News and Politics

Discussion about news and politics

52 Years: From Nixon And Agnew To Trump And Vance!

Ronald 122 Comments

Fifty two years ago, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned under scandal, and ten months later, President Richard Nixon resigned in disgrace, abandoned by his own Republican Party in Congress.

Who would think that a half century later, we would have an outspoken, obnoxious, obsequious sycophant, JD Vance, with few qualifications to be President, being a heartbeat away from the White House, which has in Donald Trump a President far worse and more corrupt than Richard Nixon ever was!

And to top it off, the Republican Party in Congress is a lapdog, unwilling to challenge the President and Vice President, unlike how many of their party did so in the 1970s.

American democracy and the rule of law was under threat back then, and was saved by Gerald Ford and by opposition Democrats who worked together to overcome the worst elements of the Watergate Scandal.

Can we expect a similar situation in the present tense? At this moment, it seems as if we are witnessing the most dire threat to American democracy, since World War II and the Civil War, and it is hard to imagine we will come out of it as a nation based on the US Constitution, and just as we are to “celebrate” the 250th Anniversary of the American Republic and the Declaration Of Independence!

“Red” Rural States To Suffer Most From Increases In Health Care Premiums!

Ronald 2 Comments

The Democratic Party in Congress has refused to sign off on the continuing resolution, leading to a federal government shutdown, due to the reality of the horrendous effect that the cutting of federal subsidies for the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and Medicaid will have on millions of Americans, mostly poor or lower middle class, and most heavily in rural states that are “Red” states.

The Southern States and rural Midwest and Western States, that are strongly Republican in voting patterns, will be harmed the most.

While racial minorities will be greatly affected, so will white rural Americans who voted for Donald Trump in 2024.

This includes states such as Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, South Carolina, West Virginia, Kentucky, Oklahoma, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho, and Wyoming.

The Republican Party, by its refusal to move to restore health care subsidies, is undermining its own electoral future!

Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Maria Corina Machado A Worthy Winner!

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Maria Corina Machado, a human rights advocate of democracy in Venezuela, and a leading critic of the dictatorship headed by President Nicholas Maduro, has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize by the committee that decides that esteemed honor.

Machado is a worthy winner, but faces constant threats to her life, and lives in a state of hiding, as to her security and safety, and may not be able to go to Sweden to receive the award in December.

Twice a Presidential candidate in Venezuela with a great public following of millions of her countrymen, she is described as a “Woman of Steel”, who has devoted her life to promotion of democracy in her nation.

Her children live abroad, due to death threats at home, but she has refused to flee the nation that she loves! She has received many awards for her heroism and principles, most recently on the list of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in April 2025!

Sadly, Donald Trump was critical of the fact that he did not win the Nobel Peace Prize, but there is no way that he deserves it, with the way he deals with other nations, and his growing, belligerent and imperialist attitude toward other nations in the Western Hemisphere, and Trump’s close association with right wing authoritarian governments around the world!

Growing Evidence That Trump Is Planning To Be Aggressive Toward Latin American Neighbors, Reviving American “Imperalism” Historical Record!

Ronald 4 Comments

President Donald Trump came into office for his second term, declaring that he wished to downgrade our involvement in international affairs and overseas wars, attracting the support of isolationists in the Republican Party, which has long had a history of promoting that view, as in the two World Wars of the first half of the 20th century.

However, Trump had no problem in cozying up to authoritarian dictators, including the leaders of the Russian Federation, China, North Korea, Hungary, El Salvador, and elsewhere.

And there is now growing evidence of Trump’s desire to be aggressive toward our Latin American neighbors, and even Canada, displaying his imperalist urges.

So he has, earlier, made an issue of the Panama Canal, and spoken of making Canada “the 51st State”! He is unlikely to abandon these thoughts with still more than three years to go in this term.

But now, Trump, without Congressional authorization, is utilizing his “Commander in Chief” authority to promote attacks on what he believes are boats that are transporting drugs in the Caribbean, and coming from Venezuela, having caused the destruction of four boats, and the deaths of 21 people on board, without any clear cut evidence to have initiated such attacks.

Certainly, the US Navy could have stopped these boats and inspected them, and if need be, arrest those onboard, but just to attack and obliterate the ships and the occupants is a violation of international law, when America is not at war with any nation in the Western Hemisphere.

There are also veiled threats against nations, such as Mexico, Colombia, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and particularly against Brazil, because that nation has convicted its former President for inciting a insurrection, equivalent to the one Trump provoked, and should have been convicted for, if the Biden Administration had only moved faster, to prevent Trump from running again for President in 2024.

Trump’s push to deport hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans, who were supposed to have protection against harsh dictatorships in those nations, is another sign of his antagonism toward Latin America.

We are in for a period of controversial imperialistic ventures by the 47th President, reminding us of past sins toward the Western Hemisphere!

American Urban Areas Dominate Economy, But Are Controlled By Hostile State Governments And Trump Hostility!

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The latest economic statistics demonstrate how American cities and urban areas dominate the American economy.

Metropolitan areas accounted for 90.8 percent of the nation’s economic output; employ 88.2 percent of the American population; and house 86.4 percent of the people of the nation.

The total land mass of cities and urban areas are, overall, a small percentage of the total land of the nation, but rural areas, while certainly significant, particularly in regards to agriculture, have a very small total influence on the nation.

But many state legislatures, dominated by rural conservative and often Republican power centers, make life difficult for their metropolitan areas and populations, not allowing them local control of their policies and prograrms.

And Donald Trump has declared ‘war” on cities, and is utilizing his power to force militarization of cities, with his false accusations of crime and terrorism in the metropolitan areas.

Already, he has caused chaos and disarray in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland Oregon, and seems ready to impose the Insurrection Act of 1807 in an uncalled for, abusive manner as part of his plan to establish an authoritarian, Fascist regime on American democracy!

Open Racism And Nativism Of ICE And Its Leadership! :(

Ronald 22 Comments

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has become an agency promoting a policy of open, clearcut racism and nativism.

ICE has been horribly abusive, perceiving anyone with black or brown skin, or who has a Spanish surname or speaks Spanish as the primary language, as automatically the “enemy”.

Many of the people being picked up by ICE, abused, and often incarcerated in horrendous conditions, are US Citizens, not undocumented immigrants.

The tactics being employed, as recently in the brazen raid on an apartment building in Chicago, of putting children, the elderly, and all the residents of that building in handcuffs, zip ties, and injuring many of the residents, is an outrage that cannot be allowed to continue!

Kristi Noem, Thomas Homan, Stephen Miller, and others that are pushing this abuse of power, must be held accountable, and ICE must be put under control and restrictions, as basic civil liberies are being horribly abused!

With One Month To Go, Virginia And New Jersey Gubernatorial Races Seem Safe For Democrats!

Ronald 11 Comments

With one month to go until the only two state Gubernatorial elections of 2025 in Virginia and New Jersey, signs seem clear that the Democrats are in very good shape.

This is not a time to “rest on laurels”, but Abigail Spanberger in Virginia and Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey are ahead of their Republican opponents, more so the case in Virginia.

Both are women with military careers and national security backgrounds, and their opponents are horrendous alternatives, particularly so in Virginia.

Spanberger served in the CIA, and Sherrill was a Naval Aviator.

So hopefully, there will be a continuation of a “Blue Wave”, which has been showing up in less publicized races to fill state legislative seats and other local races, or House of Representatives vacancies, across America.

The Rapid Decline Of Honest Journalism

Ronald 5 Comments

A very sad and dangerous situation exists, where journalism at all levels has been compromised in the time of the Trump Presidency.

We have seen courageous, challenging journalists such as Terry Moran of ABC News and Jim Acosta of CNN forced out of their positions for the “nerve” to challenge Donald Trump and his supporters on their policies and actions.

We have seen ABC News and CBS News making financial settlements after lawsuits by Donald Trump over their coverage of news and interviews that Trump decided to sue, and the settlements leading to contributions to a future Donald Trump Presidential Library in South Florida.

We have seen major newspapers, such as the Los Angeles Times and Washington Post, making changes designed to avoid alienating Trump.

We have seen late night comedians, such as Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, along with “The View” and “Saturday Night Live” coming under attack, as well as the leadership and tone of “Sixty Minutes” being changed dramatically.

The new ownership of CBS by the billionaire Larry Ellison family is in process of destroying the long held, high level, reputation of that news network, that had such courageous journalists in the past as Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite, and Dan Rather.

The coverage of White House press conferences and other activities, including the Pentagon, has been compromised by Trump, his Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, censoring who can be present, who can ask questions, and denying freedom of speech and press at every turn.

This is all very alarming, as without a free, uncontrolled media environment, and without the ability to have comedy shows that can make fun of government leaders and policies, we are on the road to a total Fascist authoritarian government, which, once accomplished, will be hard to prevent long term damage.

The Trump Cabinet The Worst, Most Corrupt In American History!

Ronald 75 Comments

Past Presidents of the United States have had Cabinet officers who have been corrupt or outrageous in conduct, but never has any President had so many as Donald Trump.

There are no redeeming qualities for most of the Trump Cabinet and other top advisors, but some are the worst of the worst.

This select list would include, in no special order the following nine advisers to Trump:

Secretary of Defense (War) Pete Hegseth
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Attorney General Pam Bondi
Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard
Director of the Office of Management And Budget Russell Vought
White House Border Czar Thomas Homan
White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Miller

Interestingly, when one looks at other Presidents and their Cabinet members, it is reality that Republicans are infamous for presiding over more corruption, particularly so under

Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
Warren G. Harding (1921-1923)
Richard Nixon (1969-1974)
Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)
George W. Bush (2001-2009)
Donald Trump first term (2017-2021)

While there have been some examples of corruption under Democratic Presidents, none of them match anywhere near the level of these six Republican Presidents, including Donald Trump!

Massive Loss Of Federal Workers A Crime Against American Prosperity And Security!

Ronald 2 Comments

The ongoing massive loss of Federal Workers in a multitude of agencies, and the shutting down of various agencies, is a crime against American economic security, and a massive threat to American national security!

Many Americans may think that federal workers, many of them civil service, are insignificant in the daily lives of the nation, but nothing could be further from the truth and reality.

Many of these government workers may not be noticed in a direct sense, but they make all of our lives much more stable, secure, and humane.

The gutting of government agencies, such as USAID, FEMA, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Department of Education, and others, undermines the ability of the nation to continue its mission of protection of the vulnerable, whether national or international.

The effect on government workers, who are in larger numbers in Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia, is already being felt in the rapidly rising unemployment rates in those communities.

Many of these talented workers have devoted their lives to government service, or have recently entered federal service with a commitment to do good, and now, their talents and abilities are lost to the nation and its future.

This is a tragedy of massive proportions, as now, loyalty to Donald Trump and MAGA Republican ideals dominates, instead of competence, decency, integrity, and the vast institutional knowledge of tens of thousands of dedicated federal workers.

This will undermine the American future, both in domestic and foreign policy, and the damage done will be lost for an eternity, and we have to hope and pray it will not do harm to the American Republic in the long term!