It’s time to arm. I say that with a little hesitation because violence only begets violence. But it’s already taking place. We have now become an authoritarian state. When do some democratic states empower their state guards to defend their states?
I agree that governors can use their national guard troops to protect their states, but we as individual citizens should not arm ourselves in a vigilante fashion, especially in order to trigger a violent reaction. That will lead to needless injuries & deaths. Rather than vigilantism, we need to proceed with additional peaceful protests, lobbying, getting legal & legislative support. As MLK, Jr. advocated, peaceful protest is powerful.
When will the patriotic men and women in our military services stand up and say that they do not and will not serve a king, ICE is most likely comprised of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. Criminals just like their leader. We need strength from the inside of our government to literally stomp out this infestation of Evil.
I, too, am afraid that most of those claiming to be ICE agents, if they are even legitimate, are those who in no way serve the Constitution or abide by the rule of law. This bodes nothing good for any of us or our nation.
July, there's at least some sort of logic to your implication that "the patriotic men and women in our military services stand up . . . . We need strength from the inside of our government to literally stomp out this infestation of Evil."
Your sentiment reminded me of a cool quote from a great English Whig Algernon Sidney: "Swords were given to men, that none might be Slaves, but such as know not how to use them." Patriotic people in our Armed Forces do know how to use arms.
The problem, as it were, is that the patriotic people who wrote and ratified our Constitution saw that one coming. That's why they included a particular sentence in Article III: "Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort." Americans taking up arms against the United States is treason.
Coincidentally, Algernon Sidney, himself, was executed for treason for purportedly plotting against a tyrannical king. The evidence against him included a book he had written (but not even published) objecting to the evils of an absolute monarch. Before his execution, Sidney indicted his accusers: "We live in an age that makes truth pass for treason." Sidney was revered by the generations who founded America, and Sidney's book, Discourses Concerning Government, was called the textbook of the American Revolution.
The patriotic people who wrote and ratified our Constitution had a safer, saner, more democratic idea: the First Amendment expressly secured the freedom of speech and press and right to assemble (freedom of association). The First Amendment was designed to help Americans see how to secure their rights. The founders of America and framers of our Constitution put a different spin on Sidney's words about swords, essentially, "Words were given to men, that none might be Slaves, but such as know not how to use them."
Bill, are you an agent provocateur or just a gun dealer hoping to profit from bad choices? I've seen you repeatedly call for a resort to arms, and I cannot understand how anyone could do that in good faith, especially after the striking example of Jan. 6.
Bill is a loose cannon. He is all over the place. He'll be one thing in one post and something else in the next- or even, as in this one, two things at once. Lots of inconsistencies- so many I don't know which of his statements to trust (if any). I don't know if he is an agent or an accidental provocateur. He seems to be trying to develop a persona that people will see as influential. That could be ego. And probably is.
I think arming is dangerous but if you are licensed to carry there are times when i think it might be wise to do so! Not because i believe guns are the way to solve problems but because i distrust the violence level of Trumps Brown shirts of ICE!
Judy, I think Trump's well-armed, flack-vested, Brown shirts of ICE would love an excuse to shoot "in self-defense". Masked and without badge ID, they'd probably get away with it. Be careful out there.
Judy, I'm not following you. How will carrying a gun protect anyone from "the violence level of Trump's Brown shirts of ICE"? Who would it protect? An immigrant?
The thought of arming ourselves is in the back of many citizens minds right now. My hope is that it won't pass the point of no return. It would cause this nation to shut down. Let's give the peacemakers the room they require. It's difficult at times but we're still working towards a system that's sane. I do understand your concern Bill.
I have a shirt that says, "I love my country, it's the government I hate." It was from the W era. I miss thinking W was the worst thing that could happen.
See shit for brains, in this country no one commits a felony until a jury decides they did. Want me to write that slower for you shit for brains? Try not to move your lips.
Think about how stupid your argument is. Not even Joyce is disputing the facts. Her argument is that the judge deserves discretion. In other words she is above the law. NO.
Stepping in it again to defend a illegal woman beater.
Think about how stupid you are period shit for brains. What facts asshole? The government's facts shit for brains? Still having a hard time with English comprehension shit for brains. Probably need a new translation app. Get paid well to be stupid do you? Laughable as always. Know the difference between being charged for domestic abuse and convicted of it shit for brains? Of course you don't because you're a stupid little troll. And by the way asshole what would a "legal" woman beater be. Must be one since you think there's an "illegal" one. LOL.
It's certainly fair not to want to support criminal misconduct by the occupant of the White House and his sycophants. But we should be very circumspect about supporting a judge whose own argument is that she is entitled (merely because she is a judge) to commit federal crimes. As I addressed in my longer comment (below, not in this thread) regarding this issue, this judge's arguments are dangerously anti-constitutional. I cannot see how anybody would speak up in support of this judge after she argued what she did (essentially stating her judicial opinion that our Constitution is irrelevant to all state judges for two absurdly frivolous reasons).
One of the reasons we all should despise the SCOTUS justices who contended that Trump had immunity when he committed federal crimes is that there is not even a scintilla of support for such immunity in our Constitution or anything anyone wrote about the accountability of public officials (that I've ever seen) in the late 1700's. Another reason we should despise those SCOTUS justices is that this mess--what we're seeing Trump and his sycophants do--is what you get when people in power think they are entitled to commit crimes. Telling judges they have the same power to commit crimes (same immunity from prosecution) won't make any of us any safer or make this nation's (or any state's) government any saner.
How is allowing the defendant exit through a juror’s door which is not uncommon, committing a “federal crime?”
You have to remember Bondi is Trump’s puppet. She will do whatever he wants even if it is unethical or perhaps criminal. That’s why he wanted her as AG. She would be his personal attorney - exactly opposite of what an AG should be. Pam Bondi is not smart.
I didn't even purport to address whether Judge Dugan's conduct was criminal. Neither did Judge Dugan. Judge Dugan claimed to have immunity from prosecution for committing federal crimes. That frivolous and very dangerous claim is what I'm criticizing. What Bondi did isn't relevant to Judge Dugan's claim that judges are entitled to commit crimes just because they're judges.
At a trial, generally, a jury (of our peers) decides guilt. Judge Dugan is trying to rob the jury (citizens) of the power to decide (just like Trump and the SCOTUS majority did). Judge Dugan--like Trump and his SCOTUS enablers--seek to defeat some of the most crucial protections for Americans in state and federal constitutions--a public trial at which an impartial jury decides guilt based on evidence.
Our Constitution (Article I) twice emphasized that no government can create any "title of nobility." But Trump, his SCOTUS enablers, and now Judge Dugan, essentially insist that "president" (and now "judge") is a title of nobility that puts certain people above the law. This is not an insignificant issue.
Marlo, again, you're talking about something entirely different from what I'm discussing. I'm not discussing what Judge Dugan did in her courtroom. I'm discussing only her own motion to dismiss the criminal prosecution that she's currently facing.
But Judge Dugan's argument that she cannot be prosecuted for crimes she commits in her courtroom using her official powers gives us very good reason to doubt her judgment and integrity. Maybe she did commit a crime because she thought that judges were entitled to commit crimes in their courtrooms.
Actually she is using Trumps own arguments against him! A wise choice as it never was about why she acted as she did but spite because she played by the rules not allowing ICE to illegally enter her courtroom!
A judge (or lawyer) who would write such anti-constitutional arguments should be despised, not defended. Those arguments are so frivolous as to be absurd. There's nothing wise about Judge Dugan's motion to dismiss her criminal prosecution. It's quite bad enough that too many judges actually think they're above the law (including our Constitution). It's just plain dumb to put such sentiments into writing.
Of course I read it! You might want to re-read what Professor Vance highlighted about what Judge Dugan wrote. Like Trump, Judge Dugan did not argue the conduct at issue wasn’t criminal. Like Trump (and literally even citing Trump’s case), Judge Dugan argued she had immunity from prosecution—for committing a federal crime.
From Professor Vance's post:
Judge Dugan's motion begins, “This is no ordinary criminal case, and Dugan is no ordinary criminal defendant.” Judge Dugan's "motion to dismiss is based on immunity." "That immunity, Dugan’s lawyers advise the court" is "a bar to prosecution (you may remember this argument from the Trump cases: if immunity is to mean anything, it must immediately bar prosecution." "Judge Dugan took" the position that her conduct consisted of "judicial acts for which she has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution."
Judge Dugan's arguments are so frivolous that they actually were disposed of during Trump's case. The DOJ attorneys, the D.C. Circuit, and at least one SCOTUS justice cited a case (Ex parte Virginia, 100 U.S. 339 (1880)) in which a state judge was criminally prosecuted precisely for his official acts as a judge. See The Nexus between Black-Collar Crime and Presidential Crime (Part III) (https://blackcollarcrime.substack.com/p/the-nexus-between-black-collar-crime-22f).
How she runs her courtroom is the issue. And she does actually have that power. She did not break any laws, she did not "hide" the defendent (who has not been found guilty of anything}. ICE interrupted a preliminary hearing in the judge's courtroom. She has the right to maintain order in her courtroom. It is not unusual for people to be allowed to exit the courtroom in this manner. The hall led directly into the main hall where the ICE agents were. The ICE agents made the decision to allow the defendent to go down the public elevators before attempting arrest. The judge had nothing to do with that. Do you have problems reading and understanding legal documents, or are you reading them with preconceptions shaping what you think they say? Sounds like the latter, because you are making assumptions of guilt based on a failure of even a basic understanding of how the law works.
With perfect timing, on Friday (May 15) in oral argument in Trump v. CASA, Inc. Justice Alito provided his own confirmation of the monarchical mentality of too many judges. He acknowledged (confessed) that "all Article III judges are vulnerable to an occupational disease, which is the disease of thinking that I am right and I can do whatever I want." Then, he acknowledged "the trial judge sitting in the trial judge's courtroom [thinks he or she] is the monarch of that --of that realm."
It might help you to know why it's a huge constitutional issue for any judge to give any other public servant (the president or any judge) immunity from prosecution. Doing so directly and irrefutably violates multiple provisions of our Constitution.
Article III emphasized that "The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed." Amendment VI was even more specific and emphatic: "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed."
Note the emphasis was not only on a jury deciding guilt, but even on the jury being from the particular place where the crime was alleged to have been committed. That language emphasizes that juries don't merely protect the accused. They protect all of us. This goes all the way back to the Declaration of Independence and the reasons that people fought and died in the Revolutionary War.
The Declaration is emphatic about certain due process of law for which people were fighting. The British were using various tactics to protect abusive officials in the colonies from accountability to the American people. Some of these tactics were identified in the Declaration, including using "mock Trial" for "protecting" British officials in America "from Punishment" and "depriving us in many Cases, of the Benefits of Trial by Jury." The British also decreed that some trials would be held in Britain regarding crimes allegedly committed in the colonies.
So our Constitution emphasizes that Congress has the power to make all laws regarding criminal conduct and every person accused of a crime will be judged by a jury of their peers from the area where the crime was alleged to have been committed. That applies to public officials accused of criminally abusing or usurping powers. It applies to all judges and all presidents.
Annie everything you and Marlo wrote is about whether Judge Dugan committed a crime. That is for a jury to decide.
Everything I wrote was about Judge Dugan's absurdly unconstitutional claim that no jury gets to decide her guilt because she is immune from any prosecution for committing any crime of which she was accused.
How Judge Dugan runs her courtroom is entirely irrelevant to her motion to dismiss. I wrote to expose the absurdity of Judge Dugan's motion to dismiss her prosecution because she thinks judges are entitled to commit federal crimes (immune from prosecution). Her argument was absurd and obscene when Trump asserted it. It was even more absurd and obscene when SCOTUS justices asserted it for Trump. It is still more absurd and obscene when a state judge asserts it for all judges.
They arrested a high school student for failing to use her turn signal. She had been brought to this country as a 4-year-old. For almost her entire life the US has been her home. She was undocumented. They shackled her and sent her to ab ICE detention center three hours from where she lived.
Upon review the police noted that she had not, in fact, failed to use her turn signal. Rather, a person in a car that was similar to hers was the one who failed to use a turn signal.
These people are beyond cruel. They are sadists. You cannot hate these people--Noem, Holman, Trump, the entire lot of them- enough.
I would add that Noem and Trump should have their heads shaved, be stripped of all makeup and Noem would lose her false eyelashes. None of them deserve any pity or compassion.
i'm confused . . . Item A under Count 2 says Dugan "falsely" claimed they needed a judicial warrant. They *do* need a judicial warrant, so there's nothing false about Judge Dugan's assertion that they needed a judicial warrant.
It was an administrative warrant but the core issue is the entire process of this kind of arrest for which apparently the chief judge was developing a policy at the time.
What legal justification. You can bend any legal or illegal actions you want. If you try to rationalize you lose. It’s authoritarianism at work. No rational is needed.
Use this spreadsheet to call/email/write any of our representatives as often as possible. Not just your own state reps, reach out to those in other states. Be as loud as you can and share this. Use your voice and make some “good trouble.”
Thanks, Joyce. Really sad. They should put their energy into putting Medicaid back together so children and families can get medical treatment and food. This indictment is a disgrace. Just going after people Trump's favorite thing to do.
JUDGE DUGAN'S LIKELY ACTUAL MOTIVATION -- SUPPORTED BY FEDERAL LAW: Joyce discusses a state judge's power over her courtroom. There's a more particular aspect of the need for such control, in connection with seizing immigrants, which certainly was the reason for Judge Dugan's anger at federal agents. (How revealing of the Trump regime's attitude toward women that, in explaining the arrest, the agents referred to her anger. So unladylike to display anger! That's only for white men.).
Getting back to her motivation: Any judge would be disturbed at federal agents roaming the halls of her courthouse and arresting undocumented immigrants there. If immigrants can routinely be seized at courthouses for deportation, immigrants will be reluctant to appear as witnesses or complainants in criminal or civil matters. ICE's practices therefore undermine the administration of justice.
Interestingly, Federal law recognizes the public interest in immigrants safely participating in legal proceedings because we don’t want criminals to feel they can prey on the undocumented with impunity.
The law therefore provides for U Nonimmigrant visas to be granted to undocumented immigrants who are the victims of serious crimes if they assist in the crimes’ investigation or prosecution.
I had never imagined that the Justice Department would have arrested a sitting judge who was performing her judicial responsibility.
I had never imagined that Bondi, a shameless Trump sycophant, would ever be appointed Attorney General.
I had never imagined, that Patel, with such a scurrilous record, would be appointed to head the ‘weaponizing’ FBI.
I had never imagined that Ed Martin, the outrageously weaponizing interim DC. Federal attorney, after being blackballed by the Senate, would be named weaponizing czar at the Justice Department.
I had never imagined that Trump, in his revenge mode, would openly blackmail major legal firms and lawyers as well as a multitude of universities, research institutes, and others.
I CAN IMAGINE THAT THE SUPREME COURT, WITH ROBERTS AND BARRETT SLIDING OVER TO 5=4 DECISIONS REGARDING CONSTITUTIONAL CHECKS AND BALANCES, MIGHT SHOVE A JUDICIAL PETARD UP ‘KING’ DONALD’S BUTT
Americans deserve MUCH better than this hope, however!!!
But we need to insist, and persist, and be forceful in righteous sentiments. -And particularly, in steadily escalating resistance until rule of law for ALL is restored. This labor is upon us all, each one.
We may be seeing anew why overweight nations collapse - to paraphrase Edward Gibbon. (“But the decline of Rome was the natural and inevitable effect of immoderate greatness. Prosperity ripened the principle of decay; the causes of destruction multiplied with extent; and, as soon as time or accident removed the artificial supports, the stupendous fabric yielded to the pressure of its own weight. The story of its ruin is simple and obvious; and, instead of inquiring why the Roman Empire was destroyed, we should rather be surprised that it subsisted so long. The emperors [congress in our case?], anxious for their personal safety [political and physical] and the public peace, were reduced to the base expedient of corrupting the discipline which rendered them alike formidable to their sovereign and to the enemy.” -Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 1776, ch 38.)
(Best quote from my college education c. 50 years ago…😉. Suspect many of the founding fathers knew this tome by 1789!)
Any little thing you do, to help the cause, write a postcard to someone in the state where they have an election, call your elected representative, any of that is helpful so don’t feel like your helpless. That all counts.
Many feel as helpless as you do, Beverly. It’s because we are all strongly sensing the fear but most are not feeling the pain yet. It’s like we’ve all heard the rumors of what may be coming but for so many it hasn’t hit. When we feel the violation directly in our own homes and families we will all rise and let out a ROAR that will be felt across the world. Their side lacks one very necessary ingredient — good will toward all. They are going to crash and burn.
I think all hope is lost. He has an army and legal and intelligence agencies and he has data data data,… Hitler was only defeated by another military….who’s going to come save us?
Even if drumpf could read....he could never grasp or feel this gentle man's words...or the heart from which the Pope speaks. Drumpf gazes into a mirror...but no image stares back...none! Hollow...and without soul....an ageing cypher...knowing down deep he stands.alone...friendless...truly unloved, and abhorred worldwide.
When I was an 8th grader, we had a school trip to the Nebraska State Penitentiary. Charles Starkweather (he killed eleven people) was an inmate @ the time. The prison guard that gave us the tour, gave us a copy of a poem. The man in the mirror, by Dale Wimbrow, it is about self-reflection. All these after I think that is one of the best gifts anyone has given me. So many people go through life hurting others without a second thought, right now we are surrendered by a lot of them. I am thankful that I have my faith because right now I need it. Don't get me wrong I am a fighter, and I will continue to make phone calls, protest, vote, and never give up!!:)
At almost 91, Zeke...I remember Charlie Starkweather as well.
Amazing story...how you, so very young, were so profoundly impacted .at once by that prison visit...a ' small gift on.a piece of paper.from someone you would never see again, ..a poem that would forevermore. guide your pathways in life..a life you may take justifiable pride in.My parents were immigrants from Wales in the early 1900's...and the Welsh can be an.emotional. lot. Somehow.I had never read Mr Wimbrow's. prophetic words. I wept. Would that others the world over would.read..take to heart the lessons of.life.you have so beautifully - honorably embraced.... I can hear my dear father reaching out to.you with his Welsh.version.of highest.praise.." there's.a good.old MAN.you are, Zeke!🙏
Thank you, Lynn, I am 81 years old and Zeke was my beloved German Shepard. I am Margaret and my ancestors came from Spain, via Portugal, Canary Islands to what is now United States & Mexico.
I thought it was a scary place to go when I was young. Yes, a small gift of a few words that have served me well for a lifetime. My father thought @ the time that it was the smartest trip a teacher could take us on:) It would have been my pleasure to have met your father. You made my day! May you have a peaceful weekend.
Lynn, he believes that everyone is alone and friendless when it comes right down to it. He believes the great equalizer is money and power. That real life court stint scared him to death. Now his every move is geared as payback for what “they” did to him and to become so incredibly wealthy that he’ll never have to be in a position like that again. His every move.
I feel he might truly savor the feelings that " everyone is alone and friendless when it comes right down to it."Perhaps you might just be attributing to him a humanity he does not ...nor has ever had...to " have feelings"., the simple capacity to " think...feel" about anyone...any thing" in his existence but himself. To borrow from a dear friend..." This is one deviant sick puppy!"
Canines of the Universe...forgive me, please! He worships at the feet of his own Bael. Never in his wretched life would he read nor comprehend the words of the new Pope....the goodness & charity the new Americans born words portend for the future. Am not a Catholic...but could visualize how Leo XIV will.give drumpf a lovely case of rage ...and alluded to in my response to Zeke...an.overwhelming reason to avoid mirrors...lest they be plated in
Because his reality is both projected and also made up. It’s projection that he believes people don’t love — that they want something. Because he doesn’t love. With him it’s all transactional. “Give me what I want and I won’t hurt you.”
Agree he would like..take some modicum of personal deviant comfort in the erroneous belief others in this world don't have the capacity to love one another...; also agree that he feels.delusionally paranoid ( imo) that everyone " wants " something " from his majesty the donold. If you view him today as a declining puppet...strings manipulated.by the Miller's et al surrounding him...
it may signal a latent bit of sanity from his lizard brain...of course they WANT something from him...nothing new here. " They" have wanted "...something"from him since he minced down the golden elevator...inflates his ego & his own perception of himself. ..as KING
( ALL.CAPS , of course) donold, serfs at his feet, begging piteously for favors...for scraps from his golden table.
Sorry to .wax on,...Susan...but this truly brings out my rage..
Frys.my gizzard. Apologize to.one and all for my rant at your expense.
Leo sees God in the smile of a woman who lost her son. God? With such a broad definition, everything becomes a sign of God's presence. I see only a fine example of the human condition--a woman who is willing to put aside her pain and anguish to help others in need. God is a human construct. I guess we can call it whatever we like and never be wrong.
We have to save ourselves! Protest, write letters , post comments , share pointed humor! Publicly stand up for those who speak out! Make yourself heard! My family from me ( 80) to my grandson(12) join local protests! It makes me feel less helpless! It makes us all feel stronger! It teaches kids their voice matters! Others gain strength from this!!
Claudia, Hitler was defeated first by his excesses, which created weaknesses that other nations could attack. The sad thing about is that the German business interests supported Hitler, thinking they would benefit, providing the resources and time for Hitler to do so much damage. They could have stopped him, but didn't. We are not in the position Germany and Europe was in during WW2.
We don't have to wait. Our resistance is active right now, and Trump's power is wavering. We ARE having an effect on Trump & Co. But each of us must act in whatever way we can. There are many activist groups out there, and there are many ways that you can join in. Each act counts, no matter how small. They add up. And WE add up. The best antidote to feeling paralyzed is doing something. Join indivisible.org or moveon.org or markersfordemocracy.org. Or just find a demonstration near you if you can. Being among others who are standing up for democracy is freeing, and releases us to act, because we are no longer alone.
It is beyond understanding - certainly beyond rationality - why Trumpers insist on blunt force. Blunt force ignoring the Constitution, blunt force insulting the courts, blunt force anything when at the same time, pretending to honor the rule of law.
David...sometimes I wonder if these " incidences" ...egregious as they are....aren't used as a deflection tactic to shift attention away from some other dastardly.plan being hatched ???
Herr miller et al.have such frightening.devious.minds...they strike out in such unbelievably horrid ways...sometimes takes your breath away... just a thought...
I don’t believe they hate any groups per se. They have more important, self-serving fish to fry. They love control. Attacking certain groups is a way to divide the population in order to dominate them, so they use ancient prejudices and hatred as a wedge.
How about diverting attention from the dire need to slow or reverse the destruction of our home planet. They want to lock down their control over the population BEFORE they open the big can of worms and remind us again of their intention to ravage the public’s majestic land for its minerals and it’s oil.
I'm betting on Judge Dugan's high-powered defense team to make mockery of this flimsy and petty charge. This case will be tossed well before a jury is even empaneled.
I appreciate the poetry of the judicial immunity to prosecution argument, and hope it stands until T's is overturned, but I hope that BOTH are re-set to that once and future day in America where NO person is above the law!!!
In each courthouse, whether it's a state charge or federal charge, the judges, their administrative staff, and their law enforcement staff are EXTREMELY careful to minimize risk to any victims, victims' friends and/or family, and any victim advocates that might be involved in the case when a DV enhancer is part of the case. I know how this happens. My ex-husband threatened me and threatened the GAL for the kids. After that, I had to be called when I arrived at the courthouse and a Sheriff Deputy came down to escort me in. The same thing was done for the GAL. I had seen in early reports that there mat have multiple members of the victim's family in the gallery. It would explain why she sent him out another door.
In the Upside Down, MAAGA says that she is indicted because “no one is above the law,” and Johnson justified her indictment because “she interfered with official business.” The freed and pardoned January 6 felons are scratching their heads and thanking their lucky stars.
I hate our current administration. I love my country, but we, because of the criminals in charge, are in a mess.
"Patriotism means loving your country always, and the government when it deserves it." - Mark Twain
agree 💯
It’s time to arm. I say that with a little hesitation because violence only begets violence. But it’s already taking place. We have now become an authoritarian state. When do some democratic states empower their state guards to defend their states?
I agree that governors can use their national guard troops to protect their states, but we as individual citizens should not arm ourselves in a vigilante fashion, especially in order to trigger a violent reaction. That will lead to needless injuries & deaths. Rather than vigilantism, we need to proceed with additional peaceful protests, lobbying, getting legal & legislative support. As MLK, Jr. advocated, peaceful protest is powerful.
When will the patriotic men and women in our military services stand up and say that they do not and will not serve a king, ICE is most likely comprised of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers. Criminals just like their leader. We need strength from the inside of our government to literally stomp out this infestation of Evil.
I, too, am afraid that most of those claiming to be ICE agents, if they are even legitimate, are those who in no way serve the Constitution or abide by the rule of law. This bodes nothing good for any of us or our nation.
July, there's at least some sort of logic to your implication that "the patriotic men and women in our military services stand up . . . . We need strength from the inside of our government to literally stomp out this infestation of Evil."
Your sentiment reminded me of a cool quote from a great English Whig Algernon Sidney: "Swords were given to men, that none might be Slaves, but such as know not how to use them." Patriotic people in our Armed Forces do know how to use arms.
The problem, as it were, is that the patriotic people who wrote and ratified our Constitution saw that one coming. That's why they included a particular sentence in Article III: "Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort." Americans taking up arms against the United States is treason.
Coincidentally, Algernon Sidney, himself, was executed for treason for purportedly plotting against a tyrannical king. The evidence against him included a book he had written (but not even published) objecting to the evils of an absolute monarch. Before his execution, Sidney indicted his accusers: "We live in an age that makes truth pass for treason." Sidney was revered by the generations who founded America, and Sidney's book, Discourses Concerning Government, was called the textbook of the American Revolution.
The patriotic people who wrote and ratified our Constitution had a safer, saner, more democratic idea: the First Amendment expressly secured the freedom of speech and press and right to assemble (freedom of association). The First Amendment was designed to help Americans see how to secure their rights. The founders of America and framers of our Constitution put a different spin on Sidney's words about swords, essentially, "Words were given to men, that none might be Slaves, but such as know not how to use them."
Bill, are you an agent provocateur or just a gun dealer hoping to profit from bad choices? I've seen you repeatedly call for a resort to arms, and I cannot understand how anyone could do that in good faith, especially after the striking example of Jan. 6.
Bill is a loose cannon. He is all over the place. He'll be one thing in one post and something else in the next- or even, as in this one, two things at once. Lots of inconsistencies- so many I don't know which of his statements to trust (if any). I don't know if he is an agent or an accidental provocateur. He seems to be trying to develop a persona that people will see as influential. That could be ego. And probably is.
Trump would love it. It'd be his big beautiful trigger for the Insurrectionist Act.
I think arming is dangerous but if you are licensed to carry there are times when i think it might be wise to do so! Not because i believe guns are the way to solve problems but because i distrust the violence level of Trumps Brown shirts of ICE!
Judy, I think Trump's well-armed, flack-vested, Brown shirts of ICE would love an excuse to shoot "in self-defense". Masked and without badge ID, they'd probably get away with it. Be careful out there.
Judy, I'm not following you. How will carrying a gun protect anyone from "the violence level of Trump's Brown shirts of ICE"? Who would it protect? An immigrant?
The thought of arming ourselves is in the back of many citizens minds right now. My hope is that it won't pass the point of no return. It would cause this nation to shut down. Let's give the peacemakers the room they require. It's difficult at times but we're still working towards a system that's sane. I do understand your concern Bill.
Bondi & Miller should be disbarred, Trump, JD Vance, Rubio & Johnson, impeached, Hegseth and everyone associated with Signal gate behind bars.
I have a shirt that says, "I love my country, it's the government I hate." It was from the W era. I miss thinking W was the worst thing that could happen.
You HATE justice? A judge committed a felony to FREE an illegal who beat a woman and man almost to death.
You hate AMerica?
Please reference your source of information, Bill. I mean that!
ICE agents were waiting in the hallway. Poised to get their guy. He had to walk that way to exit the building.
They were going to be successful.
ICE is out of control. The Rule of Law applies.
See shit for brains, in this country no one commits a felony until a jury decides they did. Want me to write that slower for you shit for brains? Try not to move your lips.
Think about how stupid your argument is. Not even Joyce is disputing the facts. Her argument is that the judge deserves discretion. In other words she is above the law. NO.
Stepping in it again to defend a illegal woman beater.
Think about how stupid you are period shit for brains. What facts asshole? The government's facts shit for brains? Still having a hard time with English comprehension shit for brains. Probably need a new translation app. Get paid well to be stupid do you? Laughable as always. Know the difference between being charged for domestic abuse and convicted of it shit for brains? Of course you don't because you're a stupid little troll. And by the way asshole what would a "legal" woman beater be. Must be one since you think there's an "illegal" one. LOL.
.
How much are you being paid to be a troll James?
It's certainly fair not to want to support criminal misconduct by the occupant of the White House and his sycophants. But we should be very circumspect about supporting a judge whose own argument is that she is entitled (merely because she is a judge) to commit federal crimes. As I addressed in my longer comment (below, not in this thread) regarding this issue, this judge's arguments are dangerously anti-constitutional. I cannot see how anybody would speak up in support of this judge after she argued what she did (essentially stating her judicial opinion that our Constitution is irrelevant to all state judges for two absurdly frivolous reasons).
One of the reasons we all should despise the SCOTUS justices who contended that Trump had immunity when he committed federal crimes is that there is not even a scintilla of support for such immunity in our Constitution or anything anyone wrote about the accountability of public officials (that I've ever seen) in the late 1700's. Another reason we should despise those SCOTUS justices is that this mess--what we're seeing Trump and his sycophants do--is what you get when people in power think they are entitled to commit crimes. Telling judges they have the same power to commit crimes (same immunity from prosecution) won't make any of us any safer or make this nation's (or any state's) government any saner.
How is allowing the defendant exit through a juror’s door which is not uncommon, committing a “federal crime?”
You have to remember Bondi is Trump’s puppet. She will do whatever he wants even if it is unethical or perhaps criminal. That’s why he wanted her as AG. She would be his personal attorney - exactly opposite of what an AG should be. Pam Bondi is not smart.
I didn't even purport to address whether Judge Dugan's conduct was criminal. Neither did Judge Dugan. Judge Dugan claimed to have immunity from prosecution for committing federal crimes. That frivolous and very dangerous claim is what I'm criticizing. What Bondi did isn't relevant to Judge Dugan's claim that judges are entitled to commit crimes just because they're judges.
At a trial, generally, a jury (of our peers) decides guilt. Judge Dugan is trying to rob the jury (citizens) of the power to decide (just like Trump and the SCOTUS majority did). Judge Dugan--like Trump and his SCOTUS enablers--seek to defeat some of the most crucial protections for Americans in state and federal constitutions--a public trial at which an impartial jury decides guilt based on evidence.
Our Constitution (Article I) twice emphasized that no government can create any "title of nobility." But Trump, his SCOTUS enablers, and now Judge Dugan, essentially insist that "president" (and now "judge") is a title of nobility that puts certain people above the law. This is not an insignificant issue.
No, Judge Dugan did NOT “rob the jury if the power to decide,” she POSTPONED the hearing.
You have to understand ICE is wisking immigrants away without due process. Was a jury already assembled? I think not.
Marlo, again, you're talking about something entirely different from what I'm discussing. I'm not discussing what Judge Dugan did in her courtroom. I'm discussing only her own motion to dismiss the criminal prosecution that she's currently facing.
But Judge Dugan's argument that she cannot be prosecuted for crimes she commits in her courtroom using her official powers gives us very good reason to doubt her judgment and integrity. Maybe she did commit a crime because she thought that judges were entitled to commit crimes in their courtrooms.
You are not on the jury.
Actually she is using Trumps own arguments against him! A wise choice as it never was about why she acted as she did but spite because she played by the rules not allowing ICE to illegally enter her courtroom!
A judge (or lawyer) who would write such anti-constitutional arguments should be despised, not defended. Those arguments are so frivolous as to be absurd. There's nothing wise about Judge Dugan's motion to dismiss her criminal prosecution. It's quite bad enough that too many judges actually think they're above the law (including our Constitution). It's just plain dumb to put such sentiments into writing.
Did you read Vance's Substack??? Seems like it's questionable that what she did was a "crime...." How do you come up with that?
Of course I read it! You might want to re-read what Professor Vance highlighted about what Judge Dugan wrote. Like Trump, Judge Dugan did not argue the conduct at issue wasn’t criminal. Like Trump (and literally even citing Trump’s case), Judge Dugan argued she had immunity from prosecution—for committing a federal crime.
From Professor Vance's post:
Judge Dugan's motion begins, “This is no ordinary criminal case, and Dugan is no ordinary criminal defendant.” Judge Dugan's "motion to dismiss is based on immunity." "That immunity, Dugan’s lawyers advise the court" is "a bar to prosecution (you may remember this argument from the Trump cases: if immunity is to mean anything, it must immediately bar prosecution." "Judge Dugan took" the position that her conduct consisted of "judicial acts for which she has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution."
Judge Dugan's arguments are so frivolous that they actually were disposed of during Trump's case. The DOJ attorneys, the D.C. Circuit, and at least one SCOTUS justice cited a case (Ex parte Virginia, 100 U.S. 339 (1880)) in which a state judge was criminally prosecuted precisely for his official acts as a judge. See The Nexus between Black-Collar Crime and Presidential Crime (Part III) (https://blackcollarcrime.substack.com/p/the-nexus-between-black-collar-crime-22f).
How she runs her courtroom is the issue. And she does actually have that power. She did not break any laws, she did not "hide" the defendent (who has not been found guilty of anything}. ICE interrupted a preliminary hearing in the judge's courtroom. She has the right to maintain order in her courtroom. It is not unusual for people to be allowed to exit the courtroom in this manner. The hall led directly into the main hall where the ICE agents were. The ICE agents made the decision to allow the defendent to go down the public elevators before attempting arrest. The judge had nothing to do with that. Do you have problems reading and understanding legal documents, or are you reading them with preconceptions shaping what you think they say? Sounds like the latter, because you are making assumptions of guilt based on a failure of even a basic understanding of how the law works.
With perfect timing, on Friday (May 15) in oral argument in Trump v. CASA, Inc. Justice Alito provided his own confirmation of the monarchical mentality of too many judges. He acknowledged (confessed) that "all Article III judges are vulnerable to an occupational disease, which is the disease of thinking that I am right and I can do whatever I want." Then, he acknowledged "the trial judge sitting in the trial judge's courtroom [thinks he or she] is the monarch of that --of that realm."
It might help you to know why it's a huge constitutional issue for any judge to give any other public servant (the president or any judge) immunity from prosecution. Doing so directly and irrefutably violates multiple provisions of our Constitution.
Article III emphasized that "The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed." Amendment VI was even more specific and emphatic: "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed."
Note the emphasis was not only on a jury deciding guilt, but even on the jury being from the particular place where the crime was alleged to have been committed. That language emphasizes that juries don't merely protect the accused. They protect all of us. This goes all the way back to the Declaration of Independence and the reasons that people fought and died in the Revolutionary War.
The Declaration is emphatic about certain due process of law for which people were fighting. The British were using various tactics to protect abusive officials in the colonies from accountability to the American people. Some of these tactics were identified in the Declaration, including using "mock Trial" for "protecting" British officials in America "from Punishment" and "depriving us in many Cases, of the Benefits of Trial by Jury." The British also decreed that some trials would be held in Britain regarding crimes allegedly committed in the colonies.
So our Constitution emphasizes that Congress has the power to make all laws regarding criminal conduct and every person accused of a crime will be judged by a jury of their peers from the area where the crime was alleged to have been committed. That applies to public officials accused of criminally abusing or usurping powers. It applies to all judges and all presidents.
Annie everything you and Marlo wrote is about whether Judge Dugan committed a crime. That is for a jury to decide.
Everything I wrote was about Judge Dugan's absurdly unconstitutional claim that no jury gets to decide her guilt because she is immune from any prosecution for committing any crime of which she was accused.
How Judge Dugan runs her courtroom is entirely irrelevant to her motion to dismiss. I wrote to expose the absurdity of Judge Dugan's motion to dismiss her prosecution because she thinks judges are entitled to commit federal crimes (immune from prosecution). Her argument was absurd and obscene when Trump asserted it. It was even more absurd and obscene when SCOTUS justices asserted it for Trump. It is still more absurd and obscene when a state judge asserts it for all judges.
They arrested a high school student for failing to use her turn signal. She had been brought to this country as a 4-year-old. For almost her entire life the US has been her home. She was undocumented. They shackled her and sent her to ab ICE detention center three hours from where she lived.
Upon review the police noted that she had not, in fact, failed to use her turn signal. Rather, a person in a car that was similar to hers was the one who failed to use a turn signal.
These people are beyond cruel. They are sadists. You cannot hate these people--Noem, Holman, Trump, the entire lot of them- enough.
Each and every one of them deserves life without parole in a windowless 8x10 cell on the fourth sub-basement of the Florence SuperMax.
I would add that Noem and Trump should have their heads shaved, be stripped of all makeup and Noem would lose her false eyelashes. None of them deserve any pity or compassion.
Bondi as well
But you're conjuring images that I'd rather not visualize.
And her cheek filler - which all the women in Trumpworld seem to have -- would slowly sink down her face. And the lip plumper would melt away too.
Meow 😸
We must use moral language to measure these actions. They are indisputably evil.
They were stalking her waiting for an opportunity to arrest her.
Satanic is more like it!
i'm confused . . . Item A under Count 2 says Dugan "falsely" claimed they needed a judicial warrant. They *do* need a judicial warrant, so there's nothing false about Judge Dugan's assertion that they needed a judicial warrant.
I think they'll argue they had a deportation order from an administrative law judge, but just guessing on that one until we see more.
It was an administrative warrant but the core issue is the entire process of this kind of arrest for which apparently the chief judge was developing a policy at the time.
Hmmmmm how is it fair or legal? to charge someone when the policy isn't even developed?
We're talking about the Demento administration here. "Fair" and "legal" are not considerations going in.
Well yeah . . . but in this legal context, I'd like to hear their "legal" justification. But yeah point taken!
What legal justification. You can bend any legal or illegal actions you want. If you try to rationalize you lose. It’s authoritarianism at work. No rational is needed.
Of course if this happened during the Biden administration, the screams of ‘Lawfare’ from the Republicans would be volcanic.
True. Hasn't theGOP always screamed that they are the party of law and order?
Yup. Except now it’s Trump’s law and his orders.
Trump gets a 4 Biilion dollar plane.Wonder what "The Supremes " are getting.?
We already know what Alito and Thomas are getting.
Use this spreadsheet to call/email/write any of our representatives as often as possible. Not just your own state reps, reach out to those in other states. Be as loud as you can and share this. Use your voice and make some “good trouble.”
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit
Thanks, Joyce. Really sad. They should put their energy into putting Medicaid back together so children and families can get medical treatment and food. This indictment is a disgrace. Just going after people Trump's favorite thing to do.
JUDGE DUGAN'S LIKELY ACTUAL MOTIVATION -- SUPPORTED BY FEDERAL LAW: Joyce discusses a state judge's power over her courtroom. There's a more particular aspect of the need for such control, in connection with seizing immigrants, which certainly was the reason for Judge Dugan's anger at federal agents. (How revealing of the Trump regime's attitude toward women that, in explaining the arrest, the agents referred to her anger. So unladylike to display anger! That's only for white men.).
Getting back to her motivation: Any judge would be disturbed at federal agents roaming the halls of her courthouse and arresting undocumented immigrants there. If immigrants can routinely be seized at courthouses for deportation, immigrants will be reluctant to appear as witnesses or complainants in criminal or civil matters. ICE's practices therefore undermine the administration of justice.
Interestingly, Federal law recognizes the public interest in immigrants safely participating in legal proceedings because we don’t want criminals to feel they can prey on the undocumented with impunity.
The law therefore provides for U Nonimmigrant visas to be granted to undocumented immigrants who are the victims of serious crimes if they assist in the crimes’ investigation or prosecution.
All good points.
How can we send support to this brave judge, following law rather than ICE?
Change.org has a petition you can sign.
THE JUSTICE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN
I had never imagined that the Justice Department would have arrested a sitting judge who was performing her judicial responsibility.
I had never imagined that Bondi, a shameless Trump sycophant, would ever be appointed Attorney General.
I had never imagined, that Patel, with such a scurrilous record, would be appointed to head the ‘weaponizing’ FBI.
I had never imagined that Ed Martin, the outrageously weaponizing interim DC. Federal attorney, after being blackballed by the Senate, would be named weaponizing czar at the Justice Department.
I had never imagined that Trump, in his revenge mode, would openly blackmail major legal firms and lawyers as well as a multitude of universities, research institutes, and others.
I CAN IMAGINE THAT THE SUPREME COURT, WITH ROBERTS AND BARRETT SLIDING OVER TO 5=4 DECISIONS REGARDING CONSTITUTIONAL CHECKS AND BALANCES, MIGHT SHOVE A JUDICIAL PETARD UP ‘KING’ DONALD’S BUTT
Americans deserve MUCH better than this hope, however!!!
But we need to insist, and persist, and be forceful in righteous sentiments. -And particularly, in steadily escalating resistance until rule of law for ALL is restored. This labor is upon us all, each one.
We may be seeing anew why overweight nations collapse - to paraphrase Edward Gibbon. (“But the decline of Rome was the natural and inevitable effect of immoderate greatness. Prosperity ripened the principle of decay; the causes of destruction multiplied with extent; and, as soon as time or accident removed the artificial supports, the stupendous fabric yielded to the pressure of its own weight. The story of its ruin is simple and obvious; and, instead of inquiring why the Roman Empire was destroyed, we should rather be surprised that it subsisted so long. The emperors [congress in our case?], anxious for their personal safety [political and physical] and the public peace, were reduced to the base expedient of corrupting the discipline which rendered them alike formidable to their sovereign and to the enemy.” -Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 1776, ch 38.)
(Best quote from my college education c. 50 years ago…😉. Suspect many of the founding fathers knew this tome by 1789!)
Mark At one time there were four rotten Roman emperors in the same year.
Hopefully the decline of ‘King’ Trump will occur far more swiftly.
Imagine memorizing Decline and Fall. Quite an accomplishment in any age!
...and this was NOT something I can claim!! But loved his writing.
Gibbon was glorious ... look him up if you haven’t had the pleasure!
(Many of ‘Churchill’s best’ can be traced to Gibbon’s writings, I was told.)
I hope so!! And , I agree… I never dreamed all this would happen. I was and am afraid of what is happening and feel helpless to do anything about it.
Any little thing you do, to help the cause, write a postcard to someone in the state where they have an election, call your elected representative, any of that is helpful so don’t feel like your helpless. That all counts.
YES
Many feel as helpless as you do, Beverly. It’s because we are all strongly sensing the fear but most are not feeling the pain yet. It’s like we’ve all heard the rumors of what may be coming but for so many it hasn’t hit. When we feel the violation directly in our own homes and families we will all rise and let out a ROAR that will be felt across the world. Their side lacks one very necessary ingredient — good will toward all. They are going to crash and burn.
I think all hope is lost. He has an army and legal and intelligence agencies and he has data data data,… Hitler was only defeated by another military….who’s going to come save us?
Pope Leo’s first homily. No matter your faith. These are words of hope , truth, inspiration. The world needs to hear these words
*Quote from Pope Leo X1V.*
" Brothers, sisters…
I speak to you, especially to those who no longer believe, no longer hope, no longer pray, because they think God has left.
To those who are fed up with scandals, with misused power, with the silence of a Church that sometimes seems more like a palace than a home.
I, too, was angry with God.
I, too, saw good people die, children suffer, grandparents cry without medicine.
And yes… there were days when I prayed and only felt an echo.
But then I discovered something:
God doesn't shout. God whispers.
And sometimes He whispers from the mud, from pain, from a grandmother who feeds you without having anything.
I don't come to offer you perfect faith.
I come to tell you that faith is a walk with stones, puddles, and unexpected hugs.
I'm not asking you to believe in everything.
I'm asking you not to close the door. Give a chance to the God who waits for you without judgment.
I'm just a priest who saw God in the smile of a woman who lost her son... and yet she cooked for others.
That changed me.
So if you're broken, if you don't believe, if you're tired of the lies...
come anyway. With your anger, your doubt, your dirty backpack.
No one here will ask you for a VIP card.
Because this Church, as long as I breathe, will be a home for the homeless, and a rest for the weary.
God doesn't need soldiers.
He needs brothers.
And you, yes, you...
are one of them."
Robert Prevost (Leo XIV)
Even if drumpf could read....he could never grasp or feel this gentle man's words...or the heart from which the Pope speaks. Drumpf gazes into a mirror...but no image stares back...none! Hollow...and without soul....an ageing cypher...knowing down deep he stands.alone...friendless...truly unloved, and abhorred worldwide.
He may never be awarded a peaceful eternal rest.
Was it all.worth it, mr. trump?
When I was an 8th grader, we had a school trip to the Nebraska State Penitentiary. Charles Starkweather (he killed eleven people) was an inmate @ the time. The prison guard that gave us the tour, gave us a copy of a poem. The man in the mirror, by Dale Wimbrow, it is about self-reflection. All these after I think that is one of the best gifts anyone has given me. So many people go through life hurting others without a second thought, right now we are surrendered by a lot of them. I am thankful that I have my faith because right now I need it. Don't get me wrong I am a fighter, and I will continue to make phone calls, protest, vote, and never give up!!:)
At almost 91, Zeke...I remember Charlie Starkweather as well.
Amazing story...how you, so very young, were so profoundly impacted .at once by that prison visit...a ' small gift on.a piece of paper.from someone you would never see again, ..a poem that would forevermore. guide your pathways in life..a life you may take justifiable pride in.My parents were immigrants from Wales in the early 1900's...and the Welsh can be an.emotional. lot. Somehow.I had never read Mr Wimbrow's. prophetic words. I wept. Would that others the world over would.read..take to heart the lessons of.life.you have so beautifully - honorably embraced.... I can hear my dear father reaching out to.you with his Welsh.version.of highest.praise.." there's.a good.old MAN.you are, Zeke!🙏
Thank you, Lynn, I am 81 years old and Zeke was my beloved German Shepard. I am Margaret and my ancestors came from Spain, via Portugal, Canary Islands to what is now United States & Mexico.
I thought it was a scary place to go when I was young. Yes, a small gift of a few words that have served me well for a lifetime. My father thought @ the time that it was the smartest trip a teacher could take us on:) It would have been my pleasure to have met your father. You made my day! May you have a peaceful weekend.
Lynn, he believes that everyone is alone and friendless when it comes right down to it. He believes the great equalizer is money and power. That real life court stint scared him to death. Now his every move is geared as payback for what “they” did to him and to become so incredibly wealthy that he’ll never have to be in a position like that again. His every move.
With the utmost respect, Susan..
I feel he might truly savor the feelings that " everyone is alone and friendless when it comes right down to it."Perhaps you might just be attributing to him a humanity he does not ...nor has ever had...to " have feelings"., the simple capacity to " think...feel" about anyone...any thing" in his existence but himself. To borrow from a dear friend..." This is one deviant sick puppy!"
Canines of the Universe...forgive me, please! He worships at the feet of his own Bael. Never in his wretched life would he read nor comprehend the words of the new Pope....the goodness & charity the new Americans born words portend for the future. Am not a Catholic...but could visualize how Leo XIV will.give drumpf a lovely case of rage ...and alluded to in my response to Zeke...an.overwhelming reason to avoid mirrors...lest they be plated in
" fools " gold.
I wonder if you misunderstood what I meant. He believes people don’t love each other, they WANT something.
Because his reality is both projected and also made up. It’s projection that he believes people don’t love — that they want something. Because he doesn’t love. With him it’s all transactional. “Give me what I want and I won’t hurt you.”
Agree he would like..take some modicum of personal deviant comfort in the erroneous belief others in this world don't have the capacity to love one another...; also agree that he feels.delusionally paranoid ( imo) that everyone " wants " something " from his majesty the donold. If you view him today as a declining puppet...strings manipulated.by the Miller's et al surrounding him...
it may signal a latent bit of sanity from his lizard brain...of course they WANT something from him...nothing new here. " They" have wanted "...something"from him since he minced down the golden elevator...inflates his ego & his own perception of himself. ..as KING
( ALL.CAPS , of course) donold, serfs at his feet, begging piteously for favors...for scraps from his golden table.
Sorry to .wax on,...Susan...but this truly brings out my rage..
Frys.my gizzard. Apologize to.one and all for my rant at your expense.
Does keep me off the psychiatrists couch, tho!
Thank you all for that...🤗
No, God doesn't need soldiers. But we sure as hell do.
Leo sees God in the smile of a woman who lost her son. God? With such a broad definition, everything becomes a sign of God's presence. I see only a fine example of the human condition--a woman who is willing to put aside her pain and anguish to help others in need. God is a human construct. I guess we can call it whatever we like and never be wrong.
Giving up is not an option.
He only thinks (?) he has all that—lawyers, certainly; but the army too? I doubt the latter.
Hate and cruelty never win but we must cohere and fight this evil. We ARE in this together. That includes you.
Us. We are the ones who will save us. Quit whining and get to work.
We have to save ourselves! Protest, write letters , post comments , share pointed humor! Publicly stand up for those who speak out! Make yourself heard! My family from me ( 80) to my grandson(12) join local protests! It makes me feel less helpless! It makes us all feel stronger! It teaches kids their voice matters! Others gain strength from this!!
Brava, Judy! ...again I shout BRAVA!
If that is what you want to believe, go believe it somewhere else. At least find the backbone to "act as if".
Please, no need to be cold. Haven't you ever, for even one moment, had a crisis of confidence?
Yes, Louise, and when that happens I am very scared. That fear is a good thing because it prepares me for how I refuse to be when it matters.
I’ve been heartened by all your comments. Thank you. I’ve signed up to hang signs on overpasses on June 14th.
Claudia, Hitler was defeated first by his excesses, which created weaknesses that other nations could attack. The sad thing about is that the German business interests supported Hitler, thinking they would benefit, providing the resources and time for Hitler to do so much damage. They could have stopped him, but didn't. We are not in the position Germany and Europe was in during WW2.
We don't have to wait. Our resistance is active right now, and Trump's power is wavering. We ARE having an effect on Trump & Co. But each of us must act in whatever way we can. There are many activist groups out there, and there are many ways that you can join in. Each act counts, no matter how small. They add up. And WE add up. The best antidote to feeling paralyzed is doing something. Join indivisible.org or moveon.org or markersfordemocracy.org. Or just find a demonstration near you if you can. Being among others who are standing up for democracy is freeing, and releases us to act, because we are no longer alone.
We are definitely not alone.
It is beyond understanding - certainly beyond rationality - why Trumpers insist on blunt force. Blunt force ignoring the Constitution, blunt force insulting the courts, blunt force anything when at the same time, pretending to honor the rule of law.
Yes, irony is forever dead to the ignorant.
Like manhandling an elderly man in court (Ben Cohen).
Hey, it’s a tough world out there and Ben’s the manly man to manhandle the elderly.
David...sometimes I wonder if these " incidences" ...egregious as they are....aren't used as a deflection tactic to shift attention away from some other dastardly.plan being hatched ???
Herr miller et al.have such frightening.devious.minds...they strike out in such unbelievably horrid ways...sometimes takes your breath away... just a thought...
And in the long run, despite the loud spite, Miller and Loomer are still MAGA-despised Jews looking in the window, wanting a seat at the feast.
I don’t believe they hate any groups per se. They have more important, self-serving fish to fry. They love control. Attacking certain groups is a way to divide the population in order to dominate them, so they use ancient prejudices and hatred as a wedge.
So generalized hate instead of specific hate?
Fanning the flames of people’s prejudices to divide them and control the vote.
How about diverting attention from the dire need to slow or reverse the destruction of our home planet. They want to lock down their control over the population BEFORE they open the big can of worms and remind us again of their intention to ravage the public’s majestic land for its minerals and it’s oil.
They are telling us what it will take to defeat them. Blunt Force.
But hopefully without the blunt minds.
I'm betting on Judge Dugan's high-powered defense team to make mockery of this flimsy and petty charge. This case will be tossed well before a jury is even empaneled.
From your lips Lance to God’s ears !
I appreciate the poetry of the judicial immunity to prosecution argument, and hope it stands until T's is overturned, but I hope that BOTH are re-set to that once and future day in America where NO person is above the law!!!
In each courthouse, whether it's a state charge or federal charge, the judges, their administrative staff, and their law enforcement staff are EXTREMELY careful to minimize risk to any victims, victims' friends and/or family, and any victim advocates that might be involved in the case when a DV enhancer is part of the case. I know how this happens. My ex-husband threatened me and threatened the GAL for the kids. After that, I had to be called when I arrived at the courthouse and a Sheriff Deputy came down to escort me in. The same thing was done for the GAL. I had seen in early reports that there mat have multiple members of the victim's family in the gallery. It would explain why she sent him out another door.
And yes, I'm in Wisconsin. :-)
GAL = guardian ad litem?
Yes - She was a court-ordered guardian ad litem. There were also court-mandated psych evals for both of us. He refused to participate.
In the Upside Down, MAAGA says that she is indicted because “no one is above the law,” and Johnson justified her indictment because “she interfered with official business.” The freed and pardoned January 6 felons are scratching their heads and thanking their lucky stars.
Thank you, Joyce, for your clear explanation of this situation. It is often difficult to understand the facts of the matter.