Category Archives: Crime

How Bad Is The Minnesota Fraud?

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The Trump regime would have you believe that Somali immigrants in Minnesota committed $19 billion in fraud, which was the alleged reason behind Operation Metro Surge (the ICE invasion that brutalized both citizens and noncitizens and left two people dead). But according to an exhaustive study by the Minnesota StarTribune, the figure is actually $217.7 million.

That, of course, is deplorable, but it pales in comparison to the regime’s raids on taxpayer funds. Indeed, it falls short of the expected $300 million taxpayer cost of Trump’s golf outings for his second term. And it’s dwarfed by the $1 billion cost of retrofitting Trump’s mansion in the air that was illegally gifted to him by Qatar.

Trump’s pardons of white-collar criminals have resulted in the forgiveness of more than $1.5 billion in criminal debt owed to victims and the federal government.

Add to that ICE Barbie’s $225 million ad scam and her $270 DHS purchase of luxury jets used for personal travel. There’s also Patel’s personal use of FBI jets for a trip to the Milan Olympics and outings with his girlfriend. There’s the DHS penchant for grossly overpaying for warehouses intended to be used as immigrant concentration camps. And there’s the $660 billion in Trump’s unconstitutional tariffs paid by American consumers.

Even worse is Trump’s illegal and unnecessary war on Iran that’s costing roughly $1 billion per day and could very well drag on for years.

Moreover, it’s estimated that Medicare and Medicaid lose roughly $100 billion annually to fraud, largely because MAGA refuses to hire enough federal auditors to ferret out the abuses. The same is true for the IRS, which is estimated to lose as much as $1 trillion in revenue each year to tax fraud. (Ordinary people are often audited. But billionaires and multinational corporations escape audits because their tax filings are so complex.)

Of course, all of that is a mere fraction of the more than $21 trillion in funding from 1998 to 2015 that the Department of Defense couldn’t account for. The Pentagon has not passed a single audit in its entire history! And despite its $1 trillion budget for this fiscal year, the regime is asking for a $50 billion supplemental budget to replace the munitions expended in just one week of Trump’s assault on Iran, his incursion into Venezuela, and his targeting of alleged drug trafficking boats in international waters.

None of this should come as a surprise. After all, what else should we expect from a regime run by a felon convicted on 34 counts of fraud?

Constitution? What Constitution?

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In little more than one year, the Trump regime and the MAGA party have violated or proposed violations of an astounding number of the provisions of the United States Constitution – to the point that one wonders if it any longer has any meaning.

Article 1, Section 4 gives states control of elections, including the times, places and manner of holding elections. Yet Trump and the regime have ordered red states to redistrict in order to gain more congressional seats. The regime intends to limit early voting and mail-in ballots. Trump has also announced his intentions to nationalize elections. And others in the regime propose declaring a national emergency to suspend mid-term elections permitting MAGA to continue its control of Congress.

Article 1, Section 8 gives Congress the exclusive power to raise taxes, control spending, impose tariffs, control commerce with other nations, and to declare war. Yet Trump and his regime have usurped and violated every single provision of this section.

Article 1, Section 9 directs that the privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus protecting individuals from unlawful detention shall not be suspended. Yet the regime’s private army consisting of ICE and CBP have routinely arrested citizens and noncitizens alike often moving them to out-of-state detention centers without the opportunity to call their families or lawyers.

Further, Trump and the regime have completely ignored the provision that “no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office or title of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.” Ignoring this clause, Trump and his family have accepted a $400 million Qatari jet, a $500 million UAE investment in Trump’s crypto venture, and at least $50 million of Saudi investments in the Trump organization!

Numerous news sources have calculated that Trump and his family have raked in at least $4 billion during the first year of his second term.

Article 2, Section 1 details compensation for the President and clearly states that he shall not receive any other emolument from the United States. Nevertheless, Trump continues weekend trips to his own golf resorts where he charges his security detail top dollar for their accommodations resulting in millions in profits for his family organization.

Article 2, Section 3 clearly states that the President shall see that all laws are faithfully executed. Instead, he and his regime routinely break laws, even ignoring the courts that have ruled against them.

1st Amendment states “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech.” Yet the regime has punished many of those who have spoken out against the Israeli genocide of Palestinians, even deporting students and noncitizens who were here legally.

1st Amendment also provides for freedom of the press. However, Trump and the regime have ordered the cancellation of Late Night with Stephen Colbert and the temporary removal of Jimmy Kimmel. The regime has also threatened media for truthful reporting that is unflattering to the Felon-in-Chief and used the FCC to directly influence the sale of Warner Brothers to a Trump supporter.

1st Amendment provides for the right of the people to peaceably assemble. But, in his first term, Trump ordered the military and police to violently attack peaceful protestors to clear the way for a photo op with a Bible in front of a church. Likewise, in his second term, the regime has encouraged ICE and CBP to attack legal observers overseeing immigrant detentions fatally shooting at least two of them.

4th Amendment states “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effect against unreasonable searches and seizures.” However, the regime has encouraged ICE and CBP to break down doors and remove residents without judicial warrants.

5th Amendment states “no person shall…be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” (Renee Nicolle Good, Alex Pretti and thousands of legal immigrants anyone?)

8th Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishments. But from videos and reports, nearly every ICE agent and detention center is in violation.

14th Amendment, Section 1 states “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States.” Despite the obvious clarity of the wording, Trump is seeking to end birthright citizenship by Executive Order.

14th Amendment, Section 3 states that no person shall hold any office, civil or military, who, having previously taken an oath to support the Constitution shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion. Yet the leader of the January 6 insurrection now sits in the overly gilded Oval Office.

14th Amendment, Section 4 states that “neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States.” Yet Trump is demanding $230M from the DOJ for its investigations into his participation in the January 6 insurrection. He is also seeking $6M in legal fees from the State of Georgia for its investigation into Trump’s election interference. And Ashli Babbit’s family is being paid nearly $5M for her death while attempting to violently enter the House chamber during the insurrection.

15th Amendment ensures the right of black people to vote. But, for more than 40 years, the GOP (aka MAGA) has worked to make it increasingly more difficult for blacks in heavily Democratic areas to vote. And the Trump regime has demanded that MAGA-controlled states gerrymander districts in order to deny blacks equal representation.

19th Amendment gives women the right to vote. Yet the regime’s SAVE Act, if passed, would make it difficult for millions of women to vote.

22nd Amendment limits the President to two four-year terms. But Trump has often spoken about being President for life, and he and his supporters continue to suggest that there are ways around this amendment.

24th Amendment states that the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged for failure to pay a poll tax or other tax. But, in effect, MAGA has created a version of the poll tax by requiring voter IDs in some states and making them increasingly difficult for working people to obtain by limiting the number of locations and closing them on weekends.

26th Amendment gives 18-year-olds the right to vote. But, again, MAGA has made it difficult for many to vote by refusing to accept college-issued IDs and requiring college students to vote in their parents’ home district.

And the Trump regime’s disdain for the law is not limited to violating the Constitution.

The regime has violated numerous laws, including the Hatch Act which forbids federal employees from engaging in partisan political activities while on duty. The regime violated the Impoundment Control Act, which requires the president to obtain congressional approval to withhold appropriated funds, when it blocked funds for governmental agencies, universities, research facilities and more. And it illegally dismantled independent agencies, such as USAID and the U.S. Institute of Peace without congressional approval.

In addition, Trump and the regime have committed a multitude of federal ethics violations, including misuse of federal resources for personal gain. (I’m thinking of you, Kash Patel, Kristi Noem, and Pete Hegseth.) Moreover, Trump and the regime continue to defy multiple court orders.

And unwilling to stop at breaking U.S. laws, Trump and his regime have broken international laws by kidnapping the president of Venezuela and pursuing an ill-conceived war against Iran led by the war criminal Netanyahu.

Tell me again: Which is the “Law and Order Party?”

It Was Never About The “Worst Of The Worst.”

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The invasion of Minnesota by 3,000 feral paramilitary shock troops was never about arresting violent immigrants. Most of those people were already in Minnesota jails and prisons before being turned over to ICE. Certainly, the ICEstapo did detain immigrants. But almost all of them were hardworking, taxpaying individuals who contributed to our communities and are here legally.

Many of our immigrants are refugees or have applied for asylum. Some have been sponsored by family members. Many are legally here on Temporary Protected Status after fleeing war zones or overwhelming natural disasters. Others are going through the immigration process “the right way” and have been issued green cards, which permit them to live and work in the U.S. permanently. Some are “Dreamers” who were granted special status after being brought here as children. Some are holders of temporary visas. Still others are here on H1-B “genius” visas because they possess unique and valuable talents. A very few may be undocumented. But none of them – I repeat – none of them are “illegal aliens.”

That term should not be applied to any human being!

The invasion of Minnesota was, in fact, the combination of a Mafia-style shake-down and the regime wanting to exact violent retribution against a proud blue state.

How do we know that? Pam Bondi and the DOJ have recently stated that the regime will end its siege if the state ends its sanctuary policies, provides details of SNAP and Medicaid recipients and, more importantly, turns over voting data – an action that would be against state law.

Why voting data? Because the regime wants to use voter records to rig future elections, including the upcoming midterms. As Marc Elias says, “Donald Trump is obsessed with the midterms and will do whatever he needs to prevent losing control of Congress. Given his unpopularity, that likely means mass voter suppression, election subversion and outright election theft.

To accomplish any of this at scale, he will need unredacted statewide voter files. That would allow him and Bondi to identify which voters to target, which ballots to discard, and against whom to lodge false claims of fraud.”

In pursuit of the information, the ICEstapo and Border Patrol led by Hitler mini-me Greg Bovino have subjected tens of thousands of Minnesota residents to terrorist tactics – illegally dragging them out of their cars with the windows broken and the motors still running. They’ve kidnapped a 2-year-old and a 5-year-old to use as bait to lure parents out of their homes.

These morally bankrupt criminals have usurped freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights, including freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. They have violated the 4th Amendment prohibiting unreasonable search and seizure. They’ve also violated the 5th Amendment guaranteeing due process in addition to numerous other provisions of the Constitution.

And with the murders of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, they have unconstitutionally invoked a policy of “obey or die.”

Apparently, they believe that no one can hold them accountable by recording and observing their almost always brutal tactics. They have, after all, been told by their leaders and the corrupt regime in Washington, DC that they have complete and total immunity for their actions. In the process, they have terrified most residents of our great cities.

Because the ICEstapo is racial profiling, citizens who are brown and black are afraid to leave their homes. Even Native Americans have been detained and swept away to detention centers in other states. As a result, our economy is dying. What the racist, anti-immigrant crowd doesn’t understand is that we need immigrants. A Minnesota economist has stated that the African, Asian, Latino, and Native American communities in Minnesota account for 1 in 10 businesses owned, 1 in 5 workers, and 1 in 5 dollars earned.

If this invasion is to stop, we must see a unified response from elected Democrats, candidates and patriotic Americans across the nation. It’s not enough to retire Bovino and chastise the puppy killing Noem.

We must see more Republicans follow the lead of a Minnesota candidate for governor who recently left the electoral race and the party in disgust. We cannot wait for the regime to have a change of heart. (It’s no more likely to do that than to release all of the Epstein files.) And we certainly cannot expect the outcome of the midterm elections to rein in the fascists. Given the statements and actions of the Trump regime, those elections may very well never be allowed to happen.

The Occupation Of Minnesota.

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In case you are unaware of what is happening, Trump has created a personal army of 30,000 heavily armed, masked thugs (aka ICE and CBP) to do his bidding. A force of 3,000 of those bullies has invaded Minneapolis-St. Paul and surrounding communities on the pretext that they will make our cities safer.

The truth is quite the opposite.

Indeed, these thugs continue to break laws and violate the Constitution. In the cities’ most diverse neighborhoods, masked teams are going door-to-door and demanding residents show their papers.

Everyone with brown or black skin, including Native Americans, are vulnerable to being stopped and brutally detained regardless of their citizenship status. Thousands of nonviolent Minnesotans, including U.S. citizens, have been detained and incarcerated. Minnesota drivers have been pulled over and brutally dragged away in handcuffs – their cars left running in the streets. Some have had their cars rammed by ICE.

Lawless teams of armed masked men are pushing their way through department stores, restaurants and other businesses. They are teargassing legal observers and nonviolent protestors in violation of international law. They are using electronic surveillance of license plates, cell phones, social media and personal data from the newly consolidated government database to identify and intimidate those who record their activities.

At least one foreign visitor who came to Minnesota for medical treatment was detained. In another case, a team of agents without warrant unconstitutionally broke down the door to a home and dragged out one of its residents at gunpoint. Two young women were struck by nonlethal rubber bullets because they were apparently not moving fast enough through a crosswalk. And sadly, a young mother of three was shot and killed for simply trying to protect her neighbors.

Residents – most residents – are scared. Some too frightened to leave their homes or let their children go to school. As a result, many businesses are closed.

Some Minnesotans are purchasing groceries and other essentials  for immigrant families who are afraid to shop for themselves. Others have “adopted” immigrant neighbors who have legal status to help them in case one or more of them are detained.

It’s as if there are hundreds, if not thousands, of Anne Franks in our cities.

You may wonder why our federal government would treat its citizens this way. The answer is a combination of retribution against a “blue” state and theater designed to intimidate and threaten Minnesotans and all other Americans into compliance. Violence is the goal. And it’s escalating.

How Project 2025 Is Destroying America.

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Remember Project 2025? You know, the plan that Trump denied any knowledge of during the campaign despite previously praising its authors by saying, “This is a great group, and they’re going to lay the groundwork and detail plans for exactly what our movement will do…”

Not surprisingly, many of its authors have been awarded key roles within the White House and government agencies. Indeed, Russell Vaught the key architect of the plan is now Washington’s most powerful man as director of the Office of Management and Budget. And, under his guidance, the Trump regime is radically changing (aka destroying) the federal government.

Far from making America great, it’s destroying the very fabric of our nation as surely as Trump demolished the East Wing of the White House. For example, here are some of the things the Trump regime has done by implementing Project 2025:

  • To ferret out alleged “widespread” waste and abuse, the Trump regime created DOGE, an unelected and unvetted group of twenty somethings who broke laws and violated the Constitution by firing government employees, shutting down numerous agencies, and blocking congressionally approved funding. Even more concerning, they allegedly downloaded the personal information of millions of Americans.
  • Church membership has been falling, so it is imposing Christianity into public schools and workplaces.
  • The rate of births among white Americans has dropped, so it calls for banning all abortions and using the Comstock Act to prevent the delivery of abortion drugs to individuals. It also calls for ending ACA funding of contraceptives.
  • Women and minorities have been gaining rights and positions of authority, so it is attacking DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) programs to keep them in their place. And to keep women in the home, it calls for ending subsidized day care and, instead, funding at-home daycare payments.
  • To push MAGA’s pro-birth ideology, it prohibited USAID from funding “sexual reproductive health and reproductive rights” and “gender equality” programs. As a result, the regime intends to incinerate nearly $10 million worth of taxpayer-purchased contraceptives.
  • Most highly educated voters support Democrats, so it’s attacking public K-12 education and universities. It is also eliminating the Department of Education.
  • Scientists support many Democratic goals like addressing the climate crisis, so it’s attacking science by defunding agencies like the National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It has also withdrawn from the Paris Accords on Climate Change and canceled at least 130 climate and clean energy contracts.
  • The academic freedom of public and private universities permits professors to teach subject matter that is counter to the MAGA ideology, so it is using government contracts as leverage to eliminate DEI and other “woke” policies.
  • MAGA was furious over vaccine and mask mandates during the pandemic. So, Trump withdrew from the World Health Organization and, following Project 2025, he blocked much of the funding for National Institutes for Health and the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC has been decimated leaving us largely unprepared for the next health crisis.
  • Publicly supported independent media pose a threat to autocracy by presenting the unbiased truth, so it rescinded all federal funding for NPR and PBS.
  • The authors of Project 2025 believe we spend too much on foreign aid. So, it all but eliminated USAID and programs such as international disaster aid, food aid and family planning.
  • The Trump crime family has created its own highly speculative cryptocurrencies, so it has reduced regulations by the Commodities Futures Trading Commission.
  • Corporations have been restricted and held accountable for environmental abuses, so it calls for repealing many of the regulations and lessening protections for vulnerable species.
  • There has been recent growth in worker wages which has reduced corporate profits, so it is attacking labor unions and increases in minimum wages. It’s also increasing unemployment levels through tariffs and other means.
  • Renewables have been quickly replacing fossil fuels, so it calls for replacing incentives for renewables with even more incentives for oil, gas and (choke) coal.
  • The percentages of black and brown minorities have been increasing, so it has expanded ICE and CBP to detain and deport millions of Latinos and blacks. It has also deployed military to help guard our borders.
  • To ensure future MAGA control, it has encouraged MAGA-controlled states to implement extreme gerrymandering and to rig elections by changing voting laws.
  • Schools, museums and other institutions have increased our citizens’ understanding of the nation’s past excesses, such as ethnic cleansing, slavery, and Jim Crow, so it is banning books and rewriting history.
  • It recognizes that nonpartisan federal employees restrain authoritarian power, so it is firing thousands of government workers and replacing them with MAGA loyalists.
  • Government watchdogs, such as Inspectors General, impose ethical standards that restrain corruption, so they have been fired and replaced with loyalists.
  • Trump was furious at attempts to hold him accountable for crimes. So, longtime employees of the Department of Justice and FBI were fired to better weaponize the system against his investigators, prosecutors and political opponents.
  • An independent Congress and judiciary act as restraints to the executive branch, so the regime has taken control of Congress and SCOTUS to cede power to the executive branch.
  • The Constitution is the last barrier to autocracy, so it is simply ignoring it.

What Is Patriotism?

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Today’s conservatives are fond of calling themselves patriots. But is there really a patriot among them? Their support for the Felon-in-Chief and their acceptance of his dismantling of our government would indicate otherwise.

Patriotism is defined as “devotion and vigorous support for one’s country.” How does that square with those who watched, or even applauded, as the Trump regime encouraged and then pardoned insurrectionists who violently tried to overturn an election? How does it fit with those who support a twice-impeached president that has repeatedly violated numerous sections and amendments to the US Constitution? How does it describe those who have chosen Party over country? Who have approvingly watched as Dear Leader uses the justice department to attack his political opponents? Who have silently stood by as the regime builds a 32,000-member version of Hitler’s gestapo that arrests people who are legally in this country, denying both immigrants and citizens due process?

None of that. I repeat, none of that is patriotic. Indeed, it’s very much the opposite!

Far from being patriots, the MAGA cult consists almost entirely of racial and socio-economic bullies. Bullies who believe they are superior by birthright. Bullies who demand that others do as they say. Some strut around with weapons and tactical gear to intimidate political opponents. Others hide their true feelings from the public. But when they are exposed, as were the texts between leaders of Young Republicans, it’s clear that they are antisocial, antidemocratic, anti-Semitic racists and fascists.

To be clear, these Young Republicans aren’t exceptions. They are representative of the entire MAGA cult. They were encouraged and promoted by the likes of Charlie Kirk, vice-president J.D. Vance, speaker MAGA Mike Johnson and the Putinesque fascist who has taken up residence in the Oval Office.

Of course, in public many of the cult members recite passages from the Bible to justify their actions and claim to be Christians while ignoring every aspect of Christ’s teachings. They claim to support “family values” even as they cheer on the ICEstapo as it rips families apart. They take perverse joy in threatening and abusing innocents, especially immigrants. They talk and act tough. But at their core, they are soulless, mindless cowards.

Others of the cult use their wealth and positions within large corporations to manipulate the government and the economy to serve their personal interests, not caring about the effects of their actions on those who cling to lower rungs of the economic ladder.

No amount of flag waving and Bible thumping can excuse the actions of these people or make them what they claim to be. All of that is mere theater. In fact, the more they wave the flag and the more they proselytize, the more clear it becomes that they are imposters. And that their “patriotism” fails to extend beyond themselves and their self-interests.

Our nation’s Founders went to great lengths to create a constitution that would prevent tyranny. And history provides many examples and warnings of how tyrants rise to power. Yet these so-called patriots have not only ignored those warnings. They have voted a tyrant into office, and many continue to cheer him on as he accumulates power and diminishes our freedoms.

Such people are not patriots. They’re losers and traitors. And they’re as phony as the gilded yard sale trash that’s now tacked all over the walls of the White House.

MAGA: Making America Go Away

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Far from making America great, the MAGA movement is making it unrecognizable. Indeed, it no longer resembles the vision of our forefathers.

Instead of embracing the nation’s motto: e pluribus unum (out of many, one), MAGA has divided us. In MAGA’s America, immigrants are vermin, political rivals are demonic, and news media are enemies of the people.

MAGA’s America is no longer a constitutional republic consisting of three distinct branches of government. The legislative has abdicated its powers to the executive. And the land’s highest court has given immunity to the executive for its illegal acts. His Royal Pain-in-the-Ass now controls most of the federal government, including the DOD, DOJ, and the FBI. And he is attempting to take over the last independent agency standing – the Federal Reserve.

MAGA’s America no longer serves as a beacon for immigrants. Instead, it locks immigrants (both legal and undocumented) in gulags and separates families. Instead of governing by the rule of law, MAGA’s America pardons criminals and imprisons the law-abiding. And instead of using our nation’s wealth to help the poor and needy, MAGA uses it to fill the bank accounts of Dear Leader and his billionaire friends.

MAGA’s America has shown contempt for the Constitution, defying our most cherished principles of freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom of unreasonable searches and seizures.  MAGA has even suspended the right to due process for citizens and non-citizens alike. And thanks to SCOTUS, the ICEstapo is now free to stop and detain any brown or black person on the mere possibility that they are undocumented.

Instead of fighting fascists as our fathers and grandfathers did, MAGA’s America sends armed and masked gangs into the streets to spread terror.

Most worrisome of all, the MAGA movement is intent on limiting the right to vote. SCOTUS has already all but repealed the Voting Rights Act, which has led to extreme gerrymandering in the South. In many states, they have made it difficult to obtain voter IDs. They have tried to ban early voting, mail-in ballots, and electronic voting. Instead of encouraging citizens to vote in free and fair elections that are the hallmark of democracies, they strive to make voting more difficult in order to seize and maintain power.

This is no longer the America of your grandparents. Or of the Founders. In fact, it is only one or two steps away from total dictatorship – the kingdom of Trump.

Is it any wonder, many of the French now want us to return the Statue of Liberty, saying that America no longer represents the values that led France to gift it to the U.S. in the first place?

Dear Media: Stop Saying That Everything Trump Does Is Unprecedented.

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To the contrary, we’ve seen it all before – in countries like Russia, China, North Korea, Hungary, Turkey, Fascist Italy, and Nazi Germany to name a few. That’s because Trump is quite literally following the dictator’s playbook. That playbook goes something like this:

  1. You get elected to office any way possible. In 2016, Trump was helped by lies, an extensive propaganda network and foreign interference. In 2024, he was also aided by the opponents’ missteps.
  2. You expand your executive power by threatening members of Congress into compliance, by firing those who question orders, and by threatening to withhold congressionally approved funding to federal institutions in defiance of the Constitution.
  3. You replace nonpartisan government employees with loyalists and threaten others. In just 8 months, Trump pushed nearly 200,000 workers out of government agencies. And his entire cabinet consists of loyalists who constantly praise him.
  4. You challenge institutions and ignore long-standing traditions and norms. Trump has politicized every aspect of government and society. He punished any entity that supported DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion). He withheld funding for USAID, WHO, and NIH, as well as research grants from academic institutions he considers liberal and those who refused to crackdown on Palestinian supporters exercising their right of free speech.
  5. You create fear and declare emergencies in defiance of the constitutional right to free assembly. In the wake of massive arrests in LA by masked and armed ICE agents, Trump illegally federalized the National Guard and deployed Marines onto the streets of the city.
  6. You openly defy the Constitution and the courts. Trump has signed Executive Orders that defy Article 1 of the Constitution, as well as the Emoluments Clause and the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth, Tenth, and Fourteenth Amendments. He has also entertained the idea of violating the Nineteenth and Twentieth Amendments. And he has openly defied court orders, calling the courts “out of control.”
  7. You take control of law enforcement and create your own loyal militia. Trump’s loyal Attorney General and FBI director have politicized their agencies and opened investigations into Trump’s rivals as retribution. And the Secretary of Homeland Security and acting director of ICE have created the nation’s largest police force willing to arrest and confine both documented and undocumented immigrants, even U.S. citizens.
  8. You attack the media, the freedom of press and freedom of speech. Since he first announced his intent to run for president, Trump has labeled independent news organizations as “fake news.” He has vilified them as “enemies of the people” and filed enormous frivolous lawsuits against them. Additionally, he and his FCC chair have threatened networks and media owners resulting in the cancelation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel.
  9. You take control of the courts. Through the actions of Mitch McConnell and his appointments, Trump gained firm control of SCOTUS, which has given him immunity. His openly biased appointees now control at least two appellate courts and a large number of federal courts. And he has more than three years to further debase them.
  10. You vilify and threaten your opponents. Trump has long demeaned his rivals with childish nicknames. He blamed the murder of Charlie Kirk on “the left,” threatening to name liberal groups, including the Democratic Party, as terrorist organizations. And he demands that his DOJ investigate and convict all those who prosecuted him for his crimes and impeachments.
  11. You use your control of government to enrich yourself. In his previous term, Trump used his position to make millions from the very agency protecting him by constantly vacationing at his own resorts and charging the Secret Service inflated prices for its agents’ rooms. He’s continued that this term but expanded his greed by accepting a $400 million airplane from Qatar and a $2 billion UAE investment in his family’s cryptocurrency in exchange for access to our most advanced computer chips.
  12. You take over the education system by telling schools what they may and may not teach in order to control future generations. Trump has forced schools to rewrite history, to ban books with LGBTQ references, and to eliminate DEI programs in order to obtain federal funding. And his administration is now demanding that all schools include Charlie Kirk’s conservative Turning Point USA chapters.
  13. You take over the financial system. Not satisfied with control over Congress, SCOTUS and most government agencies. Trump is actively trying to take control of the independent Federal Reserve by attempting to fire one of its governors. If he succeeds, there will be nothing to prevent his manipulation of federal investments and currency.
  14. You rig or suspend elections. Now that Trump has control of the government, he is attempting to retain his power by rigging the midterm congressional elections through extreme redistricting of multiple red states. At the same time, he is trying to block or limit early voting, mail-in ballots, and the use of electronic voting machines. Failing that, he may try to suspend the elections or use ICE to block polling centers.
  15. Finally, you proclaim yourself “president for life” and suspend all freedoms. If you think that’s unlikely, consider the admiration Trump expressed after Xi was named China’s president for life.

There is absolutely nothing unprecedented by these actions. Every known dictator has resorted to them in one way or another. The only thing unprecedented is that no one has previously tried, let alone succeeded, in executing them here.

The Dishonest Reframing Of Operation Arctic Frost.

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With Senator Chuck Grassley’s description of an FBI and DOJ investigation targeting rightwing groups code-named “Artic Frost,” it would appear that the Biden administration had politicized and weaponized the government against Republican organizations.

But that narrative doesn’t fit the reality of the time.

Keep in mind that the operation began following a violent attempted coup at the nation’s capital and a coordinated attempt to overturn a free and fair election – all orchestrated by Trump and a variety of rightwing groups, including Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA. Indeed, prior to the insurrection, Kirk posted that Turning Point Action would send more than 80 busloads of Trump supporters to Washington, DC to “fight for the president.”

Other conservative groups conspired to illegally replace legitimate electors as part of the Stop The Steal scheme. And Trump, himself, was recorded demanding the Georgia Secretary of State to illegally “find” the 11,780 votes necessary to hand him the 2020 election.

All of that goes well beyond ordinary politics – well beyond Watergate. It undermines the very foundation of our nation and crosses the line into conspiracy to commit multiple felonies, including sedition.

To further put Operation Arctic Frost into context, the FBI had long ago identified rightwing groups as the most prolific source of domestic terrorism. {Think Timothy McVeigh’s bombing in Oklahoma City aimed at the FBI, a rightwing militia’s attempt to kidnap the Democratic governor of Michigan, and the murder of Minnesota Democratic legislator Melissa Hortman.)

In fact, over the past 10 years, rightwing extremists, including those who oppose abortion, immigrants, minorities, government and non-Christian religions have been responsible for 378 murders. These were all acts of terrorism.

That’s not to say that leftwing extremists haven’t committed acts of violence. But despite what Vice-President Vance says, they are comparatively rare.

Nevertheless, you can expect the Trump regime to use the murder of Charlie Kirk and the revelation of Operation Arctic Frost to justify further attacks on their political opponents. The regime has already shown contempt for the Constitution by governing in direct violation of the 1st, 4th, 6th, 8th and 14th Amendments. And Trump seems determined to seek a third term in violation of the 20th Amendment.

It would not be surprising to see the regime try to arrest and silence opponents. And, given that there were no real consequences for January 6 due to court delays, the SCOTUS immunity ruling and presidential pardons, you can be certain that Trump will further attempt to rig the 2026 election in order to retain his grip on power.

The Divide Between The Left And The Right Is More Than Ideological.

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It’s cultural. With the left determined to maintain some degree of decorum along with traditional norms and institutions. And the right determined to exact retribution against its opponents – to own the Libs – and to tear our government apart.

Those differences have never been more apparent than following the recent political assassinations of Minnesota State Legislator, Melissa Hortman, and MAGA activist Charlie Kirk.

After the murder of Hortman and the violent attack on Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman by an apparent white Christian Nationalist, many on the right refused to acknowledge that the attacks were political despite abundant evidence to the contrary. Some falsely attributed the shootings to a “Leftist Marxist.” Others blamed the victims. A few used the attack to make sarcastic remarks aimed at Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Further, Trump even refused to call Walz, saying it would be a waste of time.

Contrast that to the response following Kirk’s death: Almost every Democratic politician, political commentator and entertainer have decried the shooting and mourned the state of our political discourse. One glaring exception was MSNBC contributor, Matthew Dowd, a Republican, who was fired by the center-left network for stating the uncomfortable truth that Kirk’s hateful rhetoric likely led to his own death.

Meanwhile, those on the right are calling for vengeance by baselessly blaming the left for Kirk’s death though most political shootings have been committed by MAGA supporters. Trump quickly blamed the shooting on “the radical left.” Fox host, Jesse Waters, claims “we are at war.” MAGA ally Laura Loomer calls for “cracking down on the left with the full force of the government.” And, despite the fact that the vast majority of political violence has been committed by MAGA, Trump advisor Stephen Miller vowed to use the full force of the government to shut down leftist groups (aka MAGA’S political opposition).

In truth, the response from the right seems as extreme as its cruel policies.

Let me be clear: All murders, especially political murders, are disgusting and cowardly acts. But these targeted assassinations reveal a new low in the freefall of political discourse in our nation. That said, one must also acknowledge that Kirk was a prominent contributor to that freefall. Kirk not only tested the limits of his right to free speech. He abused that right in his pursuit of power, fortune and fame by promoting falsehoods and conspiracy theories.

Moreover, Kirk used his freedom of speech to undermine the very government to which he owed that freedom.

As a white Christian Nationalist, he advocated for an end to separation of church and state. He opposed a woman’s freedom of choice to control her own body. He created a Professor Watchlist to threaten the academic freedom and careers of college professors with whom he disagreed. He promoted the Great Replacement Theory and claimed that the white majority are the actual victims of racism. He was integral to the January 6 insurrection in which many of his followers stormed the Capitol with the intent of hanging the Vice-President and others. And ironically, he thought that the thousands of deaths from gun violence are justified by the need for the Second Amendment.

Yet despite his contributions to help elect a dictatorial and autocratic regime, and despite the pain he inflicted on so many others, Kirk is being feted as a martyr and honored with the Medal of Freedom.

These unwarranted honors are further evidence of the asymmetry with which the two political sides are treated.

Now, as a blogger and a journalist, I’ll admit to resorting to hyperbole in some of my writings that contribute to the coarse tone of our political debate. And I will strive to constrain myself in the future. But I challenge you to compare the rhetoric from the right to that of the left. I think you will find that there is no comparison. The cruel and hateful tone from the right begins in the White House.

Only in the MAGA universe is it acceptable for a President of the United States to refer to immigrants as vermin, to Democrats as Demoncrats and traitors, to the legitimate press as enemies of the people, to women as nasty, filthy, crazy, or ugly, and to every problem as a Democrat hoax. He even suggested that the Second Amendment folks could deal with a rival. That rhetoric is repeated and even exaggerated by the MAGA base.

It’s long past time for reasonable Americans to reject such purveyors of hate and fear no matter which side they’re on. It’s one thing to oppose policies and to voice a differing opinion. It’s quite another to incite violence through words or actions. Indeed, no one should be targeted for expressing their thoughts and opinions.

A sharp criticism or a biting commentary may temporarily hurt. But under no circumstances is a bullet an acceptable retort.