Category Archives: politics

Is It Irresponsible to Speculate? It Would Be Irresponsible Not to.

http://gph.is/28S2Ocn I have always wanted to use the above title as a headline. I must confess, however, that it’s not my own original language. Peggy Noonan – a former speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan now near the end of a staggeringly long, well-compensated, yet puerile career – is the author. She is the savant who wrote speeches forContinue reading “Is It Irresponsible to Speculate? It Would Be Irresponsible Not to.”

Incompetent Through and Through

The Republican Party apparatus is having a really difficult day today. First, someone in charge of the Twitter account for the Republican National Committee tweeted out a spurious quote attributed to Abraham Lincoln. Not long after that, someone else (probably?) at the US Department of Education misspelled the name of W.E.B. Du Bois in a tweet quotingContinue reading “Incompetent Through and Through”

Friday Links

There are two reported articles and an opinion piece that, read in combination, really help illustrate the behavior and dysfunction of President Donald Trump’s administration. Heartland whites wanted a government as stupid and ignorant as they are and so far Trump is delivering. This piece in Politico is just amazing. One of many incredible quotes: “In interviews, nearly two dozenContinue reading “Friday Links”

Why Trump Can Do Whatever He Wants; or A Heuristic for Understanding Congressional Republicans’ Behavior

As the country freaks out over the consequences of its monumentally stupid decision to elect Donald Trump to the presidency of the United States because of EMAILS, it is useful to take a step back and try to understand who actually has the power to do anything about the different disasters unfolding. There’s the judicial branch,Continue reading “Why Trump Can Do Whatever He Wants; or A Heuristic for Understanding Congressional Republicans’ Behavior”

Ryan is Going After Medicare, and Trump is Letting Him Do It

As mentioned in yesterday’s links roundup, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan wants to destroy Medicare. Unified Republican control of the presidency and Congress now makes his dream possible. The big question is whether Donald Trump will go along with it or not. As is the case with many issues, Trump has tried to have it all possible waysContinue reading “Ryan is Going After Medicare, and Trump is Letting Him Do It”

Tuesday Links

Hard to believe the election was already a week ago. Life goes on, but it has been disorienting. A loved one turned off Nirvana’s “Come as You Are” in favor of Creed’s “With Arms Wide Open” the other day. I don’t know anything anymore. Steve Bannon becoming chief strategist for President-elect Donald Trump’s White House should beContinue reading “Tuesday Links”

Preliminary Election Aftermath Takes

Everyone interested in organizing to win future presidential elections will closely study Donald Trump’s path to the presidency. Since vote tallies are still incomplete in some key states, we’ll have to wait to see just how thin the margins were in the battleground states and just how large was Hillary Clinton’s win in the national popular vote. WhileContinue reading “Preliminary Election Aftermath Takes”

Donald Trump Defies Expectations Yet Again

Congratulations to Donald Trump, Republican candidates and their supporters for their many victories last night. Obviously, they weren’t the results I was hoping for or expecting. That Trump could and would win the Republican nomination for president has been a major theme of my blogging. And I always thought he had a chance to win the presidency,Continue reading “Donald Trump Defies Expectations Yet Again”

Election Links Roundup

I gotta say, not a whole lot has changed in this election since I was routinely blogging here twice or three times a week. Since my thinking has not really changed much throughout this campaign, I’m happy to let the following pieces stand in for my laziness these past couple months. As some in the country are stillContinue reading “Election Links Roundup”