The Trump Files

How can that be, you may ask. That's a good question with a fairly easy answer. Trump's followers don't hear about his misdeeds the way you and I do. What they hear instead, thanks to their choice of news media, is a filtered version in which Trump is the victim, not the perpetrator. In spite of his many flaws—which include a determination to win at any cost, even that of our democracy—Donald Trump is extremely good at one thing: making people believe his version of events, no matter how twisted or implausible. To put it another way, Trump is the worst president ever but one of the greatest con men who ever lived.

As proof, we present here an unedited look at Trump's response—on his "Make America Great Again!" web site—to this latest criminal indictment, the fourth against him in the last few months. This is what Trump's followers are hearing and reading:

Friend,

Justice and the rule of law are officially DEAD in America.

A left-wing prosecutor—with such extreme anti-Trump bias that EVEN CNN questioned her legitimacy—has INDICTED me despite having committed NO CRIME.

This marks the FOURTH ACT of Election Interference on behalf of the Democrats in an attempt to keep the White House under Crooked Joe's control and JAIL his single greatest opponent of the 2024 election.

Let me remind you that just days before I announced my 2024 presidential campaign, Crooked Joe declared on national TV that serious efforts would be taken to stop me from being able to "take power" again.

We're watching those efforts unfold as Crooked Joe's henchmen follow their boss' orders by targeting me in baseless witch hunts in an attempt to JAIL ME FOR LIFE as an innocent man.

The left-wing prosecutor orchestrating this latest witch hunt for Crooked Joe was caught "intermix[ing] her political fortunes with this case."

Her bias was so terrible that she had to be REMOVED from one part of the case because of a "political conflict of interest" of her own creation.

But it's not just the prosecutor...

...The FOREPERSON of the GRAND JURY broke a veil of secrecy by going on a media tour with the Fake News, GIGGLING on TV about the idea of serving me with a subpoena and unjustly robbing me of my liberty.

She said it would be "awesome" to have the power to swear me in, and teased possible indictments as if it were a movie trailer.

Even the Fake News called her media circus show a "HORRIBLE IDEA" and a "prosecutor's nightmare."

Our once free Republic where citizens were presumed innocent until proven guilty is gone.

In its place is a Marxist Third World dictatorship led by an incompetent yet crooked tyrant who tries to place your fate in the hands of vengeful and corrupt prosecutors.

Communism has finally reached America's shores.

But while these certainly are dark times for our country, I will NEVER give up on America.

The more I see these rogue prosecutors weaponize our legal system to criminalize dissent and imprison their political opponents, the stronger my resolve to save our country.

Because I know that if these illegal persecutions succeed, if they're allowed to set fire to the law, then it will not end with me... They'll come for YOU.

America is the greatest nation in history—and I WILL NEVER SURRENDER our country to these radical tyrants who seek to destroy it.

Even after 4 sham indictments and a threat of HUNDREDS OF YEARS IN PRISON, I will never abandon our mission, because the fate of our nation hangs in the balance in the 2024 election. It's not just my freedom on the line, but yours as well—and I will NEVER let them take it from you.

If you are doing poorly right now due to the very sinister people who are ripping our country to shreds, then just hit the back button and go about your day. I seriously mean it!

But if not, I don't have to tell you that the stakes of this election have never been greater. Our Republic is hanging by a thread, and America needs you right now.

And now you have heard Trump's side of the story. Please note the last sentence, as it is always one of the most important in any of Trump's messages: "Please make a contribution..." Trump has raised and continues to raise millions of dollars from his indictments, much of which goes to pay his mounting legal bills.

As to the rest:

Trump's indictments prove that justice and the rule of law aren't dead but indeed are alive and well in America, something Trump would like to change as soon as he were able.

No left-wing prosecutor indicted Trump in Georgia; that was done by a grand jury which weighed the evidence and decided he should stand trial.

Neither the White House nor "crooked Joe" Biden's administration had anything to do with Trump's indictments—in Georgia, Florida or Washington, DC. Trump is not being persecuted; he is being prosecuted, and for good reason.

The foreperson who "broke the veil of secrecy" by disclosing information that should have been privy to the grand jury alone was NOT a member of the panel that indicted Trump; she was on an earlier grand jury that served an advisory role, able to hear evidence but having no power to act on it.

Trump's only rationale for labeling the US a "Marxist Third World dictatorship" is the fact that he and his associates are being held accountable for their crimes against the US Constitution. No one else has attempted or been accused of violating its precepts; only Donald Trump. "Communism," he asserts with no evidence whatsoever to support the claim, "has finally reached America's shores." Which, translated into plain English, means: "Accountability has finally reached my doorstep."

No one is coming for YOU—that is, unless you are a part of Trump's criminal enterprise (we're looking at you, Giuliani, Eastman, Meadows, Clark, Powell and on-down-the-line).

And finally, there is one statement that Trump and I can agree on: "The fate of our nation hangs in the balance in the 2024 election." Re-elect Trump and America will soon become the country he tells his supporters it already is. It's the same playbook strongmen and dictators have been using since our earliest ancestors were confronted by a hostile tribe and assured by one of their members that "he alone can fix it."

August 23, 2023

"Mr. Giuliani! Mr. Giuliani! Neal Wiseman, Amalgamated Press. You claim you have 'scientific evidence' that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from president Trump...Would you care to elaborate on that?"

"Well, we've only recently uncovered the proof, so I haven't been able to spell it out in any great detail. But here's a brief look at what we've learned so far. We started with 'E...'which represents the number of eligible voters. 'M' represents the many votes stolen from the president in seven key swing states, while 'C' stands for the number of crooks who stole them. When you do the math, namely that 'E' equals 'MC' squared, you can see that Trump actually won by a landslide!"

"That's certainly one way of looking at it. But are you sure that equation would hold up in court?"

"I don't see why it shouldn't. It has been proven time and again..."

"That's true...but not when applied to presidential elections, sir. If it should be rejected, have you any other scientific evidence that could lend weight to your argument?"

"Of course we have! We've learned the hard way that simply lying, obfuscating and vilifying our opponents wasn't enough to convince a judge. We needed actual proof, and now we have it."

"And what might that proof be?"

"Well, science—and common sense—tells us the earth is round, not flat. Would you agree with that?"

"Of course."

"Taking that one step further, would you agree that up is down or day is night?"

"Certainly not."

"Now we're getting somewhere! You see, almost everyone of sound mind agrees that Joe Biden won the 2020 election. But...and here's where the science comes in...when you ROUND OFF the number of votes, that argument falls FLAT. Same as up is down or day is night. Biden's win simply doesn't make sense; it was too FLAT. Trump, on the other hand, won every ROUND. You just have to look at the facts from a scientific point of view..."

"But the facts say that Biden won seven million more votes than Trump..."

"Yes, but WHERE did he win them? Mostly in BLUE states! Note that the SKY is also blue. Why? Because on the visible spectrum, clean air scatters more blue light than red. See? It's the BLUE light that's scattered, not RED! Which means Biden's blue votes are separated willy-nilly while Trump's red votes are solid and carry far more weight. In fact, TWICE as much weight! So EVERY VOTE for Trump should be counted TWICE to make up the difference! As he has always said, he won in a landslide. It's a scientific fact!"

"I can see why Trump relies so heavily on your advice, sir. But with all due respect, your scientific proof is rather complicated (not to mention groundless); some judges—and juries—may have trouble following your impenetrable logic and line of thinking..."

"We've covered that too, and we've come up with a much simpler and easier to understand set of facts. Take Georgia, for example. We said 500 dead people voted in the election, they said five. That's a difference of 495 votes. We said 3,000 out-of-state residents voted, they said more like a hundred. That's a difference of 2,900. We said 10,000 voted who didn't have valid addresses; they said 1,615. That's a difference of 8,385. You add that up and it comes to exactly 11,780, which is one more vote than we needed. Trump won Georgia too! It's a scientific and mathematical fact!"

"That is truly remarkable, sir. And I mean 'remarkable' in the same sense as 'unreal' or 'impractical...'"

"I knew you'd agree. They don't call me 'rational Rudy' for nothing! And if you think that's impressive, wait'll you see the evidence TRUMP has uncovered! He's putting the finishing touches on it now..."

"And when should we be seeing that?"

"Oh, I'd say in a week or two at most. First he has to finish finish that inquiry into Obama's birth certificate..."

August 28, 2023

When former president Donald ("witch hunts, how I love ya!") Trump was booked at the Fulton County (GA) Jail last Thursday on charges he conspired to subvert the 2020 election results in that state, he was fingerprinted and invited to stay long enough to have a mug shot taken (a first for any president, present or former). The menacing pose he struck for that photo must be one he rehearsed in front of a mirror for weeks if not longer.

Although Trump was in and out of the lockup in less than an hour (and would have been on his way even sooner if the supervisors hadn't spent so much time laughing at his self-described measurement of "6-foot-3, 215 pounds"), it took less than three more hours for his mug shot to be stenciled onto a T-shirt with the motto "NEVER SURRENDER!" and made available at Trump's tawdry Make America Great web site. According to Trump, it has now become "a world-famous symbol of AN INNOCENT MAN ARRESTED" (replacing, we presume, an image of Alfred Dreyfus).

The good news for his gullible supporters is that Trump is GIVING the T-shirts to everyone who wants one FREE! You heard right: FREE! All you have to do is contribute $35 (or more) to Trump's re-election campaign and he'll send you an AUTOGRAPHED mug shot T-shirt FREE OF CHARGE! How's that for an offer you can't refuse? And if you're thinking, "Wait a minute! Doesn't that mean the T-shirt is actually costing me $35?" you haven't caught on to how the game is played. The $35 has NOTHING to do with the T-shirt, which is ABSOLUTELY FREE! That money is simply to help the former charlatan-in-chief regain the White House in 2024 (well, mostly to pay his legal fees)—but it has NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with the T-shirt, which, we'll repeat again for the hard of hearing, is FREE! You'd best hurry, though, as supplies are limited! There are only 11,780 in stock—which is one more than is needed.

As he left Atlanta for a trip to New Jersey aboard Trump Force 1, the former wannabe warlord said he was pleased to hear shouts of "Free Trump!" as the motorcade drove to the airport. However, as those who happen upon his MAGA web site soon learn to their dismay, there is really no such thing as a "Free Trump!"

Trump's surrender (hold on; I thought he'd NEVER surrender) to Georgia law enforcement took place one day after the first GOP presidential debate, which showed, if nothing else, that follow-up questions can sometimes be quite useful.

Asked by Fox News' Bret Baier how many of the lemmings onstage would support the former president even if he were convicted of a crime, six of the eight raised their hands (although Ron DeSantis first raised a finger to see which way the wind was blowing), The follow-up question—which never came—should have been, "When you were elected to office, you took an oath to preserve. protect and defend the Constitution. The crimes the former president has been charged with relate to his efforts to undermine the constitution by claiming—falsely—that the 2020 presidential election was 'stolen' from him, and fomenting an insurrection whose aim was to overturn that lawful result and keep him in power. How can you reconcile your oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution with a decision to support for president someone who has been convicted of trying to nullify that hallowed document?"

I daresay the silence would have been deafening.

And finally...

As a writer, I have a list of pet peeves. For example, it always irks me (can't say why) that almost no one knows the proper usage of lie, lay and laid. No, you are not going to "lay down" for a nap, you are going to "lie down." If you "lay down," it would have been yesterday. It's things like that which keep me awake at night.

Now there is a new addition to the list, one that may have originated in Florida—I'm not sure—but is certainly welcome there (but not here). In short, I refuse to use plural pronouns instead of the singular when referring to people. A man is a "he," a woman a "she," and when you put them together it is "they." I won't refer to a single man or woman as "they," no matter who that may offend. In so doing, I am not anti-trans or anti-anything else, merely an old dog who grew up in the age of he, she and they and isn't open to learning any new tricks, especially when they involve grammar.

Until next time...

September 12, 2023

President Joe Biden stands in front of an audience and recites a litany of his administration's achievements during his first two and one-half years in office (almost all of them with little or no help from Republicans): the landmark Inflation Reduction Act; the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; the CHIPS and Science Act to help bring technology home from overseas; the strongest two years of job growth in our nation's history, coupled with a fifty-year low in the unemployment rate; the first-ever negotiation of drug prices by Medicare; a boom in manufacturing and investment in new facilities; expanded services for America's veterans; the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first meaningful step toward gun safety regulation in three decades; the most diverse judicial appointments made by any president including the Supreme Court's first black woman justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson; ending the long and costly war in Afghanistan; standing up for women's rights to health care and finding ways to lower the crushing burden of student debt; expanding the Affordable Care Act to cover millions more of those who need it; making more than 740 million free Covid-19 test kits available to help Americans cope with the pandemic—and those actions are merely the tip of an enormous legislative iceberg that Biden has presided over.

As Biden continues to make his case, several audience members seem to be napping; others yawn, twist in their seats and struggle to keep their eyes open. Applause is sparse, and the audience's engagement minimal at best.

Elsewhere, Donald Trump stands in front of an audience and unleashes an endless stream of nonsense, gibberish and outright lies.

The audience is on its feet, screaming, yelling, applauding loudly and hungering for more of the same.

And that, in a nutshell, is why the 2024 presidential race appears to be so close.

Donald Trump is not a politician; he is a pitch man, a pretender, an entertainer. Joe Biden is a skilled politician, but an entertainer he definitely is not. Biden prefers to let the facts speak for themselves (usually in a low and halting voice that personifies the politician he is). Trump disgorges whatever pops into his head at a given moment, no matter how odious, untruthful or absurd it may be. Joe Biden puts audiences to sleep. Donald Trump wakes them up.

On the face if it, there is no way a twice-impeached ex-president who did almost nothing for the American people during his four years in office, lined his and his family's pockets with money and other perks from taxpayers and foreign governments, and has been indicted not once but four times on criminal charges that include conspiracy to incite an insurrection designed to negate the Constitution and rule of law to keep himself in power should be running neck-and-neck in polls with a president who has actually accomplished things during his tenure in the White House.

But there you have it.

Fact vs. fiction. Truth vs. misinformation. Sleight of hand vs. substance. To paraphrase Shakespeare, "A ruse by any other name would smell the same." Trump has no purpose or policy apart from a desire to gain and hold power. He deals solely in hatred and contempt for "the other," whoever that may be at a given moment. When was the last time you heard Trump say anything at all about governing or looking after the needs of the American people? Take your time; I'll wait.

Trump hasn't told the truth since he rode down an escalator, labeled most Mexican immigrants "murderers and rapists," said he would "build a wall" to bar their entrance into the country and that "Mexico would pay for it." That is truly strange; even stranger is the fact that his brainwashed base doesn't seem to notice or mind. In essence, whatever he says becomes their "truth." And although his puppets would never admit it, that is basically the very definition of a cult: "a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object." In this case, Donald J Trump.

Trump himself says they are "patriots," not cult members, who have only the best interests of the country at heart, as he does. As there are arguments on both sides, I felt it was time for another visit to Mar-a-Lago to clarify the former huckster-in-chief's thoughts about being labeled a "cult leader." So after making the requisite arrangements, it was off to Florida for another luncheon meeting with the man himself.

Seated across from Trump at a gold-plated table, I found him to be surprisingly cheerful for a man who is facing ninety-one felony counts in four separate indictments. "Thank you for seeing me again, Mr. president," I began, calling him what everyone in his orbit deems appropriate.

"It's my pleasure," he replied. "Look, would you like one of my world-famous mug shot mugs, T-shirts or posters? Many Americans already own one. And they're FREE to anyone who sends $35 or more to my Make America Great web site! But for you, as friend to friend, only $30—or $25, if you feel that's all you can handle at the moment..."

"Perhaps later, Mr. president. But I'd like to talk first about cults and the fact that some people see you, rightly or wrongly, as a cult leader..."

"Okay. But as I'm feeling rather tired today (things didn't go well on the golf course), I'll save some time and energy by cribbing the answers to your questions straight from my Make America Great web site."

"That's fine, sir. Let's start with cults..."

"If you listened to the political ruling class and the fake news media, you'd think I'm public enemy No. 1..."

"And for good reason. But that's far from being a cult leader..."

"Look, no matter how many witch hunts the Deep State incites, no matter how many times I'm wrongfully arrested, no matter how many times a mug shot is taken, no matter how many hundreds—or thousands—of years they threaten to imprison an innocent man, no matter how many times they force me to stand trial on the eve of a major primary election, I will NEVER SURRENDER our mission to make America great again!"

"Those are indeed splendid prearranged talking points, sir. But getting back to cults..."

"Politicians, drunk with power, are weaponizing the legal system to try and completely destroy me...and, ultimately, imprison me for the rest of my life as an innocent man..."

"Is that because you are a cult leader?"

"They've examined my entire life under a microscope and have found ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to pin me down for, so they're inventing crimes out of thin air and launching never-ending witch hunts to try and break me..."

"By 'they,' do you mean the grand juries that have indicted you in several jurisdictions for a total of ninety-one alleged crimes against America and its citizens...?"

"Someone said to me, 'Mr. president, you could charge a lot more than $35 for those signed mug shot posters...but I WON'T! Because $35 is the average donation to our campaign, and I want to make sure it's not too far out of reach for our grassroots donors..."

"That's certainly commendable, sir, but what does it have to do with..."

"The point is, will the fake news finally credit me for being a nice guy? Believe me, I'm not banking on it..."

"Speaking of banking, sir, New York's attorney general says you have overstated your wealth by about $3.6 billion every year..."

"The Democrats are ripping their hair out trying to figure out how we raised over $10 million following my wrongful arrest..."

"But about your net worth..."

"Look, we have serious matters to deal with—not televised charades orchestrated by Crooked Joe and his corrupt accomplices."

"By 'accomplices,' I assume you mean the members of the grand juries who chose to have you stand trial...However, as you brought it up, let's look at those 'serious matters' that need to be addressed..."

"They're all in my list of policies and priorities, which I'll soon make available to everyone..."

"And when might that be...?"

"I'd say in another week or two. Just working on some of the finer points..."

"Is there anything you can reveal before the policies are made public?"

"Yes...I refuse to be part of the Left's televised spectacles as they weaponize the legal system to try and make me look like a criminal and list over a dozen FALSE CHARGES against me on live TV!"

"Sounds like a policy to me, sir. But aren't there any plans that don't involve you personally?"

"The Communist Democrats would love nothing more than for me to be stuck in a televised spectacle as a way to keep me off the campaign trail."

"Again, sir, this seems to be all about you..."

"While every other politician in the country sees you as nothing more than a 'vote' filed away in a data base, I will ALWAYS see you as a loyal supporter and fellow patriot..."

"That's very kind of you, sir, especially as I wouldn't vote for you if you were running against Satan himself..."

"And that's your choice as an American! Trust me, I would NEVER do anything to undermine our sacred system of free and fair elections. Crooked Joe and his Commie pals know that. Politicians could really use a lesson in humility from me..."

"But, sir, you've been charged with..."

"Every time the Left goes one step further, every time they stoop to a new low to try and cancel out YOUR vote, and every time they unlawfully arrest me as an innocent man, the American people have proven that we will not stand for their Third World Marxist tyranny. But speaking of charges...you know there's no need to pay cash for one of my world-famous mug shot mugs, T-shirts or posters. You can simply charge them. We'll accept checks, credit cards, bitcoin; hell, I've even accepted a few IOUs..."

"That's very generous, Mr. president, but I'll have to think about it."

"That's okay, but don't take too long. They're really selling fast! Many Americans now own one..."

"And I'm sure many Americans obtained Kool-Aid from Jim Jones too. I'm just not sure I want to drink any yet. Well, thanks for your time, sir. As always, it has been a thoroughly inane and bizarre conversation. And as you have always been so fond of saying, we'll see you in court..."

September 18, 2023

I long ago stopped counting the number of times former president Donald ("PRA forever!") Trump has invoked the Presidential Records Act as a "defense" against his taking, concealing and mishandling government documents after his term in office—including many marked "secret," "top secret" or "incinerate before peeking."

"Those papers were mine!" Trump has said repeatedly. "I could do anything I wanted with them." The reason, he asserts, is that any actions he took were protected by the Presidential Records Act (PRA). To which I say, perhaps he should try READING the Act rather than merely talk about it; what it actually says may surprise him.

Among other things, the PRA "establishes that presidential records automatically transfer into the legal custody of the Archivist [in other words, the National Archives and Records Administration] as soon as the president leaves office."

Nowhere does it say those records remain the property of a president who has left office, let alone allow him (no "her" so far) to remove them to his private residence and store them in boxes, some in his office, others in a bathroom.

And nowhere, in the PRA or anywhere else, is there a provision that says classified documents may be unclassified simply by thinking about it, waving sticks, rubbing a rabbit's foot or sticking pins in a doll. There is an established process by which documents are unclassified, one about which the former president is apparently clueless.

Trump does, however, have a powerful ally in judge Aileen Cannon who, it seems, will do everything she can to slow his trial in Florida and generally gum up the works. Unfortunately for the former klepto-in-chief, his fate rests not wholly in judge Cannon's unschooled hands, as another criminal trial looms large in his future, this one in the nation's capital concerning his dogged attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election (attempts that continue to this day). Unlike Cannon, the judge in this case seems ready to spank the orange-colored warrior-cum-crybaby every time he starts another tantrum.

Facing a possible narrow gag order to prevent him from making further "inflammatory"' and "intimidating" comments about those involved in the case including attorneys, prospective witnesses, prosecutors or anyone who looks at him wrong, Trump was quick to respond via his tawdry Make America Great web site:

"[A]s national polling averages showed that we're CRUSHING Biden and on path to achieve an ELECTORAL LANDSLIDE in 2024, Crooked Joe is asking the Court to impose a GAG ORDER on me to limit my public statements.

"In other words, Joe Biden is trying to stop his leading opponent (me) from publicly speaking out against him and his corrupt, radical and incompetent regime."

Does anyone see a disconnect here?

No, Donald, "Crooked Joe" isn't asking the Court to do anything. The request for a limited gag order was made by special counsel Jack Smith (or, as Trump describes him, "deranged" Jack Smith) who was appointed by attorney general Merrick Garland and has, according to all available evidence, no ties whatsoever to "Crooked Joe" or the White House.

And no one is taking away your First Amendment right to free speech, which includes the right to label Biden's administration "corrupt, radical and incompetent" despite having not a scintilla of evidence to support that position.

The fact is, president Biden has accomplished far more in his two and one-half years in office than you did in your first (and hopefully last) four-year term, and Jack Smith has more knowledge about the law and our system of justice in one little finger than your vest-pocket brain could grasp if you lived to be a thousand.

I know what you readers must be thinking: "Stop beating around the bush and say what you mean about Trump."

In Georgia, Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis is prosecuting citizen Trump for trying to overturn the election in that state, therefore she is a "racist." Yes, it makes no sense, but to Trump's base it doesn't have to, which is entirely the point.

It is hard to counter anything Trump says or claims without resorting to levity or satire, as it deserves no more. On the other hand, as that devious buffoon has somehow persuaded millions of Americans to vote for him, campaigning via gibberish, ghost writers and gift store must be rather effective after all.

Which reminds me...there isn't much time left to enter the raffle for a genuine Trump-autographed football. Only $24 and up. Gotta go!

The complaint list keeps growing...

As I wrote briefly last week about some of my semantic pet peeves, I'd like to add one more to the list. I have a bone to pick with the asterisk (*). Well, not the asterisk per se, but the way it is used (or misused) in print to "disguise" certain words (usually four-letter) so readers will get the idea without actually having to "read" the word itself. Here are a couple of examples:

"F*ck you" or "You're a no-good piece of sh*t."

Is there any way that anyone with even an embryonic intellect could possibly misperceive the words that are "hidden" behind those asterisks? Of course not. So what is the point of not spelling them out? They are only words, no more or less acceptable or abhorrent than any others. Who was it that decided they should be concealed from the sensitive eyes of readers who clearly may have no idea whatsoever which vowel is hiding behind that asterisk.

The radio/TV equivalent of the asterisk is the "bleep," which I find equally absurd. It's as if no one in today's sophisticated society had ever heard such words before, and would be frightfully offended should they actually be spoken aloud. Come on.

If you want to hear foul language by the bucketful, simply go to the movies. Hollywood stopped bleeping or banning offensive speech years ago, and today's scripts are (over)loaded with it. We live in a far different world than the one in which Clark Gable's Rhett Butler, in Gone with the Wind, shocked and horrified audiences by telling Scarlett O'Hara, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." What did he say? He doesn't give a WHAT? Quick, someone, summon the censors! And where are those freaking bleeps when you need them?

Today, we know exactly where the bleeps and asterisks are; but however well-intended their purpose, they are simply no longer needed, as the number of people (including children) who haven't heard or read the words in question may be counted on the fingers of one's hands. In my opinion, the asterisk —and bleep—have outlived their camouflaging purpose and should go the way of the hula hoop and full-service gas station.

Americans who have survived the scourge of a Trump presidency are surely able to withstand a small number of four-letter words that are spelled out or spoken aloud. Granted, there are some who may disagree with this sentiment, and to them I say, "I really don't give a sh*t what you think."

September 25, 2023

Today, we offer some random (and unsolicited) thoughts...

Could anyone, even in his or her wildest dreams, imagine president Biden hosting a web site with an "official merchandise store" that sells T-shirts, baseball caps, posters, decals, bumper stickers, beverage coolers, lapel buttons and stickers, flags, yard signs and—wait for it!—autographed footballs and mug shots, and seems to have an inventory larger than Walmart? Donald Trump has one, and presumably believes it's a key part of his strategy to retake the White House in 2024, as every item sold represents free advertising for his MAGA cause while at the same time delivering much-needed cash to help keep his promise-rich and policy-free campaign in the black while he awaits at least four criminal trials.

Yes, Trump has made promises—to demolish the FBI and Department of Justice, privatize the US civil service, jail his enemies, pardon his friends—you know, the kinds of things that should be uppermost in the mind of anyone seeking the office of president. And unlike building a wall, strengthening our crumbling infrastructure or dismantling Obamacare, Trump intends to keep those promises. Don't claim you weren't warned...

Moving on...

Has it occurred to you that every soldier who dies in battle no longer cares who wins the war?

What has that to do with Donald Trump, you may reasonably ask.

Simply this: that like every would-be dictator, tyrant, overlord and confidence man who ever lived, Trump will soon stop living, as must everyone else. Whatever splash he makes, no matter how cataclysmic it may seem at the moment, is no more than a fleeting blip in the limitless ocean of time and space. However rapacious and sordid he may be, and whatever damage he may cause, Trump will soon vanish, and life will go on its way without him. And that is today's comforting thought...

But as we are speaking of rapacious and sordid...

Clarence Thomas, who masquerades as a US Supreme Court justice when he is not accepting favors and playing lap dog for various well-heeled "friends," has been caught (again) with his soiled hands in the cookie jar, this time for attending fund-raising events sponsored by the right-wing (and sometime Supreme Court appellant) Koch Foundation. "Oh, didn't I mention that?" he asked when the facts became known. "Sorry; my bad."

So who are we to blame for such disgraceful behavior? Oooh, that's really hard to say. How about—just taking a wild guess here—the US Supreme Court, which opened the floodgates to massive corruption with its ignominious and untenable decision in Citizens United v Federal Election Commission, in which it held that corporations are "people" and thus entitled to First Amendment rights and privileges, which meant in effect that they could now be as predatory and corrupt as anyone else—and, in most cases, with no adverse consequences.

As people today bemoan the perversion and mendacity that have engulfed our cash-driven politics like some sort of flesh-eating parasite, they would do well to consider an obvious solution: repeal Citizens United. Our elected leaders, armed with the facts, could do it—if it weren't in their best interest to leave things the way they are. There is no logical reason why nine appointed jurists should have the power to turn America's electoral process into a cesspool. But turn it they have. The time to rectify that error should have been yesterday.

And as this is The Trump Files...

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