14 Comments

You have company: those of us who cannot insulate enough against unending seismic shocks.

Expand full comment

Not exactly a shock, but here comes RFK, Jr nomination as HHS Sec...bu-bye school vaccines, hello childhood disease epidemics...oy vey!

Expand full comment

Happy Anniversary!!! You ROCK! 🎉🥂🍾🥳

Expand full comment

Trump - "Project 2025? I

don't know anything about it."

Talk about gaslighting!

Happy anniversary TPM.

Keep it rolling.

Expand full comment

The gaetz thing is likely a fig leaf for him to cut and run, and escape the committee findings. He will have a high paid job in the Turnip organization or lobbying of course. Meanwhile another Turnip candidate will be announced instead that will be horrible but not quite as horrible as gaetz, so senators will be relieved and go along with it.

Expand full comment

That’s what I think too. They will bring out a bunch of uber horribles and outrageous policy ideas that will make what they actually do seem not so bad by comparison.

Expand full comment

Yeah, sure, of course it will get worse before it gets better. The problem is that better will be limited and short term. If past = prologue, we’ll might get one or two D majorities in Congress in 2026 who will, at best, do far too little and get voted out in 2028. 2028 might bring a D POTUS who will then do far too little, etc. My takeaway from the election is that a majority of voters have become turned off to the alt-Republican DNC’s empty talk.

Anyway, my takeaway on Donny’s insane choices for cabinet and cabinet level positions: it’s just a show for the rubes and establishment media. The ones that will actually do the damage will be the appointees just below. And, by and by, the media will ignore what’s going on because focusing on the performative bullshit.

Of course, time will tell and like always, hope to be proven wrong.

Expand full comment

I don’t think you’re wrong.

Expand full comment

Happy to be proven wrong, won’t bet I am though.

Expand full comment

It' really shocking, how my fiction writer's imagination cannot hope to keep up with that crazy old fatassed loon.

Expand full comment

The Gaetz framing is spot on. As Bertrand Russell said, “In any autocratic regime, the holders of power become increasingly tyrannical with experience of the delights that power can afford. Since power over human beings is shown in making them do what they would rather not do, the man who is actuated by love of power is more apt to inflict pain than to permit pleasure.”

The Gaetz nomination gives Trump a twofer: a toady who will indict the people on Trump’s enemies list and an opportunity to inflict pain on everyone else.

— Bertrand Russell

Expand full comment

We are certainly living in interesting times.

Expand full comment

Not even sworn in, and tRump 2.0 is off to a rollicking, bollocking start! A new " Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight" is being assembled right in public view, and if this so far isn't a pristine example of tRump "management" style, well, hang on, it can AND will get worse. It's just not about governance, it's all about a monstrous "fuck you" to tRump's critics, unbelievers, and "establishment" people who have "mistreated" him before he was president the first time, and who didn't bend the knee before he won it his second go-round. Absolutely fabulous!

And to imagine that this assembling crowd could implement Project 2025, let alone tie their shoes before leaving the house.

Expand full comment

I think this Gaetz nomination might have been the wake-up call that the Senate needed. All of them, but Gaetz shows that it is clearly a game.

Expand full comment