Dem
47
GOP
53
Lots of news in the past few days that's not quite enough for a whole item, but interesting enough to merit a mention.
A Crudité Awakening: Punchbowl News did an informal straw poll of House Democrats, to see how many of them are prepared to endorse Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) if he runs for reelection in 2028. And it would seem that Fetterman has the support of 0.0% of them. Pretty much all tried the Switzerland approach when responding to Punchbowl. For example, here's Chrissy Houlahan: "I'm not responsible for deciding whether he runs again." Or Madeleine Dean: "My concern is entirely about him and his health, and I'll let 2028 take care of itself."
Our Take: If Fetterman wants to keep his job beyond January of 2029, pretty much his only option is to become a Republican. It worked for Arlen Specter, so maybe it could work for him. But probably not, as we live in much more polarized times right now. And really, by all indications, Fetterman does not like the job, and seems like he will be happy to be done with it.
A Hole-in-One: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was asked if it bothers her that Donald Trump is playing so much golf while there's a way underway in Iran. She had an interesting response, declaring that she hopes Trump plays even more golf, because when he's out on the links, he can't be in the Oval Office doing harm to the country.
Our Take: A sharp wit is an invaluable tool for a politician (see Lincoln, Abraham; Reagan, St. Ronnie of), and
Sen.Rep. Ocasio-Cortez certainly has one.
It's Now Unanimous: Alan Dershowitz, who has been toting Donald Trump's water on TV for a decade, has officially re-registered as a Republican, after more than 6 decades as a registered Democrat. He said—wait for it—that it's not him who's changed, it's the Democratic Party. He is, to a greater or lesser extent, a single-issue voter these days, and that issue is
keeping the Epstein Files hiddenIsrael.Our Take: There was just one person left in the whole country who did not know that Dershowitz had become a Republican at least 5 years ago. Now it's zero people.
The Piggy Bank Has Run Dry: DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced yesterday that the various pots of money being used to compensate for the fact that DHS has no budget are about to run out, at which point people will go back to working without pay. It is not clear from Mullin's statement if the BBB money for ICE is also nearly exhausted.
Our Take: The linked article says the members of Congress are in a "race to end a two-month shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security." We'll believe that when we see it. Keep in mind that there are four different constituencies here, namely House Republicans, Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans and Donald Trump, and there has yet to be a time when any more than two of the four were in agreement.
The Halls of Montezuma: Remember during the 2024 campaign, when Donald Trump (and other Republicans) hinted that an invasion of Mexico might be called for? Well, there's now evidence that one is happening, right under everyone's noses. Over the weekend, there was a car crash in which two Mexican law enforcement officials and two CIA officers were killed. It appears that they were conducting clandestine operations against drug traffickers, and without the sanction of the Mexican government. President Claudia Sheinbaum is furious about this incursion on her nation's sovereignty, as you might imagine.
Our Take: Which neighbor is going to despise the U.S. more by the time Trump's term ends? Canada or Mexico?
The Eye of a Needle: A bunch of right-wing Christians are staging an event in which people, including many prominent Republicans, will participate in a reading of all of the books of the Bible. Well, all the books of the Bible that are recognized by Protestants, at least. Among the participants will be devout Christian and noted man of peace Donald Trump, who will read 2 Chronicles 7:14: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
Our Take: So, Trump's people chose a verse for him in which God is speaking. A little on the nose, don't you think?
Islamophobia Über Alles: Texas Republicans are nervous about their new, and possibly ill-conceived, gerrymander. They are also concerned about the U.S. Senate race. And so, they are turning to a "classic" from the Trumpublican bag of tricks: Islamophobia (and, more specifically, the claim that Muslim Americans want to impose sharia law on the rest of the country).
Right on cue, noted bigot Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) introduced a show bill called the Measures Against Marxism's Dangerous Adherents and Noxious Islamists Act. Get it? The MAMDANI Act? He's a clever one, that Chip Roy. The bill, which will obviously never become law, would "deport, denaturalize, deny U.S. citizenship, or entry to any alien who is a member of a socialist party, a communist party, the Chinese Communist Party, or Islamic fundamentalist party, or advocates for socialism, communism, Marxism, or Islamic fundamentalism."
Our Take: He's a vapid show horse who does absolutely nothing but poison public discourse and put innocent people in danger of being targeted by vigilantes. And the worst part is that he is retiring from Congress and running to be Texas' top law-enforcement official and will probably win.
MediaBias: The White House website has a new webpage that announces the identity of the "Media Offender of the Week," along with the "crimes" they've committed. The current "honoree" is CNN.
Our Take: We're not sure what part of this is more Trumpy. Is it that he's trying to use the power of the goverment to stamp out freedom of the press? Or is it that everything this administration does is so half-baked, and so lazily executed, that CNN was chosen more than 3 weeks ago, and there have been no additional "Media Offender[s] of the Week" since? Probably should have called it "Media Offender of the Month." Or, if they really wanted to be honest, "Media Offender Who Has Most Recently Put a Bug up Trump's A**."
And there it is, your moment of zen. (Z)