King Trump's Intent: Upsurp Congress' Power of the Purse

                                       Good Day World!

Our petulant POTUS broke out of the White House pre-school yesterday and went after Congress and the Constitution.

In a Rose Garden speech he repeated every (fact-checked) lie he's ever told about the southern border to justify getting around the will of Congress and declaring a national emergency.

His public address was more of a campaign rant than an excuse for declaring a national emergency. He buttered up his base by reciting his list of most popular lies.

This latest temper tantrum to get a vanity wall has become a constitutional crisis thanks to the man-child who thinks he knows how to make deals.

His tactic of executive overreach ramped up to dizzying new heights with the declaration of an emergency to make his campaign promise come true.

The scary part of his action is that there will be severe lasting consequences to our Constitution long after Trump's regime is a dank memory. It's like breaking a clay pot and putting it back together again. It'll never have it's original integrity.

Trump's fit of presidential pique constitutes a reordering of the power dynamic between the branches of government. His aim is obvious, he intends to usurp one of Congress' most basic responsibilities, the power of the purse.

In the days, weeks, and months ahead America is going to be further torn apart by bitter court battles which Trump anticipates will end up in the Supreme Court that he's recently stacked with supporters.

But there was one line in Trump's rambling speech that can derail his efforts. He said the move (declaring a national crisis) was unnecessary, but he "...wanted to speed things up."

Doesn't sound like much of an emergency to me. I have a hunch the courts will agree.


At stake, an imperial presidency seizing control of the country...for our own good!

Related: Here's Where the Money for Trump's Border Wall Will Come From

Time for me to walk on down the road...

How Trump 'Drained the Swamp' Then Restocked it

                                        Good Day World!

Throughout Trump's 2016 campaign there were a few repeating themes, always accompanied by numerous signs at rallies.

One of the rally cries was "Drain The Swamp!" Remember that one? 

Trump's interpretation of draining the swamp consisted of getting rid of as many Democrats in government as he could. He told his gullible supporters that he was going to get rid of career lobbyists and unethical people in the former administration.

Looking back at that piece of hypocritical rhetorical bullshit is revealing. Here's what is really happening:

Days after Trump was elected he signed an executive order to require all political hires to sign a pledge. Upon leaving his administration they had to promise they wouldn't lobby for the agencies they worked in for five years.

Of course, that executive order was nothing more than window-dressing. There's loopholes as big as semi-trucks in that agreement. At least 33 former Trump officials have found their way around that pledge.

The most prominent is former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, who resigned in December after a series of ethics investigations.

Guess what he announced yesterday? He's now working for Turnberry Solutions...wait for it...a lobbying firm.

At least 18 of those former officials have recently registered as lobbyists. The rest work at firms in jobs that closely resemble federal lobbying.

Not counting Zinke, here's a list of Trump cabinet members who have had to leave with their tail between their legs because they were caught engaging in unethical activities.

I noticed in Trump's 2020 campaign rally the other day there was one guy in the front row holding up a sign that said "Drain The Swamp!"

In 2016 there were rows of the same sign prominently displayed at every rally. I'm curious at what changed. Is it possible that even his die-hard supporters find the subject touchy? 

Time for me to walk on down the road...

3 Simple Questions For Trump's Base

Good Day World!

Shout out today to core Trump supporters. 

Especially the one's who agree with Trump that he's starting something new by proposing a 4th of July parade in Washington DC.

(Just for the record for all readers: America has held 4th of July parades for over 200 years in Washington DC. The biggest one, attended by 200,000 marching soldiers was in 1865 after the end of the Civil War.)

Moving on...to Trump Supporters

Do you have mind if I ask you three questions?

1. If Trump says the sky is green, are you okay with that?

2. If Trump declares a crisis on our northern border and sends troops there, is that okay with you? (Please note we're not at war with Canada).

3. When Trump whips up crowds with attacks against our mainstream media, does that inspire you to bite a liberal reporter?

Thanks to all of you hardcore Trumpies who read all three (even if you had to get help) questions.

For you non-Trumplicans here's a current article on Trump's base;

Trump Approval Down, Slips With Base

One more thing to think about; the majority of Americans don't trust Trump and believe he's a flagrant liar. 

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Were You Surprised When...

                                          Good Day World!

Were you surprised when Trump lied about how many people attended his 2020 campaign rally in El Paso? (Trump Flagrant Lies on Attendance)

Were you surprised that that Trump's minions decided to copy Hillary Clinton's campaign slogan, "Stronger Together?" 

Were you surprised when Trump's hardcore followers warned him not to sign the bipartisan agreement that Congress came up with?

Were you surprised to hear one GOP aide say there was no Plan B if Trump didn't agree to the bill?

Were you surprised to hear Trump got his base so worked up at the El Paso rally one of them attacked a reporter?

Were you surprised to hear that drug kingpin El Chapo was convicted on all 10 accounts?

Were you surprised to hear about the new football league and how well it did last weekend?

Were you surprised that Pompeo denied that Trump was covering up the murder of Jamal Kashoggi when Congress's deadline to act passed? 

The bottom line...

Don't be surprised by anything in the news these days.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Average American Realizes Trump Tax Bill Screwed Them

Good Day World!

Democrats can rightly say "I told you so" when they fought Trump's tax bailout for corporations and 1 percenters last year.

The results of Trump's con for the wealthy is surfacing as the average American is seeing their tax returns down by 8.0 percent.

A host of economic indicators shows the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act failed to achieve its key promise, a major increase in investments by business that would create more jobs.

In addition, millions of residents of blue states are about to get hit with big federal income tax increases while many American expatriates who own businesses overseas are also facing unexpected new tax bills.

This kind of corporate tax timing trick has been employed several times since the John F. Kennedy administration in 1962.

The effect each time was to create a brief surge in corporate investment, called capital expenditures, followed by a slump.

This year is no different. The average American is feeling the true effect of the tax scam the Republicans pushed through Congress.

Related: Consumer Sentiment Drops To Lowest Levels of Trump's Presidency

Related: Lower refunds Might Hurt The Economy

Time for me to walk on down the road...

No Vetting Leads To Gotcha Stories on Steroids

Good Day World!

Gotcha articles have been around since American journalists began producing newspapers for the public.

Like any product newspapers have evolved with societies norms, but the core mission - always printing the truth - has deteriorated during the rise of the digital age.

Once upon a time a person who knew something scandalous about a famous person quietly went to a newspaper and let a reporter confirm the authenticity of the claim.

Those days are gone, along with the decline of civility during the Trump regime.

The advent of the Internet unleashed a flood of partisan bloggers and hate websites that make accusations against people without proof in real time. 

One of the most insidious websites is Big League Politics. You may have that name recently because the top three politicians in Virginia have been attacked by this partisan site.

 Newspapers nationwide have been talking about the enormous scandal consuming Virginia politics right now, in which the Democratic governor and both of the Democrats behind him in line of succession are embroiled in what may be career-ending scandals. 

To no one's surprise Big League Politics conducts hyper-partisan Republican opposition research and is funded by Republican sources.

Comically, the web page has an ethics section where it falsely claims to be "journalist owned" and states "We don't belong to the Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Green, or even Bull Moose parties. Our only goal is to tell the truth.

What I see happening is these hyper-partisan sites, and other sources of online disinformation, slithering into mainstream news agencies posing a huge risk to legitimate journalists today. 

Increasingly, people are having a hard time believing what they read because of this infusion of fake news from partisan sites and print publications like the National Inquirer.

The biggest problem is when you bring politics into these gotcha stories on steroids they affect already elected politicians, like the case in Virginia.

The only way to avoid cancelling the voters will, after electing someone, is to properly vet candidates. This is not happening for a couple of reasons, money being the biggest one.

Print publications are already struggling in today's digital age, and the smaller ones don't have the money to properly vet political candidates anymore.

Combine that limitation with the instant news on the internet and you can see what the print media faces when competing for readers.

Time for me to walk on down the road... 

Baby Trump Blimp To Visit Dueling Rallies

                                         Good Day World!

Tomorrow.
Q - What's that in the sky? 
A - Why it's the Baby Trump Blimp!

Yes folks, while Trump leads a racist rally in El Paso, Texas tomorrow there's another rally to counter his lies a mere mile away.  

Democrats led by current favorite son, Beto O 'Rourke, will be promoting the good things about their city to counter Trump's vicious lies about how it was once one of the most dangerous cities in the nation until a wall was put up in 2009.

The backdrop for this street theatre is the possibility of another government shutdown in four days.

If that should happen, and Trump once again doubles down with a stupid move, I propose that Congress pass a bill to fund the Baby Trump Blimp to float over the White House until the orange anus agrees to what Congress presents him.

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Buckle Up! A Wild Week Reviewed

                                           Good Day World!

Ready to go on a whirlwind tour of last week?

In no particular order:

* Under the category of humor, Trump get's annual physical.

* Renewing his attack against the judicial system, Trump went after a judge who renewed the asylum ban order.

* The world's richest man, Jeff Bezos, claimed American Media Inc. attempted to "extort and blackmail" him. Read this blockbuster article by Bezos.

* Acting AG Whitaker had a rather contentious meeting with the House Judiciary Committee. This hearing launched the first official investigation into the corrupt Trump regime. Look for numerous others in the days, weeks, and months ahead.

* Trump refused to meet a legal mandate Friday to tell Congress whether the White House thinks Saudi Arabia's crown prince is personally responsible for the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. 

* The Supreme Court put a Louisiana abortion law on hold.

Chief Justice John Roberts joined with Justices Elena Kagan, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor to grant an emergency stay while the case proceeds.


* In the another case of follow the illegal money (when talking about Trump and his minions)...his campaign spent nearly $100,000 of donor money to pay legal bills to the firm representing Jared Kushner, the latest campaign finance records show. 

* You didn't think I forgot about that inspiring State of the Union address where Trump managed to further divide the country, did you?

* A record 1.7 tons of meth was discovered hidden in loud speakers bound for Australia.

* Virginia Democrats are in hot water. Here's why.

* Meanwhile the stakes are getting higher in Venezuela as Trump backs presidential challenger Juan Guaido, and goes after Maduro. Yes, there were a lot of other wild stories last week, but I'm not going to attempt to list them all. Hope you found the stories that I picked here interesting. Time for me to walk on down the road...

The Day of the Subpoena: Trump and Minions Face Accounting for Actions

                                        Good Day World!

The hammer is coming down!

After enjoying two years of stifling Democrats who tried to file subpoenas against Trump and his corrupt minions, the day of reckoning has finally come.

The House has been reclaimed by Democrats in a crushing defeat for Trump and the GOP. The floodgates are now open and subpoenas have already started to flow from several new House committees.


House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler warned acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker that when he testified before the committee today, that if he was going to use executive privilege and not answer all of their questions, he'd be subpoenaed.

Whitaker finally agreed after a heated back and forth exchange with House lawmakers. But when he showed up this morning he refused to talk about his conversations with Trump.

In the coming weeks, and months, I suspect a lot of corrupt Trumplicans will be subpoenaed by numerous House committees.

As the Republican chorus line of culprits await their Day of the Subpoena, Americans can slowly start to heal from the damage inflicted on our government by Trump and his supporters as the wheels of justice grind on.

Here's a fun exercise: Guess what Trump minion will get the next subpoena?

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Underscoring Absolute Absurdity in America

Good Day World!

We live in a time where absurdity is just one of the societal ill-effects from a dumbed-down America during the Trump era.

Here's three examples that followed Trump's State of the Union address: 

1. Melania Trump causes furor for only wearing one glove
2. Joshua Trump (no relative) falls asleep during Trump's speech
3. Nancy Pelosi claps in Trump's face

These stories are so ridiculous that they have to qualify as absurd.

More Absurdities 

1. Right-wing Evangelicals claim God sent Trump
2. Ignoring the definition of stupidity, Trump repeatedly denies facts
3.Compromising has become a lost art.
4. Republicans deny global warming
5. In just two years America has become an international laughing stock thanks to Trump.

The good news is things can change. 

When the committees, grand juries, and special counsel all finish their research, the odds of Trump getting re-elected are pretty slim.

As for the odds of Trump actually finishing his term, I'll go with that famous betting house, Paddy's, in Ireland: they're saying 50-50. Care to place a bet?

Time for me to walk on down the road...

Poll Poll On The Internet: Whose the Greatest President Yet?

Good Day USA!

If, for some perverse reason, you listened to Trump's assault on democracy, aka the State of the Union address yesterday, one thing was very clear...

Trump's ego is soooo yuge that he thinks we believe in his alternative universe. 

When he described himself as the most successful president in US history during his first two years, the majority of viewers knew that was pure bullshit.

Americans are fully aware that Trump is a serial liar, as it's been documented here and here.

In reality, Americans are sick of Trump demeaning government agencies and Congress when they don't agree with him.

A new monthly job approval poll that began this month with Gallup, clearly shows Trump's current low approval ratings.

Related: As Trump Slides In The Polls he retreats Deeper into Fox News Fantasyland

Trump has a tortured relationship with polls. When they show he's doing something right he touts them in a victory lap on his twitter feed.

However, when the polls show Americans think he's an inept POTUS showing deep disapproval of his actions, he turns on them like a boomerang, and assaults their veracity like a honey badger.

Poll Poll on the internet, who is the greatest president of them all? 

Answer: It sure the hell isn't Trump!

Time for me to walk on down the road...