s pets. The lie, he insisted, was fair play — because the part where there are Haitian immigrants living in the U.S. is true. Using this logic, I could almost write “JD Vance kills and eats babies,” and when — justifiably — challenged about it, I could insist it’s not a lie because he kisses babies with his mouth.
And:
Trump sees shutdown as tool to shrink government, target foes - The Washington Post
Excerpt:
Trump is shattering political norms by wielding the shutdown
to advance his broader objective to shrink the federal bureaucracy and punish
his foes by threatening layoffs, shuttering “Democrat agencies” he doesn’t like
and promising to withhold billions of dollars in infrastructure funds intended
for blue states.
The shutdown is only the latest example of how Trump is
barreling through traditional guardrails in his second term to pick fights with
his perceived opponents and achieve policy objectives that eluded him the first
time around. He has slashed federal agencies and fired tens of thousands of
federal workers without consulting Congress. He has declared national
emergencies to deploy federal troops to D.C. and California. And he has imposed
billions of dollars in tariffs on imported goods through executive action, with
no input from the legislative branch responsible for taxation.
All the while, Trump has ignored claims that he is overstepping his power, brushing off lawsuits and promising to prevail.
And:
Trump vows sweeping cuts, layoffs as government shutdown hits day 2
And:
Trump White Houses Senses Political Risk on Healthcare Despite Government Shutdown Bravado - WSJ
Excerpt:
President Trump has
projected unwavering confidence that he is winning the messaging war over the
government shutdown. But behind the scenes, his team is increasingly concerned
that the issue at the center of the debate will create political
vulnerabilities for Republicans.
Advisers are worried that the GOP will take the blame
for allowing healthcare subsidies to expire, raising costs for
millions of Americans ahead of next year’s midterm elections, according to
administration officials.
And:
by Robert Reich | October 2, 2025 - 5:44am | permalink
— from Robert Reich's Substack
Here’s what’s at stake, and why Dems must hold the line.
Friends,
I’ve been directly involved in government shutdowns, one when I was secretary of labor. It’s hard for me to describe the fear, frustration, and chaos that ensued. I recall spending the first day consoling employees — many in tears as they headed out the door.
In some ways, this shutdown is similar to others. Agencies and departments designed to protect consumers, workers, and investors are now officially closed, as are national parks and museums.
Most federal workers are not being paid — as many as 750,000 could be furloughed — including those who are required to remain on the job, like air-traffic controllers or members of the U.S. military.
So-called “mandatory” spending, including Social Security and Medicare payments, are continuing, although checks could be delayed. (Trump has made sure that construction of his new White House ballroom won’t be affected.)
And:
by Robert Reich | June 30, 2025 - 5:58am | permalink
— from Robert Reich's Substack
Friends,
One of my objectives in this daily letter is to equip you with the facts you need. As the Senate approaches a vote on Trump’s giant “big beautiful” tax and budget bill, I want to be as clear as possible about it.
First, it will cost a budget-busting $3.3 trillion. According to new estimates by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the Senate bill would add at least $3.3 trillion to the already out-of-control national debt over a decade. That’s nearly $1 trillion more than the House-passed version.
Second, it will cause 11.8 million Americans to lose their health coverage. The Senate version would result in even deeper cuts in federal support for health insurance, and more Americans losing coverage, than the House version. Federal spending on Medicaid, Medicare, and Obamacare would be reduced by more than $1.1 trillion over that period — with more than $1 trillion of those cuts coming from Medicaid alone.
All told, this will leave 11.8 million more Americans uninsured by 2034.
Third, it will cut food stamps and other nutrition assistance for lower-income Americans. According to the CBO, the legislation will not only cut Medicaid by about 18 percent, it will cut Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps) by roughly 20 percent. These cuts will constitute the most dramatic reductions in safety net spending in modern U.S. history.
Fourth, it will overwhelmingly benefit the rich and big corporations. The CBO projects that those in the bottom tenth of the income distribution will end up poorer, while the top tenth will be substantially richer.
The bill also makes permanent the business tax cuts from the 2017 legislation, further benefiting the largest corporations.
Finally, it will not help the economy. Trickle-down economics has proven to be a cruel hoax. Over the last 50 years, Congress has passed four major bills that cut taxes: the 1981 Reagan tax cuts; the 2001 and 2003 George W. Bush tax cuts; and the 2017 Trump tax cuts. Each time, the same three arguments were made in favor of the tax cuts: (1) They’d pay for themselves. (2) They’d supercharge economic growth. (3) They’d benefit everyone.
And:
by Robert Reich | July 4, 2025 - 6:02am | permalink
— from Robert Reich's Substack
President Donald Trump’s 940-page Big Ugly Bill was passed today by the House and is now on the way to the White House for Trump’s signature.
It is a disgrace. It takes more than $1 trillion out of Medicaid—leaving about 12 million Americans without insurance by 2034—and slashes Food Stamps, all to give a giant tax cut to wealthy Americans.
It establishes an anti-immigrant police state in America, replete with a standing army of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and a gulag of detention facilities that will transform ICE into the most heavily funded law enforcement agency in the government.
It will increase the already-bloated deficit by $3.4 trillion.
It’s also disgraceful because of how it came to be.
The Rise Of TRUMP: Lessons From 1930's Germany
And:
by Thom Hartmann | October 2, 2025 - 5:29am | permalink
Most jobs have a “playbook,” a sort of instruction manual or checklist for how to do the job right, whether it’s running an assembly line, piloting an aircraft, or redoing a house’s plumbing.
Although our media seems oblivious to it, dictators have a playbook, too.
It’s one that’s been carefully followed in recent times by Putin, Orbán, Erdoğon, Duterte, Bolsonaro, and numerous initially-elected leaders of other smaller nations. In previous generations the Dictator’s Playbook was followed, step-by-step, by Mussolini, Hitler, Franco, Marcos, Pinochet, Stalin, and Tojo (among others).
And now it’s being followed by Donald Trump and JD Vance, who’re a bit more than halfway through the list. Trump’s speech yesterday before our assembled military generals and admirals — telling them they should use our American cities as “training grounds” for the military whose job is to “kill people and break things” — is getting us closer to the final steps.
And:
by Robert Reich | October 3, 2025 - 5:40am | permalink
— from Robert Reich's Substack
In the unfriendly skies
Friends,
I don’t have a crystal ball, but I have a good idea how this shutdown ends. Trump and Republicans will cave (he won’t admit he’s caving, of course, but he will cave).
Here’s why: Air traffic controllers.
Like other federal workers, the controllers aren’t being paid now (they’ll get back-pay when the shutdown ends). But unlike most other federal workers, their workloads and stress loads have been soaring.
Recall the last big shutdown that started in late 2018 and went on for 35 days — a record. What ended it? Air traffic controllers.
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