Wednesday, December 18, 2019

A Final Six-Hour Debate and then the Full House Votes on impeachment

Good Day World!

As the country waits today for the shroud of impeachment to envelope our 45th president, there's a sense of expectation.

Fifty-percent of Americans want Trump impeached and thrown out of office. The other fifty-percent aren't for impeachment. 

So where does that leave us?

In a chaotic limbo that's destined to play out during a senate trial in January, and beyond. 

Trump's defiance against the system of checks and balances built into the Constitution has been systematic and corrosive throughout his administration.

Trump's total lack of morals allows him to brazenly use his power as president to enrich himself, and his family. By gathering minions loyal only to himself and not the country, he has effectively subverted our democratic foundation for personal gain.

Simply put, if what Trump has done by holding a foreign country hostage to get them to find dirt on his political opponent is okay and gets a pass... future elections will all be decided by other countries like Russia.

Todays impeachment of Trump will either lead to free future elections, or America is in clear and present danger.

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

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Hot Political Memorabilia For Christmas: #1 Seller, Trump on the Stump


                                       Good Day World!

Political memorabilia is an American tradition that goes back as far as Santa Claus when he first appeared for good little boys and girls.

Since America's first presidential inauguration, when metal pins bearing the phrase "Long Live the President" and George Washington's initials were worn by his supporters, political memorabilia has been popular.

The first mass-produced and collectible buttons for presidential campaigns came out in 1896, when William McKinley ran against William Jennings Bryan.


Which brings us to Christmas 2019.

Your can still get Trump Christmas memorabilia from the Republican National Committee, or Trump's re-election campaign.

I hear that one of the hottest holiday items is "Trump on a Stump." Unlike the friendly little Elf on the Shelf, the Trump version has a hidden camera and a voice-activated recording devise.

Trump has been passing them out to GOP lawmakers in order to better monitor their every move. The damn thing is, the Republicans know it but they're too afraid to turn down his Christmas gift.

Other hot memorabilia items are the infamous Red MAGA caps from Communist China, and t-shirts made in Pakistan with forced child labor that proclaim, "Read the Transcript!"

Hot Wheels teamed up with Joe Biden's campaign and is selling a replica of the "No Malarkey" campaign bus that toured Iowa recently.

Republican senators up for re-election next year are already putting out campaign buttons announcing "I'm With Stupid," with a photo of Trump's face next to theirs.

The Democratic National Party has already sold out of "Impeachment 2019" sweaters that reportedly came out in vibrant holiday colors.

Sen. Lindsey Graham's re-election campaign is selling sets of 30 silver coins embossed with the statement, "I've already made up my mind, and don't need to see any evidence."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's supporters are hawking bourbon glasses with Oligarch Oleg Deripaska and McConnell shaking hands. 
(Background note: Deripaska was granted sanctions in Moscow Mitch's home state of Kentucky to build the largest aluminum (Rusal) plant in America in 45 years.)

The Democratic National Party reported selling over 10 million reversible Moscow Mitch badges with Putin on the other side, in less than two hours on Black Friday.

That's all for now. I'll keep my eyes open for any new items that might come out before Christmas Eve. Be Merry!

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

Monday, December 16, 2019

Pathetic Foreign Policy Could Bring Unwanted Holiday Suprises

Good Day World!

Kim Jong Un is promising to send Trump a mock Christmas gift this year to show his displeasure with their relationship.

No. It's not a bag of coal. Trump would like that too much. According to American undercover sources, Kim may attempt to use a rocket to launch a satellite into orbit.

Why is that nasty news, as Trump would so crudely put it?

Kim has already successfully placed two satellites into earth's orbit. This threatened satellite however, could demonstrate North Korea's ability to send a major payload into the North Pacific, experts warn.

Thus far, the North Koreans have not demonstrated the ability to bring a large payload back. Their recent testing strongly suggests they're preparing to try again.

Past experience has encouraged Kim to threaten action to get his way with Trump. As for North Korea's blowing up tunnels at their nuclear test site, Punggye-ri, there's a big question about the authenticity of that claim.

Journalists, not experts, were the only ones invited to the denotation ceremony. No real negotiations came after that. A grip-and-grin or two for show was the end result.

It appears Trump and Kim's bromance is over. No more love letters. How Trump responds to Kim's Christmas gift - if it happens - could bring another unexpected holiday gift... WAR!

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

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Many Americans Have Lost All Sense of Decency, Honesty: The Rest Are Paying For It


                                       Good Day World!

Americans. Are. Confused. And. Numb.

How could we not be? We're living in a reality nightmare orchestrated by the most corrupt president in American history.

There is no normal anymore. Traditions are trashed. Truth is challenged daily. Lies are the lead headlines coming from media platforms like Fox News, with it's warped view of reality.

Trump has told us he's the chosen one. He also told us what we see on any other channel than Fox, is fake and part of an insidious plot to drive him from office.

Openly inviting other governments to look for dirt on his main political opponent in 2020, and Obstructing Congress, will more than likely lead to his impeachment next week.

There will be a moment of humiliation for Trump (behind closed doors) when he realizes future generations will always associate him with Abuse of Power and his impeachment.

Outwardly, Trump is chomping at the bit for HIS Senate to get the Articles of Impeachment from Congress so he can watch them being torn into red-white-and-blue confetti.

The Senate Majority Leader Moscow Mitch has assured everyone within listening distance that Trump will not be convicted. All sins absolved. Case over.

Meanwhile most Americans can see what's happening to our democracy. Polarization on steroids fueled by a sociopath camping out in the White House is destroying it.

Those conservatives who voted for Republicans have seen their representatives strip away all decency and honesty in the impeachment process. The upcoming Senate kangaroo trial will be a repeat. 

If Trump pays no price for what he's done since he slithered into office with Russia's help, this country will be on life support. We'll have a dictator taking our freedoms away.

Partisan politicians are openly plundering laws for personal gains. The biggest liar in American history is gambling he'll get away with his crimes... and go on to successfully cheat his way to another win in the 2020 election, with Putin's help.

We're all standing in the crossroads of freedom and justice, and anarchy in our lives.

There will be no bigger challenge to America's future than the one facing this generation, who will either vote Trump out of office, or back in.

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

Saturday, December 14, 2019

Moscow Mitch and Trump Are Subverting Justice and They Don't Care if You Know It!


                                        Good Day World!

Despite the fact that the House vote on impeachment won't be until next week, Trump and Senate Majority Leader Moscow Mitch met yesterday to make sure the Senate trial will be a farce.

The thing that stuns me is this open conspiracy to vindicate Trump's crimes. The Trumplicans aren't even trying to hide the fact they're going to subvert justice.


Moscow Mitch went on Fox News' right-wing nut Hannity's show, and declared he and the White House were coordinating the upcoming sham.

"The case is so darn weak I don't know why the House is sending it over," Mitch gloated. "There's no chance the president is going to be impeached," he told viewers.

How comforting to know the Senate is an extension of Trump. The spineless creatures inhabiting the Senate are selling out our democracy because they're afraid of Trump.

Trump's main weapon has always been fear. He uses it like a club to control his supporters, and lawmakers throughout the government. 

Democrats have pointed out that the Senate rules for impeachment trials call for a fair and honest trial that allows facts to come out. They've reminded Republicans that every single senator will take an oath to render "impartial justice."

The Republican reaction was predictable. They're ignoring those fine points of truth and justice, and are already celebrating getting Trump off the hook for his crimes.

To make sure Trump doesn't get caught again extorting (or making personal financial agreements with countries) the White House has moved to limit the amount of people who can listen in to his phone calls, after his July 25th call got him impeached.

The only question now is this going to be a Senate show trial full of revenge for Trump, or is it going to be short and sweet with a preordained result?

Either way, America loses.

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

Friday, December 13, 2019

Fear and Loathing in the House: Impeachment Articles Sent to the Floor

Good Day World!

The final vote is approaching. The debates are over. Trump is going to be impeached next week.

Anyone who watched the final debate yesterday and this morning to send the articles of impeachment to a full vote in the House could see the fear and loathing throughout the proceedings.

Americans didn't have to be a politically savvy to see the naked partisanship among the GOP lawmakers. Their testimonies were fractured fables designed to muddle the facts being presented.

Not one Republican could honestly contest the facts, so they ran inference for Trump. They diverted, twisted, and tortured the truth to please a one-man audience.

What the world witnessed during the impeachment proceedings was a chilling display of power by Trump, who incorporated key government officials - from his chief-of-staff to the Attorney General, in an effort to cripple his primary political opponent in the 2020 election... Joe Biden.

A divided America watched the whole event unroll with fear and loathing as their elected officials fought over the fabric of their Republic.

It was jarring to watch the parallel realities play out in real time as the House debated sending the two articles of impeachment to the floor for a full vote.

It was disturbing to see how Republicans were acting without civility - like a bunch of rowdy third-graders - throughout the impeachment proceedings. They're undisguised loathing of the Democrats fueled their dramatic performances.


Everything about the hearings, including the factual evidence presented may have been a sham in the Republicans fairytale, but the reality was they had no REAL DEFENSE for what their master Trump did (and continues to do).

After playing their parts like perfect puppets (photo above), the Republicans got kudos from Trump today for a job well done. 

Just another day in the swamp.

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

Thursday, December 12, 2019

IG's Report Dumps Trump's Deep State Conspiracy Into History's Trashheap

Good Day World!

Despite trying to shake IG Michael Horowitz's conclusion there was no political bias in opening the Russian investigation, GOP Senate Intelligence Committee members tried every trick in the book yesterday to get him to change his mind.

The bottom line was the report destroyed Trump's Deep State conspiracy, leaving Trump's minions scrambling around like cockroaches to further Trump's false narrative.

There were problems with the FISA process and Horowitz pointed them out, along with some recommendations. Chairman Lindsey Graham painted the IG's report in apocalyptic terms in his opening statement.

He warned of a massive conspiracy against Trump, but the report denied that. Graham and the gutless GOP members tried to put on a good show for their one-man audience, but it fell flat... muddied beyond recognition.

Trump will rate some individual performances highly, like Graham and Cruz's (with his cute little Beavis and Butthead comparison to FBI agents) spirited acts.

That doesn't mean Trump will stop claiming the Russian investigation was about going after him. Hell no!

He's already got his main puppet AG Barr (and his sleazy lawyer sidekick - Beavis and Butthead?) working on discrediting his own departments official findings... 

… while also trying to flesh out another bullshit conspiracy about the Ukraine interfering with 2016 elections, hiding a damning secret server, and attempting to dig up dirt against his main political opponent Joe Biden.

Trump's all out assault against this Republic should shock all Americans. He's unrestrained by any adults in the West Wing or the senate. He believes in complete power and won't stop until he gets it.

Impeaching him won't be enough to stop him. The senate has already signaled a quick kangaroo trial that will absolve Trump of all high crimes and misdemeanors.

More than likely, Trump will continue to abuse his powers right up until the next election. 

That leaves it up to the voters. 

If there's not a massive blue wave of voters in 2020, Americans will lose their freedoms, and find themselves living in an authoritarian state.

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

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Trump is a Traitor and He's Gambling the Senate Doesn't Care

Good Day World!

Trump's reality show is deteriorating.

From the first day of his regime he brought in a loyal cast of characters ready to perform as he directed.

After three years, most of that original cast is gone and has been replaced by other sycophants ready to lie for him at a moments notice.

When the Ukraine scandal first broke, Trump wanted the whistleblower brought in and hung for treason. The threat thrilled his followers on Twitter, regardless of the practicality involved.

After all, his whole presidency has been a scripted act of corruption and ongoing destruction of our democracy.

Despite the fact that Trump is going to be impeached next week for Abuse of Power and Obstruction of Congress, he's clinging to conspiracy theories, and the support of his core followers in an effort to ignore the reality of what's happening.

Fact: Trump was caught trying to get a foreign government to dig up dirt on his 2020 political rival Joe Biden. Then he tried to cover it up.

Trump's gambling that the senate is going to exonerate him in a dramatic show trial... but... 
according to senate insiders, McConnell is not going to play along with Trump's script. 

Moscow Mitch wants to at least give an appearance of a bi-partisan trial. To that end, he's meeting with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer to lay out a bi-partisan road map for the proceedings.

Truth be told, McConnell is a cagey old bird who rides the political winds like a raptor, striking when he's sure of a kill. If it comes down to protecting Trump, or himself and the senate majority, Trump loses his gamble.

Twenty-three Republicans are up for re-election in the senate. Some are in states that could go either way. 

If the evidence is too damning against Trump, McConnell could release his colleagues and allow them to do what's best for each of them in their own contested districts.

Not that I expect that too happen. It would be the biggest upset in political history if the senate convicted Trump of high crimes and misdemeanors...

It's a nice thought however.

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

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

A Constitutional Crisis Just Got Worse


                                       Good Day World!

This. Is. It.

America is in a Constitutional crisis this winter. Trump's going to be impeached this week. The House announced two articles of Impeachment this morning.

His supporters haven't been able to contest the facts against him, but they've made a show of challenging the entire hearing by trying to discredit it with outright lies, and procedural complaints. 

On top of this historic moment, there was another blow to our system of checks and balances that was announced yesterday.

AG Barr and the US attorney he picked to lead a probe into the origins of the Russian investigation, don't like the results that the Justice Department Inspector General reported yesterday.

Barr was hoping to give his master Trump an early Christmas gift when the report came out verifying his conspiracy theories... but that didn't happen.

Simply put, the IG found that the FBI properly opened its investigation into Russian election interference. 

This was bad news for Barr. He wasn't able to bring the "deliverable" to Donny. He better hope the $30,000 "Appreciation Party" he's throwing for Trump at his foreign fund outlet in Washington DC, pleases him.

There's never been such a stunning display of outright corruption in American history. No president has ever tried to cripple Congress and it's oversight abilities like Trump has, and is currently doing.

Congress can't wait until the next election because Trump will attempt to rig it with the help of Russia (or China, or the Ukraine as he's already publicly stated) again. 

It's scary that Trump's case will be tried before a Senate majority who are afraid of him.

It's scary that he believes the senate will ignore facts and spare him from justice.

It's scary that the senate majority leader Moscow Mitch has already declared the trial will go nowhere before the first piece of evidence has been examined.

With toady Barr's resistance to reality in order to remain in Trump's favor, our system of government is showing cracks in the checks-and-balances that threaten to destroy our Republic.

America has survived other threats to the Constitution in the last 247 years. We must trust that we'll survive these trying times, and freedom will continue to ring in the United States of America.

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

Monday, December 9, 2019

4-Ways to Filter 24-Hour Cycle Breaking News and Still Be Informed

Good Day World!

Breaking News stories don't just happen on a daily basis in the 21st century... they burst hourly on social media platforms, and news organizations.

Keeping up with rapid-fire headlines is impossible for the average American.

Heck! It's even difficult for a hardcore blogger/writer, like me, to have a good grasp of what's happening in the hourly news cycle around the nation, and the world.

That doesn't mean it's necessary to spend endless hours researching like news devotees to be well-informed about the world around you.


Filtering Out The Bullshit

Unless you enjoy living in a tribal bubble, the alternative is to open your mind and make decisions based upon facts, not partisan rhetoric.

1. When getting your news from TV, choose media outlets that aren't blatantly partisan. I recommend PBS, but CBS and ABC also do a fair job of presenting news. There are others.

2. Like TV, radio/podcasts can be partisan creatures that call upon people to suspend reality in favor of an ideology. PBS and other relatively neutral platforms are available.

3. When it comes to the print media (a pleasant surprise that people are still subscribing to newspapers and magazines), I recommend looking for a local newspaper, and a national one like US Today, to get a good overview on what's happening in the world.

4. To avoid responding like a puppet to hourly bombshell reports limit your daily news-gathering time to no more than a couple of hours. Less time, is probably better. 

As a journalist, I've always felt it was important to inform the public of news events around them, and the world. We all should have a basic knowledge about our government and the laws of the land.

However, there's nothing better than living in the here-and-now, and interacting with family and friends. 

(Photo: My wife Shirley and I)

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

Trump's Lowest Grift Ever Saved for Holy Week

This is a story about how the devil's puppet, aka Donald Trump, mocked Christianity by selling a book combining the Bible, the Constitu...