Joe Biden

Kamala Harris Memoir Burns Bridges, Likely Insures End Of Political Career!

Ronald 2 Comments

Former Vice President Kamala Harris, by publishing a memoir with strong statements about many political leaders she has worked with, is likely burning her bridges, making it highly doubtful that she will ever again hold public office.

History records that once a Presidential nominee has lost election to the White House, the odds are extremely high that such individual will never be President.

There are only six cases of a defeated Presidential nominee going on to be elected President–three before the Civil War, once in the Gilded Age, once in the mid 20th century, and finally, Donald Trump.

Two of the cases–Grover Cleveland and Donald Trump– won the Presidency, then lost, and then returned, so unusual and special cases. In the case of Cleveland, he won in 1884, lost in 1888, and won in 1892. Trump won in 2016, lost in 2020, and won in 2024.

The three before the Civil War were Thomas Jefferson, who lost in 1796 and won in 1800; Andrew Jackson, who lost in 1824, and won in 1828; and William Henry Harrison, who lost in 1836 and won in 1840.

Finally, Richard Nixon lost in 1960, but then won in 1968 and 1972.

So the odds of Harris coming back are very low, but additionally, by being critical of Joe and Jill Biden and the Biden Staff, and stating her reasons for not selecting Josh Shapiro or Pete Buttigieg as her Vice Presidential running mate instead of Tim Walz, has caused controversy and a sense of anger by those individuals and others.

And it is generally well known that Kamala Harris was not an easy person to work for, losing staff regularly in the Senate and the Vice Presidency.

One gets the feeling from her appearance on Rachel Maddow, and on “The View”, that she does not seem to have the “fire in the belly” to compete in another strenuous Presidential campaign.

It would have been easier for Harris to have run for California Governor, with assurance of an easy victory, and a major role in the largest state’s impact in reaction to Donald Trump and the Republican Party, just like Gavin Newsom is now waging.

So it seems clear this is the end of any serious “comeback” by Kamala Harris to national politics.

Instead, she is on a major speaking tour to promote her book, and to spread the argument of strong opposition to the horrors of Donald Trump, but not a formal national or state role in that effort.

Trump Is Promoting Division, Rather Than Unity, After Charlie Kirk Murder!

Ronald 16 Comments

In past times, when shocking events and tragedies occurred, whoever was President of the United States promoted a sense of unity, rather than division.

Such was the case when John F. Kennedy was assassinated, followed by Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, all under the Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson.

Such was the case when September 11 occurred, under the Presidency of George W. Bush.

Such was the case when Donald Trump faced an assassination threat in 2024, under the Presidency of Joe Biden.

The four former Presidents—Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden–all issued compassionate and unifying statements after the tragic murder of Charlie Kirk on this past Wednesday.

But Donald Trump, as usual, is promoting division and threats, and making claims about the assassin, which are totally untrue.

Instead of “lowering the temperature” of the rhetoric, he is escalating the potential of political violence!

The assassin was a straight white Utah Mormon, whose family are Trump supporters, not some liberal or socialist or gay or Muslim or immigrant or Latino or anything remotely related to the so called Left!

Donald Trump Is Underming Multiple Areas Of American Progress

Ronald 66 Comments

After seven and a half months of his second term, President Donald Trump has used a “wrecking ball” that has undermined multiple areas of American progress of past Presidents and Congresses.

Trump has undermined a stable American foreign policy, upending our relationship with NATO and our Asian allies, and encouraging aggression by dictatorships worldwide.

Trump has undermined our heritage of civil rights and civil liberties progress, from the time of Lyndon B. Johnson onward.

Trump has undermined environmental and consumer protection, which has been a guidepost since the time of Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.

Trump has undermined America’s economic progress with his crazy, mad dash toward tariffs that are already showing signs of bringing about an economic recession and make life more difficult for anyone not of the wealthy upper class.

Trump has declared war on immigrants, upending the concept of tolerance and the essential need for a work force that includes foreigners who wish to become part of the “American Dream”.

Trump has shown total lack of compassion, decency, ethics, morals and tolerance toward anyone not white male Christian, including setting back progress for nonwhites, women, gays and lesbians, and disabled people.

Trump has undermined the independence of universities, the news media, corporations, and law firms, all threatening American democracy and its institutions.

So Trump has declared war on much of the 20th and 21st century progress from Theodore Roosevelt to Joe Biden, Presidents and Congresses of both political parties!

Republican Vice Presidents Since 1969—Vance The Worst Of The Worst Since Spiro Agnew! :(

Ronald 4 Comments

In the past 56 years, we have had six Republican Presidents—Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H W Bush, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump.

In that same period, we have had eight Republican Vice Presidents—Spiro Agnew, Gerald Ford, Nelson Rockefeller, George H W Bush, Dan Quayle, Dick Cheney, Mike Pence, and JD Vance.

It is well recognized that three of these six Republican Presidents are rated higher than the other three—meaning Ronald Reagan, George H W Bush, and Gerald Ford.

George W. Bush, Richard Nixon, and Donald Trump are in the bottom third, with Trump nearly at the total bottom.

When one looks at the eight Republican Vice Presidents, only Gerald Ford, Nelson Rockefeller, and George H W Bush are seen as above average.

Ranking the remaining five is ranking as much lower and far worse in performance, with Spiro Agnew seen as the bottom, but with Dan Quayle and Dick Cheney seen as not much better, and with Mike Pence just slightly above them.

And then, there is the present Vice President, JD Vance, who in seven months has managed to cause outrage by his utterances and his actions, making one fear the thought that he might be the successor to Donald Trump.

At age 41, if Vance became President by succession before the summer of 2027, he would be the youngest President in American history, as Theodore Roosevelt was 42 years and 10 and a half months of age when he succeeded the assassinated William McKinley in September 1901.

Compared to his predecessor, Mike Pence, Vance has managed to be much more controversial, and makes one at least admire Pence for having strong convictions, including refusing to accept Donald Trump’s assertion that he should support a rejection of the Electoral College results in the Presidential Election of 2020.

This led to the threatened hanging of Mike Pence by the January 6, 2021 US Capitol Insurrectionists, who had set up a noose outside the building.

One cannot be sure that Vance would be any improvement on Donald Trump, as he is clearly totally unprincipled and insensitive in his statements and actions, and therefore, cannot be trusted as a potential future Commander in Chief.

Vance should be promoting the preservation of American democracy, but seems more interested in supporting the authoritarianism of Donald Trump, which presents a dire threat to the Bill of Rights and the Constitution.

By comparison, the Democratic Party has had four Vice Presidents since 1969—Walter Mondale under Jimmy Carter; Al Gore under Bill Clinton; Joe Biden under Barack Obama; and Kamala Harris under Joe Biden.

While the view of Harris is too recent to be reliable, any estimation of the significance of Mondale, Gore, and Biden makes it clear that they are the top three Vice Presidents of modern times, and arguably, of all time!

Trump’s Three Hour Rant At Cabinet Meeting, Including Talk Of Being A Dictator, An Alarm Bell Ringing!

Ronald 23 Comments

The latest Trump Cabinet meeting, lasting more than three hours, is an elaboration of earlier meetings where the Cabinet members engage in mind boggling praise of the President.

Groveling and flattery have become predominant in a way never occurring before with any other President.

Watching and listening to the effusive praise, which reminds one of the equivalent such behavior toward Kim Jong Un of North Korea, Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation, and other authoritarian figures past and present, is enough to make one wish to vomit.

And Trump ranting for over three hours, clearly mentally unhinged, and talking about some thinking he should be a dictator, is extremely alarming.

It is clear that his mental state is, without a doubt, in deterioration before our eyes, and yet no one speaks up, and even the news media, while noticing, do not go after Trump, as many did toward Joe Biden, who was never in such a disastrous mental state as Trump clearly is.

Is Donald Trump The New Neville Chamberlain Of Appeasement?

Ronald 24 Comments

Eighty Seven years ago, in October 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain made a deal with Nazi Germany’s dictator Adolf Hitler, to hand over, peacefully, part of the nation of Czechoslovakia (the Sudetenland), to avoid possible war, without consulting that nation.

Less than a half year later, Germany seized the rest of Czechoslovakia, and then in September 1939, World War II began.

Chamberlain went down in history for the act of appeasement, making it clear for all time that one does not give in to a dictator, in the thought that doing so will prevent future conflict.

Rather, one must stand strong and be willing to defend freedom and democracy.

Generations of students have been taught this lesson, but now, Donald Trump seems ready to kowtow to Russian Federation dictator Vladimir Putin at the upcoming Alaska Summit this Friday, over the issue of the continuing assault on Ukraine since February 2022.

European nations in NATO and President Joe Biden have supported and supplied Ukraine with the ability to resist the Russian invasion, which has been brutal, but now Trump seems ready to hand over a portion of Ukraine to Putin, rewarding an aggressor, whose intention is to conquer all of that nation, in his bid to restore the former Russian Empire.

Trump, already perceived as overly willing to favor Russia, including the reality that Putin wanted Trump elected in 2016, and collaborated in bringing that result about, is ready to commit appeasement, undermining the international order, and with no concern for Ukranian democracy.

Already, the horrendous mistreatment of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Oval Office meeting in February was disgraceful beyond belief, and with Vice President JD Vance another disgraceful appeaser in his own right, joining in the assault on Zelenskyy before the entire world.

Vladimir Putin KNOWS he has the number of Donald Trump, and international stability is in danger, as all Trump wants is to win the Nobel Peace Prize, no matter what harm it does to democracy around the world.

If anything, Trump should win an award for the Appeasement Prize as the successor to Neville Chamberlain, whose reputation in history lies in tatters!

A Time To Celebrate: 17 Years Of “The Progressive Professor”, But Also A Time To Mourn The Demise Of The American Experiment! :(

Ronald 4 Comments

Today, August 11, marks precisely SEVENTEEN years of this author and blogger publishing commentary on this blog, “The Progressive Professor”, that was created in 2008, with the support and encouragement of my older son, David Feinman, who knew I had a passion to share my thoughts on American history, government and politics with others!

In those 17 years, there have been to date 8,550 articles published, and 28,532 comments made by my readers and followers. The comments added have been invaluable, and have, immensely, improved the whole concept of the blog, so I wish to thank all of those individuals who have committed themselves to contributing their thoughts and ideas, to the benefit of all those who read the blog daily.

In the present political climate, one cannot be certain that there will be a continuation of the blog long term, as these are dangerous times to be expressing thoughts, many of them critical, of events and personalities.

We may be witnessing the collapse of American democracy, the Constitution, and the rule of law, and we may not survive the Presidency of Donald Trump, with the ability to restore what we had over nearly 250 years–an evolving nation with many faults which moved toward “a more perfect union”.

That has been destroyed by a quarter century of deceit and right wing extremism, motivated from the time of the Presidential Election of 2000, when Al Gore was denied the Presidency in favor of George W. Bush by a Supreme Court which showed it had no principles other than promoting aggrandizement of the nation by the wealthy.

Barack Obama came along and gave us hope of recovery, but faced great and fierce opposition, and the right wing extremist factions worked to, once again, undermine the American experiment by denying Hillary Clinton the Presidency in 2016 in favor of Donald Trump, who had ill intentions from the beginning.

Donald Trump worked at destroying the American Republic, and the nation was only, miraculously, saved in 2020 by the good fortune of Joe Biden coming along at the right time.

But the right wing forces attempted a coup d’etat, an Insurrection, NOT as some people claimed just a “riot”, but now being wiped out as if it never happened, as those who were involved in criminal acts have been “exonerated” by Trump pardons.

But the “disease” promoted by Trump and minions–the spreading of nativism, racism, misogyny, and homophobia by religious extremists—managed to convince gullible and poorly educated Americans to vote in 2024 to overcome and destroy the Republic that they did not fully appreciate, a shocking development.

Now, the rest of us are forced to suffer the ignorance, stupidity, and bias of ill informed and ill educated people, and are seeing our civil liberties destroyed.

Personally, having retired completely from teaching at the university level after 53 years, this author and blogger is, fortunately, continuing to give lectures to adults and senior citizens in South Florida, but it is difficult to predict what will happen in the short run and long run regarding this blog.

I just wish to hope for the best for myself, and all those who read my blog, as we move forward to chart whatever the future brings, which at this moment, does not look promising.

The future seems, sadly, likely to see the promotion of authoritarianism; the collapse of the economy with destructive tariffs; and the triumph of evil in international affairs, as witnessed by the Russia-Ukraine War and the Israel-Gaza War.

Thanks again, for your support and encouragement, to all those who read and contribute to this blog.

Past Presidential Disputes Never Anything Like Trump With His Predecessors!

Ronald 5 Comments

Donald Trump’s incessant attacks on many of his predecessors in the White House is unparalleled in American history!

Trump has attacked over the years not only Barack Obama, but also Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and both Presidents Bush in vehement and outrageous ways.

In the past, there were cases of “bad blood” between Presidents, but nothing on the scale of what Trump has done.

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had strong criticism of each other, as well as Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams, and neither Adams attended the inauguration of his successor. But later, Adams and Jefferson revived their former friendship, with extensive letter correspondence over the last 14 years of their lives.

John Tyler, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan were unhappy with Abraham Lincoln’s policies during the Civil War.

Andrew Johnson had issues with his successor, Ulysses S. Grant, and refused to attend Grant’s inauguration.

Theodore Roosevelt fought bitterly against his own annointed successor, William Howard Taft, and challenged him in 1912, and both TR and Wilson were at odds very often with Woodrow Wilson.

Herbert Hoover was very bitter in his loss to Franklin D. Rooosevelt, and during the terms that FDR was in office, probably more vehement than any other situation other than Trump, and FDR never invited Hoover to visit the White House.

Harry Truman was critical of Dwight D. Eisenhower to some extent, and he and Richard Nixon were dire enemies, until Nixon brought the Truman piano in the White House to the Truman Library in 1969.

Jimmy Carter tended to be critical of other Presidents, but in the case of Gerald Ford, they became the best of friends after both had left office. Carter remained a strong critic, but in a dignified manner, of George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump.

Despite past rivalries, both Bush Presidents and Bill Clinton became good friends in later years, and the same for Barack Obama and the two Bushes.

It is extremely inappropriate for the members of the “Presidents Club” to be lambasting others in that group, and it was refreshing that Carter and Ford became friends, and that the Bushes and Clinton were cooperative, as well as Obama with the Bushes.

But then, Donald Trump has destroyed the idea of camaraderie among the small, select group who have the opportunity to be President of the United States.

MAGA Republicans Turn Against Trump On Epstein Scandal!

Ronald 17 Comments

Shocking to believe Steve Bannon, Megyn Kelly, Laura Ingraham, Tucker Carlson, Charlie Kirk, Marjorie Taylor Greene, even Laura Loomer, and many other MAGA Republicans, are furious at Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi, for “covering up” the details on the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. This became evident at a right wing rally of “Turning Point USA” in Florida this past weekend.

This includes the indication that a prominent list of famous and wealthy public figures, likely including Donald Trump among them, had sexual relations with girls as young as 13, on Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean.

Also, the question whether Epstein committed suicide while in prison in 2019, or was murdered to cover up the so called “Client’s List”, is causing an eruption that is out of control, and undermining Trump support.

There are rumors that deputy FBI head Don Bongino, and even FBI Director Kash Patel, may also resign over this matter.

But this morning, unbelievably, some of the MAGA faithful seem to be backing away from criticism, and choosing to believe the report of Attorney General Pam Bondi, that there is no “Client’s List” of Epstein, and the attempt of Democrats to want an investigation in the House of Representatives failed to gain more than one Republican vote, so apparently, no investigation is likely!

And yet, MAGA Republicans are ready to accuse Joe Biden of all kinds of corruption, as they did with Bill Clinton, showing the total hypocrisy of Trump’s party!

Donald Trump Has Set Out To Destroy “The Great Society” And “The New Deal”!

Ronald 32 Comments

Clearly, Donald Trump and his “Project 2025” has set out to destroy “The Great Society” of Lyndon B. Johnson, and given time and ability, the next goal is to wipe out “The New Deal” of Franklin D. Roosevelt!

IF the Democrats do not win control of the House of Representatives in the Midterm Congressional Elections of 2026, nothing will stand in the way of further destruction of federal agencies and programs.

The ability to win the US Senate is a tall order, but Democrats must find a way to flip four seats, and not lose any of their members.

Otherwise, the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), already under attack, will be also under threat, as well as environmental reforms promoted by Theodore Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Joe Biden!

The last century and more of reforms will be under danger of total destruction!