News and Politics

Discussion about news and politics

42 Million Americans Have Food Stamps (SNAP), Now On Hold As November Begins!

Ronald 9 Comments

Waking up on the first day of November, 42 million Americans are being denied basic federal assistance to insure they have food, a travesty caused by the Republican Party and President Donald Trump, on top of the escalation of premiums for the Affordable Care Act, which if not modified, will lead to millions of Americans without any health care coverage in 2026!

And the irony is that a majority of those who are going without food support and health care coverage are residents of “Red” states, but the Republican Party and Donald Trump have no concern for their own constituents.

SNAP primarily supports children, the elderly, and people with disabilities, and the highest percentage of people who receive these meager benefits are found in Louisiana, the home state of Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, and second ranking House Majority Leader Steve Scalise.

Also high in percentage of people covered by SNAP are the Republican states of Oklahoma and West Virginia,

SNAP households with children are 34 percent; with elderly individuals 33 percent; with nonelderly individuals with a disability 18 percent; and with adults ages 18-49 without either a disability or children with 17 percent. Of course, some households include multiple categories.

Nearly four out of five household in 2023 include a child, elderly individual, or nonelderly individual with a disability.

20 percent of the population in Louisiana, New Mexico, and the District of Columbia receive SNAP benefits, and overall, 12 percent of the American people receive SNAP benefits.

This disastrous situation needs to be resolved NOW! 🙁

Trump, Hegseth Violate International Law By Attacking Ships In Caribbean, Rather Than Navy Stopping Ships To Investigate If Engaged In Drug Activities!

Ronald 12 Comments

The United States government, under President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, have been engaged in a multitude of attacks on boats in the Caribbean and a few in the Pacific Ocean as well, mostly off the coast of Venezuela, waging war on what they claim are drug dealers, but have no proof of such. A total of 14 attacks, killing about 60 people have taken place in the past few weeks.

The US Navy and US Coast Guard could stop these boats, each of which have only a few people on board, and if they were engaged in drug trafficking, they could arrest them without much use of force.

As it is, a few people have survived, and have been returned to their nation of origin, which indicates that they were NOT involved in drug trafficking, because if so, they should have been brought to the US for prosecution.

So what is going on here is illegal under international law, and the UN Human Rights Commission has condemned the attacks.

It is a prelude to a likely attempt to invade Venezuela, which is an unfriendly nation, but is not clearly involved in any activities that allow the United States to use military force.

Government Paralyzed As Health Care Costs Skyrocket!

Ronald 6 Comments

The US government is under lockdown, while Donald Trump has been gallivanting all over Asia, ignoring the reality of massive health care cost increases, due to the passage by the MAGA Republican Party majority in Congress of the so called “Big and Beautiful Bill”, which gave massive tax cuts to corporations and billionaires.

With massive cuts to Medicaid, SNAP (Food Stamps) for 42 million people, and the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), it means tens of millions of lower middle class and poor Americans will face hunger, and lack of health care protections, a totally outrageous and cruel reality.

No one in America should face hunger and starvation, or inability to have medical coverage, in a nation which professes the “right to life” of fetuses, but once born, no concern on the part of the Republican Party and Donald Trump.

Four Democrats, Straight White Christian Men, May Be Best Alternatives For 2028!

Ronald 5 Comments

In a time of so much division and conflict in America, it is noticeable that most of the potential Democratic Party Presidential contenders are perceived as having disadvantages in a time of white Christian nationalist extremism taking over the Republican Party, encouraged by Donald Trump.

The following list of 20 potential Presidential contenders is quite revealing, as we have the elections next week in NYC, New Jersey, Virginia, and the California vote on reapportionment of Congressional seats.

So we have potential Presidential contenders who are females—Kamala Harris, Gretchen Whitmer, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Amy Klobuchar.

So we have potential Presidential contenders who are African Americans or Latino or Asian ethnicity—Wes Moore, Cory Booker, Raphael Warnock, Stephen A. Smith, Ruben Gallego, Ro Khanna.

So we have potential Presidential contenders who are Jewish—JD Pritzker, Josh Shapiro, Jared Polis, Jon Ossoff, Josh Green.

So we have potential Presidential contenders who are gay—Pete Buttigieg, Jared Polis.

And then, we have white male “straight” Christian Presidential contenders—Gavin Newsom, Andy Beshear, Chris Murphy, Mark Kelly.

One could argue that in the present political climate, the latter four names—all white male “straight” Christian contenders—might be the best bet moving forward, although saying that is tragic, as it should not matter if one is a female, a racial minority, Jewish, or Gay individual.

Other than Barack Obama, the sad truth is that no woman, racial minority, Jewish, or gay politician, has been able to break through to this point, a sad commentary on American life!

Pure Hysteria About Mamdani “Socialism”, Depicting Him As A “Communist” And “Islamic Terrorist”, By Republicans!

Ronald 8 Comments

New York City is very likely to elect Zohran Mamdani the 111th Mayor a week from now, despite the dire warnings being spread by Republicans and corporate leaders, and even many religious leaders, both Jewish and otherwise.

There is pure hysteria being spread that Mamdani, a self described “Democratic Socialist”, is a “Communist” and an “Islamic Terrorist”, as he is of the Muslim faith.

The Jewish community is deeply divided over Mamdani, who has been harshly critical of the Israel-Gaza War, which has killed about 65,000 Palestinians. Some Jewish groups who are totally supportive of any tactic or policy of the Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu see Mamdani as a dire threat to Jews in New York City and elsewhere.

The fact that Mamdani has plans to help the struggling middle class and poor, rather than cater to the wealthy elite, also has led the Republican Party nationally under Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and President Donald Trump, to portray him with the lunatic accusation that he is a “Communist’, which demonstrates total ignorance and stupidity about the meaning of the term.

If anything, Trump himself being too “cozy” with Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation and Kim Jong Un of North Korea (both Communists), belies the manipulation of public opinion being perpetrated by a Republican Party, which clearly does not care about the rapidly worsening economic conditions caused by Trump’s refusal to care about the economic plight of tens of millions of Americans who were told the cost of living would decrease under Trump in his second term.

The Wiping Out Of History By Donald Trump: Museums And The White House! :(

Ronald Leave a comment

President Donald Trump has declared war on History, attacking various museums and their exhibits, and destroying the East Wing of the White House without any input, consultation, or authorization by any agency or organization.

For someone like this historian and scholar, this is a very depressing situation!

Interference with museum exhibits at the National African American Museum and National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC, along with the National Museum of American History, National Gallery of Art, and all other Smithsonian Museums is an attempt to wipe out truth, and distort the reality of the American past.

The same situation affects all National Parks and Monuments, with “sanitizing” of the reality of these sites.

Additionally, interference with the Library Of Congress, and cultural institutions, such as the Kennedy Center For The Perfoming Arts, is infuriating!

Declaring war on “DEI”, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, is trying to repeal the 20th Century Civil Rights Movement, and reforms moving forward on race and gender, and instead working to impose white male dominance of all cultural institutions!

Trump Corruption And Malfeasance In Long Line Of Past Republican Presidents, But Worse Than Any Of Them!

Ronald 110 Comments

The level of Donald Trump, Cabinet, and Advisors corruption and malfeasance is the most massive in American history, and right out in the open, without any apology or shame!

But this is nothing new for Republican Presidents.

Historians, Political Scientists, and other scholars have made clear by research and living through the past few Republican Presidents, that the Republican Party is manifestly a party of privilege and open abuse of office under SIX Republican Presidents.

In order historically, the following Republican Presidents have presided over massive corruption:

Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)—most famously Credit Mobilier Scandal but others as well.

Warren G. Harding (1921-1923)—most famously Teapot Dome Scandal but others as well.

Richard Nixon (1969-1974)—most famously Watergate Scandal but others as well.

Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)—most famously Iran-Contra Scandal but others as well.

George W. Bush (2001-2009)—most famously Iraq War Scandal but others as well.

It is often felt that Grant, Harding, Reagan, and Bush may not have been intimately involved personally, but they had corrupt adviers and Cabinet members around them.

In the case of Nixon, clearly, he was the most corrrupt personally and administration of any of these Presidents, until Donald Trump, who has surpassed Nixon by leaps and bounds!

Military Action Against Venezuela Seems Growing Possibility, And US Imperialism Spreading In Western Hemisphere!

Ronald 1 Comment

Donald Trump, the man who talks about “America First”, seems ready to engage in old style US Imperialism in Latin America, likely to undermine US relations with the Western Hemisphere, in line with Ronald Reagan’s interventions in Central America in the 1980s, and Richard Nixon’s interventions in South America in the 1970s.

Warships, including an aircraft carrier, are gathering in the southern Caribbean in what seems a plan to overthrow Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.

Earlier threats against Panama, and the desire to take back US control of the Panama Canal, are likely to move forward, despite protests from the Panamanian government.

Tariff “Wars” against Brazil and Canada seem certain to get worse, while at the same time, Trump has cozied up to the right wing governments of El Salvador and Argentina.

Steve Bannon Says Trump Can Have Third Term, Totally Unconstitutional!

Ronald Leave a comment

In the midst of all the chaos and lunacy going on, including the destruction of the East Wing of the White House without any consulation or outside approval, now criminal adviser Steve Bannon suggests that Donald Trump can have a third term in the Presidency!

This is NOT possible under the 22nd Amendment, added to the Constitution in 1951, after Republicans promoted it as a reaction to the reality that Franklin D. Roosevelt had been elected four times to the Presidency.

There is no legal way for Trump to be in office beyond January 20, 2029, and to suggest otherwise, is terrifying and horrifying, as it implies a suspension of the Constitution!

Trump, also, is already showing signs of dementia, and is regularly temperamental and irrational, and would be between ages 82 and 86 in another term.

The only leaders who have ever served at such an advanced age as a leader of a major nation has been monarchs, which Trump considers himself to be in his mind.

But there is NO legal or constitutional way for what Steve Bannon suggests to occur!

Growing Dangers For Donald Trump After Nine Months In Office!

Ronald 46 Comments

President Donald Trump claims he has had major successes in his first nine months of his second term.

The truth belies that.

The last two months saw another trillion dollars added to the National Debt, to an all time high of $38 trillion, the fastest increase in history.

The attempts of Trump to gain backing of Vladimir Putin to end the war against Ukraine has failed, and another planned summit is now off.

The Israeli hostages were freed, but very little progress on the so called “20 point plan” has occurred, despite intervention of Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who are spending time in the Middle East.

The government shutdown, now in its 23rd day, second longest ever, is beginning to have a deleterious effect, as government workers are not being paid, and SNAP (Food Stamp) benefits are about to end for milions of needy Americans, and Trump is showing no signs of concern about the effect on the American people of his refusal to negotiate with the Democrats.

Speaker Mike Johnson is making a horrendous reputation for himself, refusing to swear in a newly elected Congresswoman, in order to hold off dealing with the revelation of the Epstein files.

The lunatic Tariff policies of Trump has totally alienated Canada, which now says the relationship of long standing has been irreparably harmed, and will never be the same.

These are just a few of the horrendous developments going on as Donald Trump destroys the White House, and demands $230 million from taxpayers as compensation for the prosections and convictions he faced for the January 6, 2021 US Capitol Insurrection, which sadly failed to prevent his coming back to the White House in the Presidential Election Of 2024.