Tuesday Stuff

Trevor Hayes of More Perfect Union brings us the sordid, seamy tale of companies bribing Mango Mussolini, featuring a $130K gold bar along with a gold Rolex desk clock on the resolute desk; you know, the one used by presidents who were actually legitimate...and oh yeah, a host of other businesses are also included when it comes to paying off the Gropenfuhrer, including a meat packing plant, plastic bottlers, and humongous tech companies, among others (and oh yeah, those stinking tariffs figure into this also)...and I guess it’s unintentionally hilarious in a Stanley Kubrick kind of way that a company named Pilgrim’s Pride figures into this, though they apparently were bought out by a foreign conglomerate called JBS...not exactly sure why the latter outfit needed permission from Cantaloupe Capone to go public, but given the seamy activities of this company, I guess it’s a case of “birds of a feather,” you might say, including that MAGA-aligned lobbying firm that figures into this, leading to dropping the stinking tariff on Brazilian beef...oh, and we also learn that Ford and GM got some kind of a tariff break because they were major donors to the inaugural for #47 (another reason not to buy their vehicles as far as I’m concerned)...one point made clear to yours truly is that we’re going to have to do something about this “inaugural fund” stuff, which is pretty much a “slush fund” for the Tangerine Toddler and may have been that for prior presidents also; one idea is to have that dough regulated by Congress, which actually has the “power of the purse”...so many examples of pay-to-play here that your head will spin...we learn yet again how soybean farmers were destroyed by Cheetoh Hitler’s stinking tariffs with China refusing to purchase them from our farmers, yet another tale met with a shrug by our corporate media as nearly as I can tell...



...and something that got a little lost with the ongoing ICE horror show is the fact that former special counsel Jack Smith recently testified before the House about the criminal investigations into Bronzer Beelzebub (which seems almost quaint now I guess), with Smith basically laying out the case that, were he not residing in An Oval Office, #47 would likely be in a Club Fed somewhere...Rachel Maddow brings us this recent exchange between Smith and Dem U.S. House Rep Becca Balint of Vermont concerning Our Treasonous Orange Pustule of a *preznit and #47’s petty, childish, ridiculous threats against Smith (I don’t think it needs to be pointed out what a hero Smith is for his courageous work as well as that of his staff in investigating the crimes of our ruling regime)...panel discussion includes Nicolle Wallace (who correctly, and tragically, points out how the DOJ has been eviscerated) along with Chris Hayes (I think his phrase “click-tatorship” is apt, sadly), and I know Lawrence O’Donnell brings kind of a “West Wing” mentality here, which makes sense because he worked in the U.S. Senate during that era (and I make that observation with respect, and he makes a TERRIFIC point that there could be no Trump without his party’s meatheads in Congress)...also, I think Ari Melber’s perspective is particularly important here since he has a law degree...



...and Brian Tyler Cohen discusses Maria Bartiromo of Fix Noise starting off with what appears to be feigned outrage over the murder of Alex Pretti, and then she proceeds to let Repug U.S. House Rep James Comer start spewing a torrent of utter bullsh*t in response to this tragedy; about 61 percent of this country overall believes that ICE has gone way too damn far according to recent polling....to be honest (and I mean no disrespect to Cohen), I really could care less what the right-wing fever swamps say on this, including Joe Rogan (NSFW/H).

Oh, and as far as #47 supposedly reducing crime in D.C. with a greater ICE presence, I offer the following from here...

Though Trump has taken credit for reducing overall crime in 2025, rates were already declining before he returned to office last January, and experts say it’s at best too soon to tell if his Administration has played a notable role in the drop—and that it could be outright false to attribute the change to his crackdown.

And oh yeah, as far as Comer’s nonsense about “white liberal agitators” encouraging ICE protests, I give you this.

Here's the Cohen clip...



...and sometimes I think it's best just to let the folks who actually live in the affected area make their own case for themselves (doesn't sound like a white "liberal agitator" to me)...

This woman speaks for the majority of Americans. 🙌🙏🫶👇 pic.twitter.com/IIBzSHHVAQ

— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 25, 2026

...and I thought this was a good take by Mr. Newberger...



...and happy 75th birthday to Seth Justman of the J. Geils Band.

Monday Stuff

Katy Tur of MS NOW informs us of yet another horror show from the ICE criminals, and that is the news that 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was snatched in order to grab his father, then both were abducted and sent to a detention center in Texas (I know I alluded to this yesterday)...is it even worth it at this point to note that the family had an active asylum case and had entered this country legally (I mean, yes, I know that matters to sane, rational people, which automatically precludes anyone from our ruling regime...more here and here)...can’t think of a word for the disgust about how our government is trying to terrorize communities to the point where this ICE garbage could ever be considered normal, which it DEFINITELY IS NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES ("how is a five-year-old dangerous?" indeed)...by the way, there are some truly hideous trolls in the YouTube comment thread for this video, if you want to subject yourself to that for some reason...



...and Jonathan Montpetit of the CBC tells us how ICE is recruiting neanderthals online to terrorize communities, mainly by going to the far right fever swamps, using memes such as, “Which way, American man?” which is a pretty goddamn loud dog whistle IMHO...and oh yeah, “America for Americans” is about as subtle as a kick in the teeth also...and references to “The Flood” do indeed come from the Halo video game (and posting “banger memes,” huh? Doesn’t make you any less of a criminal as far as I’m concerned...and $30 billion by the end of the decade for ICE? Wonder how many dead civilians THAT will cost?)...



...well, for a bit of good news on this subject, Farron Cousins informs us that Lehigh County in our beloved commonwealth apparently evicted ICE from their field offices because they owe $100K in back rent (sweet)...this is even more idiotic when you consider their ridiculously beyond-bloated budget as already noted; they’re the last government agency under our criminal regime that should have to beg for dough, but it sounds like it wouldn’t matter even if ICE DID pay, so kudos to Lehigh County for that...definitely a good idea from Cousins about how to use the ICE back rent dough the RIGHT way (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and zeroing in on Philly, Jesse Dollemore tells us that our cretinous, thuggish ruling regime tore down plaques and markers depicting/referencing slavery around Independence Hall and the President's House...no disrespect to Jesse, but as far as I’m concerned, the question of whether or not the executive branch of our government is racist or not was settled LONG AGO...as far as Cantaloupe Capone is concerned, recalling our racist past is somehow ”disparaging,” to conservative white suburban boomers I guess with sensitive fee fees...and yeah, I think “Nazi sh*t” sums it up pretty well...I would love to see the guys who ripped down those exhibits get doxxed, since I think they deserve that at a minimum...I’d forgotten about the story of how George Washington came to have wooden teeth...much to atone for in our history as far as I’m concerned (and by the way, for the record, John Adams did not own slaves) (NSFW/H)...



...and I thought this was a pretty spot-on commentary from Ali Velshi in response to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and how we can honor them...Velshi is about 150 percent right that the old norms of granting the federal government the benefit of the doubt are gone; what matters for our ruling regime of monsters is to give cover for the ICE Gestapo above all else; ”pattern and practice” indeed...Velshi is also spot-on in saying that we have to give witness as we can to the carnage taking place around us and do what we can to combat it...



...and be careful trying to get rid of the snow; I’m actually shocked to report that it looks like our alleged weather geniuses were actually right about the amounts of accumulation – definitely not worth it to risk injury trying to shovel yourself out.

Sunday Stuff

Kudos to the brave folks in Minneapolis for protesting the ICE Gestapo in freezing temperatures recently as noted here...

Holy shit! This is Minneapolis. 🙌💪👏✊👇 pic.twitter.com/71tHgkgq9l

— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) January 24, 2026

...and tragically, we have another ICE-inflicted killing in that city, as noted here...the victim is an ICU nurse named Alex Pretti who was executed by our government (Pretti was apparently trying to provide aid to women who were attacked by the ICE Gestapo)...Ayman Mohyeldin anchors coverage on this horror (and once more, Kristi Noem is an utterly shameless, lying piece of sh*t)...Alex Tabet also reports in Minneapolis...and apparently, Pretti had a license to carry but was shot with his own weapon...funny, but I’m not hearing any NRA bullsh*t at this moment about “a good guy with a gun”...I’m actually behind on my coverage of ICE atrocities I know because I haven’t had anything yet on the abduction of 5-year-old Liam Ramos...watch this space (more here)...



...and David Doel provides a detailed breakdown of exactly what Alex Pretti was TRYING to do, which is to aid a woman pepper sprayed by the ICE gorillas before he himself was sprayed also; when Pretti was down on the ground, ICE surrounded him, apparently took his gun and executed him with it...great point to mention that our Trumpist goons venerate “Killer Kyle” Rittenhouse but also engage in wanton murder of someone innocently trying to provide aid to someone else attacked by ICE...we know Fix Noise will try to spin this in a way favorable to the Gropenfuhrer, but of course now the “Tiffany Network” will do that also...I honestly don’t blame Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Commissioner Brian O’Hara since they’re plainly outnumbered, and I don’t think Doel does either...and as far as I’m concerned, we still have a Fourth Amendment to the Constitution protecting us against unreasonable search and seizure, despite what Our Treasonous Orange Pustule wants to do...and yeah, Schumer and Jeffries should oppose the government funding bill to give more dough to ICE, but unfortunately, because of The Big Beautiful Clusterf*ck that passed last year, ICE is already swimming in dough (an update from Schumer is here indicating that he’ll oppose further ICE funding, though I expect him to cave eventually as he always does)...Doel also mentions the recent protest in Minneapolis against ICE (NSFW/H)...



...and Farron Cousins informs us that ICE is now racially profiling off-duty police officers in Minnesota, demanding that these cops provide paperwork to prove they’re a U.S. citizen according to Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley...and Cousins is right to point out that modern-day policing evolved from Civil War era slave patrols...good point from Cousins that, for every story of ICE going nuts that we hear about, there are countless more that we DON’T hear about (also NSFW/H)...



...and Jesse Dollemore gives us his take on the 7 U.S. House Democrats who voted to continue funding ICE...actually, I think Jesse is incorrect about Tom Suozzi; I believe Jamaal Bowman’s seat was taken by George Latimer...and of all of these people, it’s possible that Henry Cuellar has the most baggage, though Jared Golden is right up there too on that score...I admire Jesse’s initiative to try and get these 7 primaried, but unfortunately, the issue lies with the people who elected them more than anyone else...and Jason Crow, for my money, is not just heroic on this issue but many others also (NSFW/H as well)...



...and as long as I’m bumming everyone out, I should also not that yesterday was the 70th anniversary of the killers of 14-year-old Emmett Till (who were acquitted) confessing to Look Magazine that, yeah, we really did murder Till because we thought he looked at a white woman the wrong way (here)...I think this tune is appropriate for the occasion (lots of use of the “N” word, just to warn you in advance, but I believe it’s for a good reason).

Friday Stuff

Brian Tyler Cohen and Glenn Kirschner tell us that it looks like Judge Winebox lost big time in court, again...she allegedly holds the title of the U.S. Attorney for DC; it seems that she tried to get a conviction on a felony charge against somebody who she said pointed a laser pointer at a helicopter carrying Dementia Donnie, and the jury returned a not guilty verdict in about 35 minutes (the defendant was a homeless man who apparently had a cat toy keychain...I wish I were making this up)...I’m glad Cohen brought up the fact that the DOJ apparently isn’t going to investigate ICE’s Jonathan Ross who murdered Renee Good, putting that in the context of Pirro’s laughable attempt at a prosecution...I didn’t know Pirro had lost 8 separate times when she tried to get an indictment against somebody, but that sure figures all right...and oh yeah, the DOJ is preoccupied with a ridiculous prosecution of a homeless man, but they can’t release the freaking Epstein files which they’re legally required to do – uh huh...



...and Tennessee Brando brings us the story of ICE getting fat bonus checks while people in this country suffer...he starts off by emphasizing that “America First” is nothing but another idiot wingnut slogan with MAGA not giving a fig about people getting poorer in this country, losing their jobs and/or health care while our economy takes care of the ultra-wealthy and barely anyone else (and kudos to Jared Moskowitz for calling out the obscenity of ICE getting all of this dough while the majority of this country gets the metaphorical shiv...and I don’t know about you, but I could NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS get a $42K bonus)...also, I didn’t hear about the people of Greenland supposedly getting $100K apiece for the privilege of being ransacked and pillaged by this country I guess (make it make sense somehow)...and I agree with Brando; if this isn’t the time for the 25th Amendment, then that time doesn’t exist (NSFW/H)...



...and Sam and Emma of The Majority Report bring us The Further Adventures Of Tony Dokoupil at the Bari-Weiss-run CBS “News” division...Mr. Katy Tur supposedly interviews real Americans and not some pointy-headed “experts” (who, BTW, actually know what they’re talking about) as Sam points out...I can see that the entire reason for Dokoupil’s existence as CBS Evening News anchor (aside from satisfying the whims of Weiss and David Ellison) is to present some populist façade while finding a way to repackage wingnut talking points (“Without my hair, what am I?” indeed)...



...and departing Repug U.S. Senator Thom Tillis recently expounded on the floor of the U.S. Senate, saying “I’m sick of stupid” regarding the treatment of our NATO allies; Tillis singles out Pee Wee German in particular for saying that “obviously” Greenland should be part of the U.S. (and yeah, I know the Tangerine Toddler has since come up with some kind of a “deal” on that island which pretty much confirms the status quo and doesn’t represent anything else)..being a Repug, Tillis is glossing over #47’s seizure of Maduro in Venezuela (which was illegal as near as I can tell), but Tillis is 100% spot on when it comes to defending Greenland and NATO (and no, Combover Caligula is NOT going to have a good legacy, Senator, right as you are about everything else)...



...and Seth Meyers gives us “A Closer Look,” and as just noted, it appears that “President Deals” came up with some kind of an “agreement” with Greenland that looks suspiciously like THE ONE WE ALREADY FREAKING HAD!!!...and oh yeah, trying to acquire that island nation outright is somehow more unpopular than trying to squash the Epstein files...”the ultimate long-term deal” huh? What a cheap, petty scam artist this guy is...and I have to admit that I’m having trouble picturing TACO Trump in film noir...“She strutted into my gumshoe office, and my eyes went up and down her frame like I was riding a Trump Tower escalator. She had more bling on her than the gold inlay of a Mar-a-Lago bathroom. She was more dangerous than a possible ruptured coronary artery after too many Big Macs.”; ok, I admit that I’ll never give Raymond Chandler a run for his money...I honestly don’t know how any adult out there with a double digit IQ or greater could listen to this barely somnambulant sweaty orange meat sack and take him seriously about ANYTHING...



...and as we brace for a potential weather white out in these parts, I’d like to extend upcoming Happy 85th Birthday wishes to Neil Diamond.

Thursday Stuff

Chris Jansing of MS NOW informs us of two DOGE workers who allegedly accessed and shared sensitive Social Security data with some “Stop The Steal” supposed voter advocacy group, which could have been predicted by anybody with a brain as far as yours truly is concerned, and if convicted, those two incel pukes (and anybody else associated with this) should go to prison for 20 years (with former Undersecretary of State Richard Stengel and former U.S. attorney Harry Litman)...not surprised that DOGE and the DOJ under Pam “Blondi” misled a court, again...



...and Belle of the Ranch tells us about the speech by Canadian PM Mark Carney at Davos, declaring an end to “the American order” and talking about a “rupture” with NATO, saying a new economic order must be built...I really wonder how much of our political/media/industrial complex is truly grasping the import of Carney doing this, and he no doubt is speaking for other countries as well...”our closest allies aren’t waiting for us to sort out our political mess at home” indeed...



...and sticking with global matters, I give you the latest from Jonathan Pie from a couple of weeks ago...a few days behind on the Nicolas Maduro stuff I acknowledge, but a lot of this is still timely, unfortunately, when it comes to Pie’s rant about existing treaties and national sovereignty...and I’m not a fan of Keir Starmer either, but given the dregs he was left with by the Tories, I’m not surprised to see how ineffectual he is (if, God willing, the Dems ever take over again here, they’ll probably be in the same position...incredibly NSFW/H)...



...and Jordan Klepper of The Daily Show went to Oslo, Norway to ask people of that country and other Europeans about Cheetoh Hitler wanting the Nobel Peace Prize...yeah, this is pretty much what you can expect I realize (not saying we don’t deserve it)...



...and this from More Perfect Union lets us know about 60K Trump voters just electing a socialist in NYC (w/John Russell)...I honestly don’t know why Combover Caligula warmed to NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani the way he did (maybe the mayor promised some kind of tax break for #47 to put up some other ridiculous Manhattan property?), but I admit that it is noteworthy...I don’t know what to make of this Ron Barba guy; I’ll let you decide that, dear reader...I know it may be easy to laugh at this Christian Spariosu also, but I think his story is a cautionary tale of how someone can get indoctrinated by fake wingnut “populism,” though I expect that his tale will be totally ignored by the “brain trust” of the election losers of the DNC...actually, the more I listened I Spariosu, the more sense he made...living abroad in Japan definitely opened his eyes, to his credit (briefly NSFW/H)...



...and I don’t think this new tune from Lucinda Williams needs any explanation on my part.

Wednesday Stuff

Katy Tur of MS NOW speaks with Andrew Fahlstrom of Defend the 612, who describes Minneapolis residents “taken (by ICE) right in front of my eyes”...and oh yeah, pepper spray shot in people’s faces as well as clouds of tear gas going off along with flash bangs around kids according to Fahlstrom, who is doing the heroic work of notifying neighbors of the presence of murderous ICE thugs, making sure kids can get to school safely, generally looking out for neighbors, etc...



...and Rachel Maddow discusses faith leaders speaking out against Pumpkin Pol Pot on immigration and foreign policy in particular...segment leads off with a clip of Episcopal bishop Rob Hirschfeld saying we’re increasingly called to go into places “that feel dangerous,” referring to the ICE Gestapo, sentiments joined by Catholic Bishop Timothy Broglio (who serves our armed forces), who has told our military that they may have moral grounds to refuse orders, specifically when it comes to invading Greenland...Maddow interviews Chicago Archbishop and diocese head Blase Cupich about the ICE assault and deportations (which Cupich warned against about a year ago)...



...and turning to economic matters, Robert Reich discusses Mango Mussolini and affordability (which he said he’d fix on day one, or some such nonsense)...a whole bunch of good ideas here from Reich (and the first one to get rid of those stinking tariffs is as big of a no-brainer as anyone can imagine); strengthening unions and going after monopolies is pretty high on that list also, along with raising the damn federal minimum wage...also, I admit that I’ve gone back and forth on UBI, but I honestly think its time has come, largely due to the influence of AI in the workplace as Reich mentions...



...and David Shuster of Rebel HQ tells us about an Iowa voter indicating she (and don’t be too shocked) MAY – I say, MAY – vote for a Democrat, which is supported by polling data saying the Gropenfuhrer is TOAST with younger voters and Hispanics, two groups that had a lot to do with his election in ‘24...also, over 60% of both Republicans AND Independents oppose what Our Treasonous Orange Pustule is doing with the immigration raids (and when you’ve lost “Turd Blossom” Rove, you’re really in Repug no man’s land)...and I think it’s worth pointing out once more that those who have crossed our border commit crimes at a substantially lower rate than those who are naturalized citizens (here)...and oh yeah, it does indeed look like Kristi (“Unsafe At Any Speed”) Noem has gone too far with her wretched ICE raids, though don’t expect a flickering of an impulse of conscience from her in response...



...and Seth Meyers gives us A Closer Look on #47’s typically bonkers message to Norway that I know we already went over, and the Nobel committee’s response...God only knows what goes on in the addled brain of Cantaloupe Capone, but maybe Seth is right about the jealousy over the Tangerine Toddler thinking he should get more awards...and you know what? Just give this whining orange baby, this alleged adult who’s pretty much an adolescent stuck in arrested development his damn Nobel Prize already just to stop his insufferable whining about it, OK? I mean, for the love of God, just MAKE SOMETHING UP AT THIS POINT!!!...so ACTUAL Venezuelan president Maria Corina Machado gave Cheetoh Hitler HER peace prize, and he gifted her with a swag bag in response? Yeah, that makes demented sense actually (if, as Seth says, you’re living in a cocaine snow globe)...



...and every once in a while, I think it’s apropos to change things up musically around here, and I think this is one of those moments...world renown cellist Yo-Yo Ma was recently a guest on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and he graced us with this performance (Bach Prelude from the 1st Cello Suite, followed by Over The Rainbow).

Tuesday Stuff

Jesse Dollemore informs us that Dementia J. Trump just threatened war with Norway (a NATO ally, let's not forget) over not getting the Nobel Prize, all in order to acquire Greenland...we’ve looong been in 25th Amendment territory, and this just proves that further (based on reporting form Nick Schifrin of PBS...and it’s pointless to rebut the typical cavalcade of lies from Cheetoh Hitler because he’s just going to keep repeating them anyway)...one of Jesse’s great points IMO is that NATO indeed did follow us into Iraq and Afghanistan; there was justification for the latter of course but definitely NOT for the former...and oh yeah, we’re also treated to Cancun Cruz verbally fellating Our Treasonous Orange Pustule on this...I commend Jesse in particular for about the last minute and a half of his commentary (NSFW/H)...



...and in a related story, Farron Cousins lets us know that this country has pretty much rejected Cantaloupe Capone’s stupid BS on this issue...only a whopping 4% supports a military takeover of Greenland, with 17% supporting some other kind of takeover (ummmm, that country has made it pretty damn plain that THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN A U.S. TAKEOVER AT ALL)...and no, it’s not an exaggeration to say that Cheetoh Hitler hasn’t done ANYTHING right in the eyes of the majority of the people of this country since he was sworn in...I’m glad Cousins mentions all of the generals who were basically fired by our clueless ruling cabal, since I barely recall any mention in corporate media about that, to say nothing of ZERO outcry along the lines of “are you people sniffing glue or something for doing this???!!!”...



...and this New York Times clip gives us Huxi Bach (a Danish comedian I believe) emphasizing once more why an attempted takeover of Greenland is a bad idea...video goes over how Denmark colonized the island and also let the U.S. build military bases there...kind of pathetic that we’re at a point where a U.S. president is actually talking about trying to take over that country somehow, but of course since we’re talking about the Tangerine Toddler, that means that any rules or norms are out the window...



...and this MS NOW clip gives us Slate journalist Laura Jedeed, who apparently was offered a job with ICE with barely any interview and no background check (figures), and that prompted the totally expected denial from ICE...if someone is given a start date of September 30th, it pretty much sounds to me like they got the job...I totally share Jedeed’s statement that we’ve basically got an emergency on our hands created by our ruling cabal of grifters and incompetent bottom feeders and we should approach it as such (meaning that any Dem out there who thinks ICE can be reformed somehow has no business running for elective office)...



...and John and Brett Erlich of The Damage Report bring us Pee Wee German as John’s “garbage person of the week” for complaining about “Star Trek” being woke and alleging that involving William Shatner more is an answer (with Miller Boldly Going Where Every Bigot Has Gone Before...about Shatner and Trump, there is also this; I’m sure #47 doesn’t know that Shatner is Canadian)...I don’t know if the racism is worse than the stoo-pidity, but one is running neck and neck with the other (and good for Brett to work in T.J. Hooker and Shatner riding the hood of the vehicle, which indeed was a cliché...and yeah, Baby Ben Shapiro, among other wingnuts, is just full of grievance against Hollywood because he couldn’t cut it for the reasons Brett points out)...I’d almost forgotten about Mike Pompeo, but he somehow emerged once more to claim that history shouldn’t focus on the victims in Gaza, which is pretty much right wing orthodoxy I realize (repellent as it is)...



...and today marks the 55th anniversary of the release of “What’s Going On” (the single that is) by Marvin Gaye; Berry Gordy of Motown definitely was not on board with this at first, but the recording did very well, and the rest is history, as they say.

Monday Stuff

Jinkies! It looks like “Curtsy Kyrsten” had a relationship with her bodyguard that was a little beyond the job description, you might say, and now the third person in this triangle is suing the former AZ senator for (allegedly) breaking up her marriage to Sinema’s “f” buddy (trying not to get dinged for bad language)...it also appears that the drug MDMA figures into all of this somehow (apparently Sinema’s paramour was being treated for PTSD with that, which isn’t funny at all I realize, though they may have both partaken in the substance, which, if nothing else, would explain some of Sinema’s behavior in the U.S. Senate...more here)...

...and Jesse Dollemore brings us Trump Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins telling the poors to SHUTUP SHUTUP SHUTUP SHUTUP SHUTUP and eat a piece of chicken, a single stalk of broccoli with a corn tortilla (and one other thing) for $3 (and this Orange Nightmare also wants to demolish the West Wing too??)...and I’m shocked to admit that this News Nation klutz is actually right about the inflation rate of 2.7% (last I checked), but I can tell you that our grocery bill has jumped overall by about 15-20 percent...and once more, the Capitol switchboard number to protest funding our bunch of criminals is 202-224-3121...(NSFW/H – Jesse uses some bad language, but given our desperate times, I don’t have a problem with that)...



...and Thom Hartmann tells us about Jerome Powell fighting back against Mango Mussolini trying to force Powell out of his job as Federal Reserve chairman...and I know I mentioned this before, but ’25 was the worst year for job creation since two-thousand-freaking-three, after the dot com bubble burst as Thom says...and I’m pretty sure Thom means we’ve lost about 129K jobs per month, but I admit that I need to look into that some more...



...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report tells us that the Tangerine Toddler is pushing this country to the brink of collapse, which we're all living through and can plainly observe for ourselves...OF COUURRRSSE Our Tin Pot Dictator Wannabe is going after “sanctuary cities,” which actually obey the rule of law and won’t let someone from our criminal administration say “I’m profiling you, so you have to come with me” without producing a warrant to show cause for detaining someone (I get PO’ed at the national Dem party for a lot, and one of my gripes is their ABSOLUTE, UTTER FAILURE to fight back on Repug BS dealing with this in particular)...I also need to read up on Cascadia, it seems; didn’t know there was a western regional movement against our government, but it makes sense...and yeah, throwing flash bangs into a vehicle with six kids and the driver THAT WAS ONLY TRYING TO GET THE HELL AWAY AND WASN’T PART OF A PROTEST, and the kids had to be taken to the hospital – probably stirs what passes for the manhood of Baby Goebbels...and I think Figueredo is exactly right to say in essence that, if you’re a Democrat running for office and you’re NOT calling for the total abolition of ICE (we can reconstitute it some other way later...I had some thoughts on that a few days ago FWIW), then don’t even bother to ask for anyone to vote for you...and I know I recently trashed Ford vehicles here, and I think any automaker whose vehicles are being used by ICE should be sounding the alarm in protest along with refusing to supply vehicles to our renegade regime altogether...the fact that these ICE monsters use the murder of Renee Good to try and make the rest of us scared is even more of a reason why we should resist, Pee Wee German’s bleatings on Fix Noise notwithstanding...I know this video is depressing beyond belief, but I also think we need to look the monster square in the face...(NSFW/H)...

...and in a related item...OMFG Carville, just SFTU! When was the last time you actually won an election? 30 freaking years ago??!! - more on abolishing ICE is here...

...and for MLK day, I think it's appropriate to revisit this speech from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at Barratt Middle School in Philadelphia on October 26. 1967, with the them of “What Is Your Life’s Blueprint?"....



Update 1: An important note is here (here here, and here also).

...and this tune is apropos for the holiday also.



Update 2: And oh yeah, there's this...

Update 3: Well said (also this).

Friday Stuff

Farron Cousins tells us that Cheetoh Hitler is trying to bully Canada into purchasing American liquor again...it’s hard for me to feel sorry for red state producers of alcohol who are suffering as a result of the ongoing temper tantrum from Our Treasonous Orange Pustule – I mean, for the most part, those jackasses are solidly on the “R” team – but unlike those on the other side, I don’t want to see anyone in this country suffer economically...and actually, with 73 percent of Canadians continuing to support the boycott of Jack Daniels and other brands, I don’t see a way out of this even if the damn tariffs DO get lifted (and this Kush Desai idiot sure is giving Baghdad Bob a run for his money with that laughably absurd statement in response to the loss of Canadian business)...



...and this clip from the German news service DW informs us that Germany, Sweden, France and Norway are sending troops to Greenland in response to the antics of Don The Con (clip includes remarks from foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland, anchored by Nicole Frolich, with Janelle Dumalaon and Simon Young....”the Trans-Atlantic relationship as we’ve known it is currently disintegrating”...among his myriad other misdeeds, Bronzer Beelzebub is p*ssing all over the sacrifices of The Greatest Generation, among others, to ensure lasting peace in that area of the world, for the most part, since World War II)...



...and sticking with global stuff, Thom Hartmann speaks with Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, on the protests going on inside Iran...one estimate is that 2,000 people have been killed (hard to get my head around the bravery it takes to do that in that theocratic state, but I have unbounded admiration for the heroic efforts of the protestors)...and yeah, “TACO Trump” has inserted himself into this issue, which is exactly what those murderous goons in robes running that country want so they can start bleating about “the great Satan” all over again (and once more, I also see our “ally” Bibi in Israel trying to egg us on into another forever war in that region)...interesting insights IMO from Abdi about what’s going on in an area of the world where we really don’t know much...



Update: Nail. Hammer. Head.

...and returning to our shores, Chris Hayes discusses 3K armed, masked federal agents descending on Minneapolis to give Cantaloupe Capone an excuse to invoke the Insurrection Act against the citizens of this country, and OF COURSE Baby Goebbels is making the most noise about doing just that (and I’m glad Hayes recalled that disgusting Op-Ed from Tom “Send In The Troops” Cotton)...good for Hayes to mention also the restraint shown by and large in response to #47 declaring war on this country (we need for that to continue, as difficult as that is)...Hayes speaks with Sherrilyn Ifill, former NAACP president (among her other titles)...one of Ifill’s great points is that our ruling regime wants to find a city they can occupy after being pretty much rebuffed in Chicago and LA (I’m sure Philly is on their wretched list at some point also...and I also think this is a great idea)...



...and Lawrence O’Donnell brings us more idiocy from Our Sunsetting Orange Pee-Paw of a *preznit...after #47’s lies about Renee Good, an exodus took place at DOJ over the botched investigation into Good’s execution (6 attorneys in the Civil Rights Division walked out...there may not be a federal investigation, but you damn well better believe there will be one in Minnesota...and trying to investigate Good’s widow is a new low even for this bunch)...O’Donnell asks, “If Trump gets dementia, how will we know?” which is a good question...at least “sleepy Joe” Biden never looked out of an imaginary view to a still-imaginary ballroom...man, they’re slathering on that bronzer thicker every time I see Our Treasonous Orange Pustule...and yep, that lie about Renee Good is indeed pathetic even for Pumpkin Pol Pot...



...and Sam and Emma of The Majority Report informs us of the latest idiocy from Tony Dokoupil, alleged anchor of the CBS Evening News (opining about “what we still need to hear” about Renee Good’s execution at the hands of ICE...and then Dokoupil tells us pretty much nothing...I think Emma is right to basically call this corporate media “both siderism”)...important anecdote from Sam at the beginning on how Bari Weiss has absolutely ripped the guts out of that organization, leading to everyone’s disillusionment (slightly NSFW/H)...



...and I haven’t checked in with Mr. Newberger for a little while, but I thought this was a timely clip (based on this)...



...and believe it or not, yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the release of Frampton Comes Alive!; for those of us who can recall the heyday of vinyl, this was the granddaddy of all of the 2-record live LPs from the 70s (and EVERYBODY had one of those)...I think this tune is called for given this milestone (and it also helps that Peter Frampton is a pretty solid member of the “D” team).

Thursday Stuff

This clip from Brave New Films brings us the financial costs of ICE’s utter destruction of this country, to say nothing of the human cost...if we don’t have something approximating a permanent truth and reconciliation House subcommittee with subpoena power when this horror show someday comes to an end, we’ll have it all over again, but worse (and I know I'm repeating myself on that, and I will continue to do so)...



...and this clip from Daily Kos informs us that Dem U.S. congresswoman Robin Kelly has introduce three articles of impeachment against DHS Secretary Kristi (“Unsafe At Any Speed”) Noem (more here)...



...and Kyle Kulinski informs us that Our Sweaty Bronzer Boy of a *preznit had a bit of a meltdown at a Ford plant recently in response to a worker who called out that #47 was a “pedo protector,” with our “leader” mouthing “F-you” and flipping the bird to the person who called it out, just like a head of state is supposed to (in hell, maybe)...and we’re provided here with Example 2,647 of how THE WORST THING YOU CAN DO IS PISS OFF A CONSERVATIVE (at least as far as business and corporate media is concerned); beyond ridiculous that the guy who yelled that at Don The Con got suspended, but getting about $220K (at least) on his Go Fund Me page is sweet justice of a sort...I’m going to break an informal rule I have at this site, which is to not say anything affecting someone else’s commerce, but Ford’s vehicles absolutely STINK; I don’t say that lightly since I’m sure thousands of workers diligently try to make the best product they can, but I had a Ford product years ago that was a relentless money pit and I SWORE I would never make a mistaken purchase of their products ever again...I’m violating my rule because, as Kyle points out in the clip, those pinheaded Ford managers lobbied the Tangerine Toddler to basically get environmental rules relaxed, which was highly detrimental to Ford’s earnings and likely led to huge job losses...basically, Ford shot themselves in the ass on this one better than I ever could by denigrating their products (NSFW/H)...



...and turning to more governmental malfeasance from our ruling gaggle of sycophants and bottom feeders, Brittany Page (definitely not her) tells about two whistleblowers at HUD (definitely not them), Paul Osadebe and Palmer Heenan (who Page interviews), putting their careers on the line by telling us what’s going on in yet another rogue government agency, testifying before Congress (actually, Heenan was fired and Osadebe is on thin ice also, as Page notes)...with all of the horrendous bad actors in our disgusting federal regime, I hadn’t spent much time on Scott Turner at HUD, but he’s appropriately awful also, including refusing to enforce the 1968 Fair Housing Act, which he’s legally required to do (almost quaint to think our despotic federal overlords would do anything in accordance with the law)...I honestly didn’t know about the HUD enforcement put into place under The Sainted Ronnie R – credit where it’s due I suppose (the language restrictions Osadebe mentions, as in the fact that any HUD communication needs to be English only, definitely tracks for our “fine people on both sides” bunch of lickspittles)...absolutely GREAT idea to keep calling our elected representatives (about this issue as well as abolishing ICE of course) at 202-224-3121...



...and every once in a while I feel the need to present this clip of Jeff Daniels as Will McAvoy from “The Newsroom,” a particularly smart HBO series from awhile back...can’t imagine how this clip would be updated now with Bari Weiss running CBS News, who is as qualified for that job as I am (I should emphasize that I don't agree with every word of this, but definitely what Daniels says at the end...NSFW/H also)...



...and I thought this was a particularly good newer tune (and for full disclosure purposes, I should note that I’m not immune to “doom scrolling” myself, though I’m trying to be better about that).

Wednesday Stuff

Ali Velshi speaks with Steve Benen and Angelo Carusone about the false savings (totaling about $215 billion, a proverbial drop in the bucket when talking about the federal budget) and damage from DOGE, which is nothing compared to what Apartheid Clyde CLAIMED it would save, and a New York Times analysis sez what was saved was actually a fraction of even THAT amount...oh, and by the way, DOGE’s US AID destruction has led to the deaths of nearly three quarters of a million people worldwide, mostly kids...and yep, all of this stuff was indeed in Project 2025; a pox on the utterly useless election losers of the DNC for not putting that front and center during the ’24 election (and I would also blame Repugs, and I do, but we know how spineless and gutless they truly are, and me trying to shame them won’t do much good)...and oh yeah, on top of all of that, DOGE actually cost the government $135 billion, as we learn (Carusone makes the great point that DOGE was fueling the wingnut BS narrative about the “deep state” and traumatizing government workers who had job expertise at the same time)...



...and Hunter Avallone of Occupy Democrats tells us about Philly’s response to the ICE Gestapo...I have issues with “Uncle Larry” Krasner to be honest, but good work here to come at Our Treasonous Orange Pustule and his goons, including Mush Mouth Tom Homan...I think someone in the MS NOW clip yesterday made the really good point that, if Renee Good was supposed to be such a threat, then why did this Jonathan Ross have a gun in one hand and apparently a phone filming the interaction in the another? What kind of freaking law enforcement is THAT?? (mildly NSFW/H)...



...and Mike Figueredo of The Humanist Report brings us the latest on Life In These United States...I wish I could say that I’m exaggerating when I call ICE the Gestapo, but I’m really not, as affirmed by Couch Boy in that Fix Noise clip with Jesse Watters...and by the way (and I can’t believe I have to say this in 2026), but IT’S FREAKING ILLEGAL TO INVADE SOMEONE’S PROPERTY WITHOUT A GODDAMN JUDICIAL WARRANT!!!...ICE continues to kill and injure people, including the Marine veteran interviewed in the clip (with our rogue agency ideologically committed to Pee Wee German’s vision of a white ethno-state indeed)...foreign travelers would have to be out of their minds to come to this country for the FIFA Cup or whatever in soccer this year as well as the ’28 Olympics...I have to read up on NSPM 7; I don’t recall reading about that in our utterly useless corporate media...I’ve watched a lot of important but utterly disheartening clips lately, and this one is right up there (NSFW/H)...



...and Farron Cousins informs us that Don The Con sez taxpayers will comp oil companies who lost money in Venezuela (here it comes again – can you say ’08 Financial Crisis Redux, boys and girls?)...as Cousins correctly notes, #47’s attack on Venezuela allowed him to blow past a deadline to explain all of the redactions in the Epstein files (which he still should be legally required to do, I wish to emphasize)...oh, and in more “behind closed doors” stuff, it looks like the heads of our oil companies and Trump Energy Secretary Chris Wright are trying to figure out how to divvy up our South American neighbor to extract that “black gold” (and whether or not that involves “boots on the ground” is anybody guess, but as in all things, I don’t trust our regime to tell us the truth about that)...important info from Cousins on the steps involved in extracting and refining petroleum before it EVER makes its way to the pump (echoing the recent CBC clip I had on that)...



...and Jimmy Kimmel discusses a story in the news from St. Louis ...“Hey hey, we’re the Monkees” (hmmm...)...nice transition to the “Detroit orangutan”...and of course #47 gives the finger to a Ford worker and issues more threats against Minnesota; sounds like another day with a “y” in it (great job by that woman in the clip making fun of that wingnut “reporter”)...and OF COURSE the Tangerine Toddler is STILL making verbal flatulence about trying to annex Greenland (which – and let’s not forget this – is EXACTLY what Vlad The Butcher wants)...and should we really be surprised that “Gomer” Comer in the House is trying to persecute the Clintons over the Epstein mess instead of Comer’s boss? Also, “I’ll Drink To That” Hegseth used what looked like a civilian plane to bomb the Venezuelan boats, and yeah, that sure is a war crime all right (I don’t think we should be blamed for forgetting about bombing those boats given the torrent of BS unleashed by our ruling criminal cabal)...and I know a few people who would bite on the “MAGA sack,” though they’re so oblivious that they don’t need it...



...and speaking of The Monkees (were we?), on this day in 1966, David Bowie changed his name to not conflict with the lead singer of the TV musical group (at that time)...I know I just had a Bowie tune a few days ago, but I think the time is right for another one.

Tuesday Stuff

John and Jayar of The Damage Report bring us the latest putrid details on this country’s financial downfall...we’ve been in 25th Amendment territory almost from the moment Don The Con was sworn in, but God almighty, are we ever in it now (billions of dollars from factories coming back? I think he needs another dementia test)...kudos to John for presenting that godawful chart on manufacturing pointing out more lies from the Tangerine Toddler...oh, but the 500 richest people gained 2.2 trillion last year, so it’s all good, right?...



...and Brian Tyler Cohen echoes this by discussing Our Orange Man-Baby's disastrous jobs report...’25 was the worst year of job creation since ’03, including 15K jobs since “liberation day” in April, and oh yeah, unemployment is skyrocketing too (oh, but “Human Capital Stock” Kevin Hassett thinks the unemployment number is a rounding error or something – WHAAAA??)...oh, and that line about making the BLS numbers more reliable or something no doubt means that more reliable statisticians in that department will get fired in favor of incompetent Trumpist lackeys...I knew the ACA costs were going to explode since Repugs refused to extend those credits, but that slide with those percentage increases was pretty damning (and I know there was that discharge petition that got out of the House that would extend the credits, but as far as I’m concerned, that’s all theater unless the Senate chooses to act, and even if they did and it got to the desk of Our Treasonous Orange Pustule, he’d likely veto it and that would have to be overridden somehow)...NSFW/H...



...and this CBC report from Andrew Yang gives a lot of important info IMO on the Gropenfuhrer’s quest for Venezuelan crude; can Pumpkin Pol Pot get it flowing again? (I wouldn’t take that bet)...report goes back to Venezuela’s emergence as an oil economy (and pretty much nothing else) beginning in the 1920s and that country joining OPEC in the ‘60s...I’m definitely not an expert on the history, but it’s not surprising to me that our relationship with that country (if you can call it that) started coming unglued a bit during the ‘70s energy crisis...I’ll buy the argument that Venezuela acted like deadbeats by not paying the dough to Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips that was owed, though it’s honestly hard for me to feel sorry for a dirty energy company, and DEFINITELY NOT to the point where military action takes place...basically, it sounds like Venezuela is a basket case when it comes to rebuilding the infrastructure from the ground up (and I don’t trust a syllable coming out of the mouths of Mango Mussolini or his Trumpette spokes-liar on anything, especially this)...



...and Rachel Maddow lists all of the push back against the whims of Pumpkin Pol Pot, including a federal court blocking Cheetoh Hitler from cutting energy funding for blue states after another federal court stopped #47 from shutting down a wind farm project in Rhode Island and Connecticut and another federal court stopped him from blocking funding for the American Academy of Pediatrics (not to be confused with this bunch of frauds, it should be noted) and another federal court blocked Combover Caligula from cutting off election funds and another federal court blocked him from freezing child care funds...and shockingly, some in the Repug party in Congress are actually showing a spine in standing up to Cantaloupe Capone on Venezuela, restoring the ACA credits, fighting science funding cuts (and MAGA Mike Johnson in the House apparently can afford only one defection from his party now when voting on legislation)...another weird MS NOW video edit at the end...



...and Stephen Colbert commendably leads off his “Late Show” bit with his commentary on ICE’s execution of Renee Good...also, it looks like the Tangerine Toddler is on another marble fix for his stinking ballroom as well as the Kennedy Center (something else asked for by approximately no one), and of all the states where an AI can now prescribe medication, I have to admit that I never thought it would come to Utah first...and a $5K toilet, huh? Insert your snark here...



...and kudos to Dave Matthews for this.

Monday Stuff

This MS NOW clip brings us more on the nationwide protests in response to the Renee Nicole Good murder (w/Jonathan Capehart, Eugene Robinson and former FBI agent Christoper O’Leary)...the responses from our ruling regime of liars are typically despicable and of course utterly wrong (oh, so we now live in a country where someone not affiliated with law enforcement can shoot you multiple times in the head OVER AN ALLEGED FREAKING PARKING OFFENSE???!!)...I’m not familiar with the Stanford prison guard reference, but I’ll check it out...good for Robinson to recall Couch Boy’s quote about creating stories out of thin air to get the media’s attention, which, as far as I’m concerned, should ultimately disqualify anyone from taking Vance seriously about anything...great point by O’Leary about how problematic it is to block out the state and local investigators looking into this horrible crime (and apparently this Jonathna Ross is a firearms instructor, has defended white supremacists online and had multiple deployments to Iraq, and family/friends describe him as a hardcore “Christian” MAGA supporter...yep, checks all the boxes all right...more here).

Oh, and by the way, it looks like “team D” is late to the freaking party once more on another important issue (as typified by this response...last I checked, Tina Smith isn’t seeking re-election, so she has no reason to hold back at all as far as I can tell).

Well, since the “leadership” on our side seems totally befuddled when it comes to joining or expressing some kind of sympathy for the anti-ICE protests in the wake of the Good murder, let me give the party some ideas about what they should be saying and/or doing in response to the latest Trumpist carnage (even though I’m pretty damn far from some kind of politics maven or prognosticator I’ll admit).

Right off, every Democratic politician and simpatico pundit should be calling for the abolition of ICE and reallocation of their budget for ACA credits and other social spending (such as rebuilding the Social Security Administration, the EPA, the FAA, etc.). This is as big of a no-brainer as you can imagine. Instead, the organization should be reconstituted as Immigration and Customs Border Protection (ICBP), and it should be completely authorized and funded by Congress (the White House should have no involvement). They would not be allowed to carry out raids in search of presumed illegal immigrants, but instead would make all referrals to state and local law enforcement, and THEY (and ONLY THEY) would go to homes, workplaces, etc. to search for people (and only do so with judicial warrants). ICBP’s main job would be for processing those seeking legal entry into this country and gathering intelligence on anyone they suspect of being here illegally (and again, that intelligence would be forwarded to state and local officials who would seek out those here illegally and bring charges if that is warranted).

Update 1/13/26: Uh, yep (more here).

With that out of the way, here is the MS NOW clip...



Update: A lot more like this (and followed up by actual policy/legislation too).

...and Mike Figueredo of the Humanist Report informs us that the wingnut “rules” don’t apply to Renee Good, apparently...we know what Jesse Watters is, and Nancy Mace is genuinely deranged...oh, so Good deserved death because she’s a lesbian woman with pronouns in her bio (according to the “fascist hivemind”)? Well then, I suppose it’s just a matter of time before these ICE Neanderthals come for everybody...I haven’t heard anyone discuss the fact that this Jonathan Ross was involved in a prior incident where he tried to arrest a guy in a vehicle and ended up getting dragged, to the point where he had to recover from injuries (though it's referenced in the MS NOW clip); I don’t think this guy is qualified for his job because he’s an utter caveman (Ross I mean), but I also think he had some PTSD going on which led him to shoot Good, but that’s just my theory of course...and yeah, that typical nonsense from Combover Caligula about an ICE agent supposedly in the hospital over this is about as demented as we can expect from the “cankles king”...and yeah, the double standard over the fact that we’re supposed to genuflect at the mention of Charlie Kirk’s name while it’s OK for Nicole Good to get dragged in the dirt is pathetic almost to the point of being comical (very definitely NSFW/H)...



...and continuing with this story, Chris Hayes reports on ICE tackling kids at a Minneapolis school and launching more violence because of course, forcing schools to close and making parents and caregivers arrange at the last minute for coverage for their kids; in addition to what this does to parents’ schedules between home and their jobs, there is also the added expense (either for day care or in lost work hours), which is significant...Hayes speaks with Dem Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who has been investigating the use of force by ICE troglodytes since last August (with respect to Sen. Blumenthal, Repugs will NEVER “grow a backbone”)...I heard in passing about more ICE shootings in Portland; I guess I should link to this for the benefit of every elderly Repug boomer in a Bucks County bedroom community who thinks this stuff could never happen to them...



...and in another story having to do with wingnut intolerance egged on by our ruling regime of criminals, it seems that some alleged human beings are targeting an LGBTQ program at the Abington Library in Montgomery County as noted here...what the program represents and how it helps kids is described in the clip...



...and Jordan Klepper of The Daily Show lets us know about Benny Johnson, another Trumpist lickspittle who would be pretty damn repugnant even if he DIDN’T relentlessly tow the line for Cantaloupe Capone...and I forgot that Johnson was bankrolled by Vlad The Butcher, but yeah, that tracks too...and oh yeah, “Batman Benny” makes some AI slop video of himself beating up immigrants; I don’t wish violence on anybody, but I’m sorely tempted to wonder what would happen if Johnson showed up at a Home Depot parking lot and laid his “I HATE MIGRANTS” rap on those in attendance; he’d have to haul his ass out of there like the scared little bitch he truly is...



...and RIP Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead.