299 Comments

Many of my friends did not believe me before the election when I said Trump is going to do everything he said, be a dictator on the first day and all the rest. They said oh he’s just all talk , he’ll never do all that. I pointed out that he had some good people with him in the first time around who tried and did succeed in somewhat keeping him in check. I pointed out those people will not be around this time. So it’s cold comfort to say I told you so.

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Feel the same but what good does it do to say anything? We are all in in the same fractured boat now. Here’s where we lock arms and persevere.

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I’m sorry to say this, but we are not in a fractured boat. Step forward three or four paces into the future and you will see that we are actually treading water.

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Actually out of the boat for anyone not a male white christian nationalists or nazi and in frigid waters. No one is offering assistance. The Psychopath and sadist will obliterate Medicaid and stop paying SS and Medicare to pp outside the boat.

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I've never been able to figure out how it is that things we pay into, like SS and Medicare, are handouts. I paid into social security the entire time I was working, and I pay my Medicare premiums every month, just like I paid my health insurance premiums while I was working. Are they planning to decimate the health insurance industry so nobody can afford health care?

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yes, I think that is the ultimate goal, cull the population by witholding medical coverage, the first to 'go' will be old people like me with cancer & others that have similar debilitating diseases besides just plain old, Old Age. Babies & young children will die from malnutrtion & disease because surely you don't think food will be affordable if even available.

You only need look at 3rd world dictatorships to see the outcome of autocracy. It is NOT pretty!

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Can the criminal in chief please go first?? Just a thought.

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Susan, of course, those are not hand-outs, but the social media nut jobs want people to think they are and that being part of this nation makes us all takers while the ones who really are the takers get to tell us who we and they are. How do we get the message out to the people who are glued to Fox Not Nearly News and the rest of the right-wing blather machine? I do not know, but Toddler-Trump and his toddler playground don't care one wit because Toddler-Don knows he will be taken care of no matter what happens and Toddler-Musk knows that unless something gigantic happens, he will have free rein to do whatever he wants to this nation. The DC police should have arrested them at their first invasion of a government building as invaders, security risks, but since nothing was done, he and his toddler-pool have our data and can do whatever they want to us. The next step will be to get the military to do harm to us, immigrants first, than anyone who won't kiss Toddler-Trump's butt or wherever else he wants kissed. It is a tragety we should have foreseen and been prepared for, but Biden and his qualified team didn't plan for someone like Toddler-Musk whose greed, willingness to inflict harm, and incompetence have no bounds.

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I don’t know about foreseeing muck, but I agree that he should have been arrested immediately.

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yep

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They will drain the Social Security Funds and put the money in THEIR pockets.

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Of course they will - they "need" it far more than us ordinary people do…

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Drowning in shark-infested waters

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Don’t quite understand what you mean?

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she means we're fucked

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Truely

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Thanks for replying…

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The boat has sunk and we’re now in the water?

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Things are worse than we know

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Of course. I think many couldn't wrap their heads around the fact that anyone would actually do these illegal and unconstitutional things. Many were republicans who were whistly past the graveyard. and I live in the NE.

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The republicans in FloriDuh are sooooooo happy….

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for now.....

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Hope we know how to swim because the Ship of State is sinking..fast.

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🧨🧨🧨🧨These two posts contain a lot of good information about Trump's first Supreme Court case 🧨🧨🧨🧨

125. The Court's First Trump II Case Won't Be a Bellwether

https://www.stevevladeck.com/p/125-the-courts-first-trump-ii-case

https://kathleenweber.substack.com/p/we-did-something-dumb

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is that dynomite ?

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I just want to scream.

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my anxiety level these days has reached Olympic heights.

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Some of my relatives order me not to mention TheRump, etc., because it is making them sick and they feel helpless to stop the COUP II. I feel the same and wish could figure out a plan.

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I wanted to and found tears instead...

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Also, but afraid I won’t be able to stop.

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Yes, I understand…

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I need to update Passports.

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Yesterday on TT I watched two highly popular Drag Queens. One was standing and decompensating while trying to be rational and the other sat there rigid w a grimace. Exactly how I feel.

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Yelling at the tv just does not seem enough. Frustration and disgust that we actually do not have any help..nothing to protect us from the COUP II.

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Personally, I like getting out in nature, or at least waking around the block, so I can say hello to whatever neighbors are out, or any of the dogs and cats I've gotten to know.

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Interesting to me that I can't think of any friends who didn't believe that Trump WOULD follow through on his threats...can think of about 10 or more. Is it because we have ties to the Northeast?

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See above. I live in the northeast. Lots of that dying breed, moderate republicans.

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I was born in NY City, and have always gravitated to it--where my parents retired. Also in NJ, and there now. I know plenty of the former Republican types who were bankers or military--they ALL smelled a skunk when Trump first showed up. Those who moved to Seattle, NY State, and to SC are clearly aware and anti-Trump. I hope it's prevalent, and not just my passing luck.

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😢

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Yes, "cold comfort."

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Domestically it's a disaster. Let's also not forget that Trump and JD Vance have apparently decided to follow Putin's lead on Ukraine.

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What are they saying now?

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Nothing. Crickets! And I’m not encouraging a discussion at this point

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Pam I was delighted to have a Speaker at our Monday Demonstration in Annapolis let us know about people who are Wishing they had hot voted for DJT, but that when we recognize them, it is not time to say I told you so. There may be an appropriate time down the road, but now we want to encourage them to join us in opposing policies that are not a benefit "for the people."

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Trust me I haven't said I told you so. Useless now.

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Pam, did any of your friends recant their support, or did they double down with “her emails”?

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Cold comfort, indeed.

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Joyce, how do we counteract this? We have so many good people who are stepping down or who have been removed from their jobs. How do we work together or come together to repair or rebuild? Maybe it is too soon to ask this, but the only thing that gives me hope is that there are so MANY people opposing this coup. Around the world, too. But we're the ones who have to figure out how to deal with it. Any thoughts?

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Read Simon Rosenberg and Jessica Craven! Here are great action steps from Simon:

https://open.substack.com/pub/simonwdc/p/we-are-americans-fighting-for-freedom?r=apy04&utm_medium=ios

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We have a common denominator, even with most Republicans in Congress: Treason.

I think the sell out re Ukraine, Vance meeting with the Nazis, etc has to shake up even Senate Republcans. Duty, honor, country. Sit in, call, write, picket them at their offices and homes.

This may be a window of oppotunity.... I keep sayin' we need Republicans to object -- pressure the Senate Republicans who voted for the Ukraine package https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4464791-here-are-the-senate-republicans-who-voted-for-the-ukraine-package/

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Sorry to throw cold water on this idea, but there aren’t enough courageous Republicans to do this. Lone Muskrat, with his billions, can ‘primary’ anyone he wants to through his PAC, D or R, and it would be only pennies out of his pocket.

I realized why the Gilded Toadstool®️ is so enamored of the Muskrat: he has 100 times the money ($500B vs. $5B) and at least 5”-6“ in height, even including the lifts in T💩p’s shoes. In T💩p’s addled brain, these two superlatives make him a literal god in his sociopathic worldview.

I would be laughing at my own witticism, if not for the tears of rage I’m afflicted with.

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I worked with some of them. With some of their spouses.

On another site I reminded Mainers that Susan Colins worked for Bill Cohen who switched parties from Maine's Republcan Senator to become a Clinton cabinet member.

Besides Ukraine and traeson, plenty of Republicans oppose Musk.

..https://www.npr.org/2025/01/27/nx-s1-5276084/elon-musk-german-far-right-afd-holocaust. "On Saturday, Musk spoke repeatedly about the importance of Germans taking pride in their heritage.

"It's good to be proud of German culture and German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything," Musk said.

Then, in an apparent reference to the Nazi era, Musk added that there is "frankly too much of a focus on past guilt and we need to move beyond that."

"Children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents, let alone their parents, their great-grandparents," he said as the crowd applauded."

In a photo, Elon Musk is depicted wearing a suit and is standing behind a lectern with the presidential seal on the front. His right arm is raised up and to the side, with the palm of his hand facing down.

Elon Musk tried to turn the salute controversy into a joke

Musk's comments came two days before International Holocaust Remembrance Day — this year marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz — and less than a week after he twice made straight-armed gestures at a Trump inauguration event, which many viewers interpreted as Nazi salutes.

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Trump blaming the war on UKRAINE is rather like blaming the German Jewish citizens for WWII. Same logic. Evil. Cruel.

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Websters new definition of INSANE CHILD MOLESTING FELON....IS VERY SIMPLE........DONALD J TRUMP

Suggesting Ukraine pay reparations????? When they are winning the war???.........where do you go when someone is beyond being totally fucked!!!??!!??

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🤬🤬🤬

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More power to you, then, Daniel!

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Takes all of us.....

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You are correct…sadly. We have been left on our own. Deserted by our politicians.

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What a difference a year makes! Thanks for the link and the suggestion to call these republicans.

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I do not believe they care. Really do not. Mine are Florida traitors…one of the most extreme kind there are.

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Yes, please help us find a way to unite and take an active stand and at the same time show support for these brave government employees who are doing the toughest part - in addition to the Federal employees being fired.

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Will the PURCHASE NOTHING PROTEST DAY…Feb. 28th happen and if so, will it be noticed?

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Deb Pierce McCabe: You state the conundrum exactly right.

On the one hand, one can say, resigning office is a form of protest and active opposition.

On the other hand, we LOSE the remaining reasonable persons in decision-making positions.

The loss of reasonable people in top positions is a major turn for the worse.

I feel that opposition is like Sisyphus pushing the great rock (Musk/Vance/Tramp) to the top of the hill, only for the boulder to roll back to the floor, forcing Sisyphus to repeat the process.

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We have been left on our own…that is how I feel. Captain America is not coming to save us.

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No worries, Judy, we don’t need Captain America. We are enough as long as we each do everything we can. We are all we need.

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Wish I had your confidence

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Trump specializes in cruel nicknames and epithets like the January sixth Unselect Committee. He uses them over and over. So, what about the Trump Department of Injustice?

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Been using that since 12:01 pm January 20.

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Yes!!!

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How about "Ed the Talking Arse"? I used it below.

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Just say it right, “Ed, the talking ass.” There, fixed it.

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Trumps dumpsterees

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We are waiting. We are waiting for Democrats to be sufficiently alarmed at the direction you are describing to make the creation of an authoritarian state the basis for their resistance. We are waiting. We are waiting for four Republicans to recognize that stopping this authoritarian state is more important than their other political beliefs and their careers.

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Oh stop it. Do you live in a red state? Have YOU called your members of Congress and asked them what they are doing to stop this madness? What part of MINORITY party do you NOT understand? As members of the minority party the things they can do is basically nothing. Bills they introduce will not be brought to the floor, they can not open a debate, they can not call a committee meeting, they can not call for an adjournment, they can not convene the House. At this point, there is nothing they can do legislatively. They are working in public. Haven't you noticed? May I suggest you follow AOC, Jamie Raskin, Pete Buttigieg, David Hogg, Maxwell Frost, Adam Schiff....yes, the Democrats are working as best they can. And you?

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Maybe you were not aware that Len Lubinsky spends an enormous amount of time learning about politicians in down-ballot races and publishes his research in his "Len's Political Notes" to inform voters.

https://lenspoliticalnotes.com/

I agree with your point about acting instead of waiting, but in the bigger picture, we can play different roles.

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If the “Democrats are working as best they can” then they have killed our Justice system and our democracy. This is the age of hype - the age of Super Bowl. Loud rock music has dulled the hearing of many and Fox “News” has dulled their minds. A nuclear explosion is needed to even get the attention of most Americans.

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Rubbish.

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Whoa… no one wants to even admit that such a word even exists….NUCLEAR

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I don't know why you're busting Leonard's chops -- I suspect he is doing a lot. As Joyce says, we are in this together.

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Fantastic reply.

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I live in a blue state. Nevertheless, I call my senators and congressman. I have called my senators (Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand) most recently to praise their plans for a Vote-a-Rama to delay and delay and delay the Senate budget vote. Of course, Trump has just helped the Senate Democrats by telling them he doesn't care much for their budget proposal anyhow. As Ellie Kona says, I write Len's Political Notes. You can google it and add yourself as a free subscriber (I only have free subscribers). My principal purpose in what I write is to make recommendations about which candidates to donate to, which candidates could be genuinely helped by a new batch of donors -- some small, some not so small.

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We need MORE DAVID HOGG kind of patriots. Dems needed younger voices LONG AGO..not sure if it is now too late… starting late in the game….

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CNN reported today that a Republican Senator said something like "Putin is a war criminal and should be jailed for the rest of his life or executed. " Can we shine some light on this person? Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker from Mississippi, on why U. S. should not negotiate with Putin. And they showed video of another man making similar statements but they did not identify that man, for fock's sake.

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Wicker is in a safe Republican seat.

AS ARE SO MANY OF THEM.

I know they fear Muck's money and PACs (thanks once again, Citizens United), but they could and should STAND UP for what's right. FF's picks for primaries are often defeated because they're so bad.

Republicans could shut this shit show down if they wanted to.

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They don’t want to. They are standing by because they are seeing that their fondest dreams are being achieved, and all they need to do is sit back and shut up.

CFPB gone. EPA going. Tax cuts. On and on. Things they have been trying to do for decades.

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Yes, things that HURT their constituents, and that their constituents may realize they actually needed.

It's a small hope, but it has a significant chance of succeeding. Even the willfully duped can have an epiphany.

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They are fine with being actual authentic TRAITORS.

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Wicker should have said these things before Hegseth's confirmation, and voted against him. He truckled to Trump and now he is running behind the pace car thinking he can do anything to slow it down. Talk's cheap, he had a chance to show his character and failed.

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They have all failed in character!

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Spineless republicans. Treason!

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I call them the Red Russian Republican Party. Truth …

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We need to NOT WAIT!

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And who is the F*ing doctor in the senate(?) from Louisiana who believed RFK jr. in his hearing and is now complaining about the measles outbreak in TX and NM??? What does RFK jr have to say? …I will look into it. Seriously!! What idiots.

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American Heroes

1973

Elliot Richardson, US Attorney General

William Ruckelshaus, Deputy US Attorney

General

2025

David Lebryk, Head of US Treasury Dept.

Danielle Sassoon, US Attorney for

Southern District of New York

Hagan Scotten, Federal Prosecutor

Six Justice Dept Prosecutors, including

Interim Leader Kevin Driscoll

Head of Public Corruption John Keller.

Four NYC Deputy Mayors:

Maria Torres-Springer

Meers Joshi

Anne Williams-Isom

Chauncy Parker

Michelle King, Social Security

Commissioner

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DENISE CHEVNY for 24 years has been the Head of the USAO DC Criminal Division resigned because she would not "go after" 3 Environmental Grants that according to her male bosses were "POTENTIAL waste of government funds".

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Adding tiny insult to massive injury, American hero Denise Cheung was called in on her day off, the federal holiday of Presidents Day, to do the dirty deed of freezing that account, and then chided by her boss for "wasting 5 hours." (per MSNBC)

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H/t Ellie.

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Urgh!!! Why should she HAVE to "go after" them!

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No crime here, uh uh.

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I think is very likely that targets such as DENISE, have excellent legal representation.

The DC office of 'COVINGTON & BURLING LLP' has 700 lawyers that can handle all Trump II skyrocketing legal matters in the Virginia, Maryland, Delaware & District Region.

That's a few more than I had my 2 person "boutique" in the 'Bay Area' CA.

COVINGTON has numerous education "Events" for clients such as today 2/19/2025 "Anticipated Enforcement Trends in the Trump Administration". I trust that DENISE will understand the Covington takeaways today.https://www.cov.com.

COVINGTON ADDRESS:

One City Center

858 Tenth Street NW

Washington, DC 20001-4956

TEL: 1 202 662 6000

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Joyce this is yet another wake-up moment for us all. When I read this person worked with Phyllis Schafly, that’s all I needed to know as to his character. So with principled prosecutors resigning, we will get the uber wealthy’s picks (toadies) put in place. What exactly do we do about that? We cannot gain entry to our buildings because Musk and his rhesus monkeys are on the loose, ripping everything apart. Protests seem to be ongoing, which is good. I do plan on going to my congressman’s town hall this Thursday evening and I have to thank goodness that he’s a Democrat (Mark DeSaulnier).

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Anyone could look to Indivisible.org, MoveOn, democratic groups to contact local groups to get involved with like minded citizens.

Marlene, I am in your same district, I will also be at DeSaulnier's town hall and I will be joining https://indivisibleresisters.org/ they are local, also, their website includes many groups/organizations to contact.

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Likely wouldnt be any town hall if he was a Repub!!!

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Lucky you….mine are Floridian traitors …creatures of the swamps

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He's great. Thank goodness...

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Donald Trump, oath breaker, frees the Oath Keepers and Elon Musk, above it all, swears no oath at all.

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He knew he didn't dare touch the bible for fear of catching fire in front of everyone.

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For him, does it work better if he holds the bible upside down? Everything else is reverse talk. E.g, I know nothing of Project 2025....I'm only going to be dictator for the first day....(excuse me while I puke)

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Made me Laugh 😂

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And a big hidden voice proclaiming, “My boy!”

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I understand why they stepped down. I also understand that by refusing to do Bondi, Bove and the DOJ's bidding they also faced the real possibility of being fired. Today Trump issued a EO saying only he and the AG determine what is law. Again, this flies in the face of what the Constitution defines. If we have a president who rejects the rule of law, a Republican House and Senate in the majority who have relinquished all authority to Trump, and the courts who will more likely than not be ignored by Trump if his latest EO is any indication as to his plans, then what? If people take to the streets Trump will declare Martial Law and suspend the Constitution which I suspect is his plan. This is why there is this overwhelming feeling of dread. I feel it, people I speak to feel it, and they are looking for reassurance. I actually hear fear in people's words, and that is unnerving. It isn't limited to people of color, but the young and old alike. I have a family member that is career military, and he has enough time to retire. He loves the "Service", and it has been a great fit for him. He is now talking about leaving. If you knew him, you would know that this decision doesn't come easily but is completely understandable under current conditions. People complain the democrats and the courts are impotent. I disagree, but they are dealing with the cards they were dealt and adhering to the rule of law and established precedent. The problem is Trump and Co. are not.

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There's some better news. Judge Rudolph Contreras in Washington, an Obama appointee, reinstated Cathy A. Harris, the chairwoman of the Merit Systems Protection Board at least until March 3 after she had been fired by Trump. This board protects federal employees from abuse of disciplinary action by agency management.

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Today every small victory is huge. I refuse to give in to despair, but I recognize it is out there. We are in this together and I am grateful to all who share this truth. Thanks to Joyce as always, and everyone who is committed to truth.

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Totally with you.

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Amen

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In more normal times, a president would face an impeachment trial for his outright kicking the constitution to the curb.

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Good comment--and yes, I am terrified and disgusted. (And my therapist says most of her clients are too...).

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It’s a turbulent time. Thanks Joyce for your eloquent explanations.

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Meanwhile

Huge vans pulling up to Fort Knox,

Musk and the felon run gleefully inside,

saliva dripping from their bottom lips.

With their tiny little hands

they try to pick up bricks of gold

to carry it out to a van. Whoa,

their wee little fingers are too weak.

They had no idea gold weighed so much.

They keep trying, but those tiny fingers

go limp. They lay down on the gold

and fall asleep for the next 4 years.

Hard bed, but it’s their idea of heaven.

The doors are relocked behind them

while they snooze and enjoy their dream.

Elon Musk is now gearing up to conduct an in-person audit of the United States’ gold reserves at Fort Knox on behalf of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Musk announced his intentions on Monday afternoon through a pair of posts on his X platform, implying that he doubts whether the $425 billion in bullion is really there.

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You are right.! It is reported by Forbes and Newsweek as well as others that must is planning on going into Fort Knox! What can we do?!

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I think that is the question everyone on planet Earth is asking. Hopefully the anti-coup-ers have a strategy to stop this.

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If no one has a plan to stop it and is able to do so, and if Musk is able to ransack Fort Knox, then it will destabilize the world‘s economy!

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He should be arrested as soon as he shows up there!

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Good cover story. Now none of his co-toadies will know that he took it. He will come out of the vaults and with his fake concern say “I told you, the vault’s been ransacked!”

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if it is there it won't be for long...........they'll take it and say it wasn't there.....

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It angers me when the orange slug uses words like “permanent” when naming someone to a position.

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Well, believe him. He has no intention that there be another election and, therefore, another prexident. I think he believes his own hype that he’s the second coming, miracle survivor of assassination attempts because of his glory, and immortal. More like immoral.

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Exactly!!

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This story seems minor compared to what transpired this evening; Trump signed an executive order claiming that only the president can speak for “what the law is."*

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Instead of Executive Orders, et’s call those things Executive Disorders!

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How about Executive Crimes or Lies?

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The malignant narcissist attempts to bluff and bamboozle us. Is this more grounds for a legal challenge?

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I bet his toadies on the extreme court will love that proclamation. The expert on everything, including the law.

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I might be dreaming, but I look forward to seeing a lot of disbarments.

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And it continues. I almost vomited when I saw T's car circling the speedway at Daytona. I truly believe he has given up all semblance of governing. He just wants to golf and continue to be lauded by his cult. How blind are they?. History will not be kind, nor should it, to every single person who is playing a part in this travesty. I left T a message today- if he sends some goons to enlighten me, I will let you know.

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"T" ? Or should he be "IT," for Idiot Tyrant, or to be even more definitive , he is merely an "it."

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Let us see trumps and elons tax returns as they want to see ours. They want to cut back the IRS . It is obvious they are cheaters, which they could disprove by coming clean. Explains the gop against better tax collection. Remember in 2016 how Trump promised to release his tax returns! Still waiting.

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And, his health records!

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I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if neither one of them actually files tax returns. They’re pretty special, you know, and are exempt from the laws.

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Tesla paid no US income tax in 2023.

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Appreciate all you do. Regrettably, while we hope/pray lawfare will stop the tsunami that is making a joke of our Constitution and government, the absence of a very bold, very public outcry from Democratic leaders is almost as scary.

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Please don't call the proceedings of prosecutors and the courts "lawfare." That is a term that enablers of Trump's tyranny have used to try to delegitimate and minimize the valid prosecutions that have been brought against the January 6 insurrectionists and criminal actors in Trump's entourage. Instead you might speak of the rule of law without fear or favor.

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