Fight for Independence Like our Founders Did: Our Last Best Chance to Continue the American Experiment

Happy July 4th! Independence Day.

We are a great country, which has given hope and opportunity to my ancestors, immigrants from Europe and Palestine since the early 1900s, and your ancestors. We are so lucky and proud to be Americans. Our fathers fought to preserve this country and risked their lives.

Today is a day of celebration for all Americans. However, it is missing something for many of us this year as we see our rights eroding and the oncoming train of authoritarianism sweeping into our Supreme Court and led by trump and MAGA world. It causes us to look at the future, wondering if the dream created by our Founders will look the same in the years to come.

I consider myself a patriot but, alas, the regressive conservative movement, and especially the bigots in that group-which is certainly not all of them, co-opted that word and do not consider me or people with my views–progressive liberals, as patriots. They don’t understand and cannot accept that we love the USA as much as they do.

Historically, progressives and liberals moved this country forward while the conservatives attempted to hold this country back—from its founding–when the progressives led the fight to break away from our mother country, while the conservatives wanted to remain in that Empire.

Similarly, it was progressives who fought against slavery, freed the slaves, conserved our resources, sought to clean our environment, supported equality in voting—including women’s rights, fought discrimination in housing, and in jobs. We supported a woman’s right to control her own body. We led the fight against fascism and Hitler, as the America First movement wanted us to NOT get into World War II. We supported Civil Rights, the vision of the post-Civil War Amendments and Dr. Martin Luther King’s cry for us to treat people by the content of their character. We have supported gay and transgender rights, Social Security, Medicare and so many issues and institutions the conservatives fought against.

And here we are, at a real turning point—where majority no longer rules, violations by the conservatives created a fringe regressive US Supreme Court and hard fought rights and issues are being diluted or taken away. Just recently, they have taken away a woman’s Constitutional right to make decisions about her own body, have expanded gun rights—completely legislating from the bench, made our ability to fight climate change weaker, and have ignored racially motivated voting rights bills, which simply makes it easier for regressive conservatives to stay in power. And that’s the tip of the iceberg.

They ignore the moral depravity of men like trump, his cohorts, and his followers in MAGA world. They questioned Obama’s right to be President and criticized his tan suit as not Presidential. Yet, nothing trump does—moving us away from the country we love, has an ounce of an impact. They ignore malignant actions, any one of which would have deprived anyone from moving forward as President. During the trump years, we embraced dictators, we followed Putin’s lead, and we worked against our allies. Trump was allowed to use DOJ and the rest of the government as a private plaything, reduced government oversight of his Administration. And that’s certainly not all.

The lie of election fraud, which is still the argument of many GOPs in government, created election laws that have favored one party over another and discriminated against minorities. That lie supported by MAGA led to deaths, illegal actions to change votes, a move to January 6 to stop the hallmark of our nation—the peaceful transition of our government. And trump’s mob defecated on the halls of Congress, carried weapons to kill our VP and our representatives, wore Nazi slogans, misused our great Flag, and carried the flag of traitors. That is exactly what they are. And trump said “he loved them.”

We are still learning the extent of their crimes, yet those people are still embraced by MAGA world, to whom facts are irrelevant.

Instead of reasoned argument, we are called names and these people so proud of their ignorance, yell out “fake news,” “Biden inflation,” “Fuck Joe Biden,” “Woke,” groomer and other vile terms that are supposed to settle factual arguments. They have no understanding of how an economy works but because the GOP party and Fox call this Biden’s inflation or gas hike—they don’t bother using any critical thinking to understand reality.

And this is the tip of the iceberg—where most of MAGA NEVER benefit from the actions of their leaders.

We are facing midyear elections where the inane slogans of the right will defeat American ideals, principle, and this democratic republic our Founders conceived.

In another day and age, these same MAGAs would be agreeing with me. As we fought the fascists in the 1930s and 1940s, we are in a similar domestic fight to preserve this country from people like the animals-led by trump. They want to bury our history believing their white children will feel badly or whatever other ridiculous arguments they have. They wear Nazi paraphernalia with phrases like “6 million was not enough,” and they hate the same people Hitler hated and murdered.

Before you say that you are conservative and don’t support these views-you vote for people who do and for people who enable these views. How can someone be a patriot and support all that or support politicians who do?

There are heroes of this time, those who did not accept the lies trump promoted and believe he and his minions belong in jail. Liz Cheney is among them, yet she is ridiculed by MAGA world for refusing to believe and exploit the lie of Election fraud. They are ridiculed as RINOs and enemies when they are acting consistent with the actions of a patriot.

They ridicule Joe Biden needlessly. He was elected to bring decency back to the US and to restore America’s place in the world. He was left numerous crises by trump, which was too busy trying to steal an election, to make sure the Biden Administration would be fully prepared.

Joe is old. No doubt. I don’t think he should run in 2024. But I am grateful for him. He has presided using American and not Putin values. He certainly doesn’t deserve all the childish disdain, which says his mind, is not there, criticizes his speaking ability despite the awful stutter he still overcomes, and ignores his accomplishments. They parrot what they hear on Fox and that’s supposed to mean something.

Biden is NOT perfect. He makes mistakes. But never doubt his resolve to better this country, in the face of almost unanimous opposition on the right. We don’t need our President to be perfect. But if all our children grew up to have Joe’s values—we would be happy.

So ridicule away. But until you reject the MAGA action plan and support the prosecution of January 6, including trump—you really can’t call yourself a patriot.

One last point. The Susan Sarandon’s of the world and the fringe left. Their negative words merely work to support MAGA and brought us to this place.

To everyone, God Bless you and your families and God Bless America. May we work hard to defeat our internal enemies and move forward in this great American experiment.

trump’s Vile Hate and Lying Unfortunately Work!

tRump’s malicious, lying, racist hate rallies continue.

His comments yesterday are far from reality and the comment from so many who served with him that he is unfit to serve are clear. He’s also a despicable person and always has been!

But the lying hate and anger work. Despite President Biden’s clear leadership, his popularity ratings have reached bottom.

His masterful handling of NATO, his leadership on Ukraine and an economy that is the envy of the world, and much more have made no difference.

Please don’t forget how trump left us in shambles and that he spent the last months of his administration and fifteen months since-lying about election fraud and trying to overturn this democracy. His recent praise of the Butcher of Moscow is as disgusting as anything he’s ever said.

Yet this deeply flawed person is glorified by his cult. I will never understand.

And his comments about so many, including Stacy Abrams and the wonderful Judge Jackson show his racist colors loud and clear! Not in these words, but his message essentially depicted this clear, intelligent, qualified judge as an “uppity n*****””

No message of hope and only hate.

If we return the GOP and trump back into office-we will get what we deserve-fascism and a government without empathy for anyone but the elite. And the many right hard fought for will disappear just as they have in trump’s favorite country-Russia!

GOP Response to Dr Ford Sexual Assault Allegations: Despicable

GOPs in Senate want to “check a box” and have a “show hearing” on Monday without any substance–so they can though just go vote for Kavanaugh–in this proceeding that defies “regular order.” They don’t take sexual assault issues seriously and will do whatever it takes to push a RW agenda that a minority of this country believes in.

There are many reasons to vote against Kavanaugh. BUT, the speed that they feel is an imperative, by having hearings without a full understanding of Kavanaugh’s body of work in the Bush White House–filled with obfuscation–proves my point. And there is credible evidence that he has lied.

But character and morality and what is right and wrong is NOT Trump’s America. What has happened to the heart and soul of America? It is non existent in Trump’s America–as he lies and touts economic success, much of which was not on his watch.

But the fact that the GOP has not moved an inch on these issues since 1991’s Anita Hill fiasco–is so disheartening. And the fact that there is ZERO compassion about women’s response to sexual assault–generally and specifically is beyond the pale.

I heard a statistic, I admittedly cannot vouch for, that only 2 to 8% of complaints of sexual assault are not real. (AND how many sexual assaults are never reported). Coincidentally, we are meant to believe that every allegation against trump, roy moore, whomever–fit into that 2 to 8%.

The reactions of and comments by GOP Senators and the nastiness and threats received by Dr Ford–proves the point. THIS is why women don’t come forward.

Do we value women or not? I’m at the point that I almost believe ONLY women should serve in Congress.

How Should Dems Respond to Nomination of Justice Kennedy Replacement?

First, I was always of the view-because I vote on this issue, that the President gets his pick for SCOTUS unless there are severe and troubling issues that make the nominee unqualified to serve. I thought that when Ronald Reagan was President and I thought it when Barack Obama was President!

Second, the GOP abuse of power and the SCOTUS nomination stolen from Obama changed all that and was a death blow to any semblance of fair play. Mitch McConnell will go down in history as a detestable figure, who stood in the way of what is right in support of the evil lunatic in the White House and he continues to crap all over comity in the Senate, eschewing norms practiced for decades. The payoff was his wife’s cabinet position, among other things.

Third, one of the pretextual reasons by the GOP in 2016 was that a nominee replacing Justice Scalia should mirror his legal mindset. I don’t hear calls for that now from the GOP regarding Justice Kennedy’s successor!

Fourth, odds are really against Dems but every effort needs to be made to respond to this situation by using every available option against a Trump nominee. Lobbying GOP Senators might be our best option but given the tactics of the GOP in 2016 we need to do whatever is necessary. I will leave what that is to smarter heads than mine!

Fifth, the notion that we should let the people speak in 2016 and not let them speak in the midterms is extremely hypocritical, disgusting, and offends any sense of fair play.

Sixth, Donald Trump is under federal investigation for obstruction of justice as well as collusion with a foreign adversary, who he continues to romance. This raises significant questions regarding the legitimacy of his election and standing as President. Taking a page of what Trump had to say about Hillary Clinton’s right to be President and McConnell’s threat that if Hillary were elected he would keep the vacant SCOTUS seat open for four years-this is a firm foundation to fight hard to prevent his appointing a Justice to a lifetime appointment. In others words, let Bob Mueller be heard!

Each day our Founders are rolling quicker and quicker in their graves.

And although my progressive friends might say to me, as the fictional character Victor Laszlo said to Rick Blaine in “Casablanca” in analogous times-“welcome back to the fight-this is not about where the collaborator Sarah Huckabee Sanders can eat dinner with her family!