stevenkesslar

So this is a morbid post. But if Dana Bash wants to talk about political violence, great. We should be talking about that, and how despicable it is. Number of Donald Trumps killed: Zero Jews killed by Hamas on Oct. 7: 1200, almost all civilians Number of Palestinians killed in Gaza War: 72,000, or about 4 % of the Gaza Palestinian population, about half of whom were women and children Number of Jews killed in World War Two: 6 million, about two thirds of Europe's Jewish population and one-third of the global Jewish population Number of Americans killed in Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor: 2500. About 400,000 Americans died in World War II, almost all military. Number of Japanese killed in US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: 250,000, using high estimates. 2.5 million to 3 million Japanese died during World War Two, about 2 million of whom were military, reducing Japan's population by about 3 % by war's end. Number of Russians killed during World War II: 27 million, the vast majority of whom were civilians. Over 10 % of the population died, reducing it from 197 million to 170 million. Number of Iranians Trump threatened to kill: 93 million, 100 % of the population of a civilization he threatened to end. War is hell. It's debatable whether killing 4 % of Gaza's population is genocide. John Mearsheimer calls it ethnic cleansing. It is insulting that many Jews, and the defenders of these policies, repeat the tired lie that Israel bends over backwards to not harm innocent Palestinians. In my mind that's as true as saying Hamas tried hard not to kill Jewish civilians. What Donald Trump has threatened to do wins the prize for the worst genocidal act ever threatened. I am sure he is not the first leader to make such a threat. But he is for sure the first US President with nukes to do so. He literally threatened to do something even Hitler didn't do. What a fucking monster. And I'm supposed to feel sorry for him? Ha ha ha.

I say give him his gilded bunker and let Patriot Pete and gross old Larry Kudlow suck his cock all day. Kudlow is on Fox publicly calling for America to bomb the shit out of Iran so that it leads to mass starvation. So then they revolt against the "despicable" leaders starving them. What an immoral despicable piece of shit. Let's starve the Iranians we are trying to help so that unarmed starving people revolt against theocrats with guns while bombs are dropping on them. Brilliant! Is this piece of shit more evil than he is stupid? Or more stupid than he is evil? Put him in the fucking gilded bunker with Trump and let them think they are all beloved geniuses. Yes, they all deserve to be assassinated. Yes, The Genocide Jew and our genocidal POTUS are literally asking for that by embracing the idea of assassinating leaders and ending civilizations they don't like. Trump is saying this guy who wanted to assassinate him is "anti-Christian." How about the idea of ending a civilization? Is that maybe a bit anti-Christian? Maybe we should consult with the Pope. If American Jew Dana Bash wants to hold people accountable for murderous and genocidal rhetoric and actions, why isn't she setting her hair on fire about the Genocide Jew? Am I anti-Semitic for agreeing with the growing number of Jewish Israeli organizations saying the Genocide Jew has a policy of genocide that keeps getting him elected in a democratic country? Am I anti-American for saying Trump is a genocidal monster and complete fucking narcissistic moron who started a war most Americans did not ask for and don't want that is making America look like shit? And rising the price of gas and food? While we call for the mass starvation of people we want to help? Give him his fucking ballroom What a horrible piece of shit. My hope is that if the worst part of the American psyche is exposed all over the world for years, maybe the people who voted for this shit and now are having their noses rubbed in the shit they unleashed will learn enough not to do it again. At least not during our lifetimes.

I'll add this to my rant: David Brooks: The World Is Telling The U.S. Your Days As A Superpower Are Over, Trump Should Get The Hell Out Of Iran I realize we are talking about an attempted assassination attempt, not the Iran War. But I am sticking with the idea that the worst leaders in Iran probably hope that Trump is NOT assassinated. They need an asshole likes Trump. Everything I see suggests that Trump is helping the worst, most hardline leaders in Iran consolidate control. He is not even trying to organize the broad but disorganized opposition. There is no question the theocrats are paying a very heavy price for who they are and what they do. But what they have proven is they can survive - so far. And people are not talking about how Trump is destroying Iran. They are talking about how Iran is destroying Trump, and possibly the US. The Iraq War did end America's unipolar moment. In part because even Americans like me concluded if America is going to do shit like this, it does not deserve the job title. Brooks is right of center. But he is hardly the heart and soul of MAGA. Yet as he notes, more and more of the intellectual heavyweights of MAGA America are abandoning ship over this. It's a big stretch to say this ends America's status as a superpower, But unlike in Iraq we have not been able to topple a regime. Which actually was part of the stated goal. To the extent Trump even tried to explain his bizarre and erratic thinking, even many of his own supporters are publicly saying, "What the fuck?" Everyone who didn't support him before this war started now has one more unneeded reason to pray somebody kills him. So Trump can rant all he wants about his ballroom. I don't think the worst hardliners in Iran want him dead. I think they'd loved to have him is his ballroom, looking like the rich demented corrupt lying pig he is. And threatening to nuke a civilization. He is helping them gain control of Iran, and their extremist vision of Iran. And make America look like a global stupid piece of shit. Trump is destroying the global economy, and defense-oriented coalitions that generations of good leaders in both political parties worked hard to build. His obsession with his ballroom and his arch not only prove he is a narcissistic piece of shit. They also suggest he is an increasingly old and demented narcissistic piece of shit, who is leading America to ruin. For all the hits they are taking, the hardliners in Iran must be loving having a fool like this to play. Let's just stipulate you are correct, Sis, and this was staged. My point is: IT AIN'T FUCKING WORKING. It just further confirms what a bizarre and addled brain this piece of shit POTUS has. We have every reason to fear a global recession. And not insignificant reasons to fear a nuclear war. And this senile piece of shit is ranting about a ballroom? Even his own supporters are increasingly alarmed and disgusted with his behavior. And his lack of a brain and a strategy.

So here's my list of three things that make no fucking sense about this. I'm not taking a position on whether this was fake or not. I'm saying regardless of that, it is just a clear sign of what is so fucked up about the time we are living in. 1. If this was fake, what was the motive for doing so? Because as that video of this guy who thinks it was fake proved, it has not changed a fucking thing. Lots of people in America and the world are no doubt thinking, "Too bad Trump wasn't assassinated. The world would be a better place." 2. If this was fake, somehow that was supposed to move the ball forward on his ballroom? Huh? It makes no sense. With the Butler assassination you can at least build a theory that a fake attempt to kill Trump got him sympathy and an almost superhuman aura. It did have that effect for some. Arguably, that day in Butler was when he won the election. Especially compared to feeble Biden, who was his opponent in that moment. But now he needed an assassination attempt to get his ballroom built? I actually hope they build the ballroom and the arch. I am pretty sure this moment in the US will go down in history very badly. We think of FDR and we think of the New Deal and Social Security and winning World War II. In the future we will think of Trump and a ballroom and an arch and national humiliation and losing a war in Iran and ugly and bad things. Iran is not going well now. And like Iraq and Afghanistan it will not end well. 3. What this does do is further confirm we are now living in an age of assassinations and political violence again. And it is now the official policy of The Genocide Jew, and to some extent Trump, to say if we don't like the leaders of another country we will assassinate them. Or destroy the country itself. The Genocide Jew himself came to power because one of Israel's best leaders, who wanted peace, was assassinated. If Iran really wants Trump's brains splattered over the floor, they will probably be able to do so. That's what this proved. Somebody killed JFK. Somebody almost killed Reagan. If Iran really wants to kill Trump, he is a dead piece of shit. And he is almost begging them to do it.

Don't they always have to have someone to blame? It's a reason Trump may want to stay barricaded in his ballroom after 2028. There's probably a good chance a Democrat will succeed him. And when they start detailing all the grifting that is occurring it will make Trump Media look small ball.

I know I shouldn't reveal client secrets. But here goes. I actually have to role play this with Patriot Pete when he pays me to be my submissive. I tie him up, whip his pretty tattoos, and dress up like an Ayatollah and rant at him in unintelligible ways that is supposed to be Farsi. Then as I fuck him I chant, "Whose your Daddy? Whose your Daddy? Donald's your Daddy, isn't he?" Works every time. Makes Patriot Pete cum. Better that than alcoholism. I'm always happy to do the dirty work, Sis.

Rant incoming. I found that interview so depressing. It's a brief interview. But you don't have to watch it to get my point. Most of the interviews I watch - and i watch lots of them - are of critics of Trump and the bombing. So they are talking about why it's going badly. And how this is empowering Iran's theocrats in ways that will hurt American interests. This includes people like John Bolton. Who would love to see regime change in Iran. And would be even harder ass than Trump to achieve it. Even the presumably independent business-oriented experts on CNBC say it's now just a given that the Iranian regime Trump said he wanted to change will forever more have a level of influence over the Strait of Hormuz and the global flow of oil they never had before. Recession, anyone? Robert Pape goes a lot further and says Trump is turning Iran into a regional hegemon and fourth global power. Who will ally with China and Russia against America and the West. Although increasingly "Western" nations don't even want to associate themselves with what Trump's America wants or values. They're all saying, "Let's go talk to China." Walid Phares is a Lebanese-American conservative who was a paid consultant on Romney's 2012 campaign and Trump's 2016 campaign. What's depressing about the interview to me is he keeps bringing it back to one thing: the Iranian people. As Bolton will say, they are the ones who don't like this regime. And they are the ones who smart conservatives say we should have spent huge amounts of time and resources with, to lay the groundwork for change. If we had any hope of seriously making things better for the Iranian people. Which is not what Donald Trump gives a shit about. He keeps saying, "We should take the oil." Phares is less blunt than Bolton. But he's saying the same thing, in my mind. Instead of that, we have Donald Trump's impulses. So the strategy to work with Iran's opposition or people is to get the brilliant idea of threatening to nuke them all. Or blow up their power plants so they can starve to death. Or so the theocrats retaliate by blowing up infrastructure all over the region so that Muslim people can't live there anymore. This is what it is about today. Pape argues that even the pro-democracy movement will be on the side of the regime now, simply because they don't want to get nuked or starve to death. It's truly remarkable that Donald Trump has somehow managed to make George W. Bush and Dick Cheney look like master war strategists. 😱 And I think Mark Halperin got under my skin more than anything. I truly respect him as one of a small group of very smart and well connected people who try very hard to look at it both ways. But in this context, he basically gets to be the Ugly American. Weeks after a war was started that we are losing, or at least that is empowering the theocrats in Iran we all despise, he asks what we can do to arm and train Iran's people. Which of course even George W. Bush would have been planning to do months ago. Halperin often comes off as a Trump lackey these days. A good and honest journalist who wasn't just trying to operate in Donald Trump's good graces might have asked, "Isn't it too late for organizing the opposition? Isn't that precisely why Donald Trump really fucked this up badly?" I'm glad Trump didn't even think of that, given his narcissism and lack of impulse control. I'm pretty sure the generals told every other POTUS, including Bush and Trump 1.0, that if we try this it's just going to end very badly. Including for the people of Iran. So now what has to be delicately managed is how Trump can gracefully lose while he brags about winning. If we are all lucky. I hope Trump burns in hell forever. He has unleashed hell on Iran, America, and the world. He is a stupid, evil, and dangerous man. And listening to smart people like these guys, who want to understand Trump and support him, just reinforces this to me.

It would be funny, if it weren't sad and scary. He does have real political genius. He rode a populist economic wave to power - twice. Underneath which there is real working class pain, and real income inequality. And what did MAGA get out of the deal? A ballroom they will never get to enjoy, and an Arch de Trump.

I could post this interview lots of places, or a new thread, but I will put it here. It is Bill Kristol and AB Stoddard. There are a series of interviews like this between the two that go back to Trump 1.0. They are so weird and scary that they are almost funny - in a tragedy kind of way. And they keep getting weirder and scarier. And these people are the reasonable right-of-center crew. AB mentions all the competent military people fired, and puts it in this context. Every time we think Trump can't possibly be a worse POTUS or human being, he proves us wrong. So who knows what Trump might thinking, or capable of? AB for one things true delusion is thinking that Trump will happily go into the dark night and hand over power to JD or Marco as his successor. No. He'll try some crazy shit, she thinks. So it is weird, and scary, and tragic. And kind of funny that Iran will absolutely crush this worthless piece of shit that is teaching the world to hate America. I have no love for anti-Gay theocrats. But I will truly enjoy watching them destroy this worthless piece of shit and his Presidency. At least what hasn't been destroyed yet. Since the vast majority of America now disapproves of the piece of shit POTUS. including his half-assed self-destructive "no more forever wars" war with Iran. Maybe that is why he doesn't want independent and competent generals around. Trump is a one man brand for destroying America and everything it has ever stood for. It would arguably be an act of mercy to Americans and the world if Iran just took this piece of shit out, so he stopped destroying things. But my guess is they will have more fun gradually destroying his Presidency, in return for all his kindnesses. But back to the generals. Who knows what the worthless piece of shit has in mind. It is scary.

Two of those four issues are the economy: health care for women and rural areas. Immigration is the economy, too. But that is far tricker for Democrats. I don't think health care hurt Democrats in 2020 or 2024. Immigration for sure hurt Democrats in 2024. The poster child for that is Claire McCaskill. But I'll throw in Heidi Heitkamp as well. As recently as 2012 those two could get elected to the US Senate in Missouri and North Dakota. Had those two been Senators rather than Manchin and Sinema, Biden would have barely had the votes. And we could have an expanded child tax credit and see whether my theory about focusing on real and practical economic help would have worked better. To be clear, those child tax credits were not wildly popular among all voters. Meaning mostly among voters who did not get them. In part because there is this whole other issue of "welfare" and creating dependency. But even lots of conservative populists now see this policy, which has strong roots among many Republicans, as a pro-family policy that simply helps kids and helps working class families. Arguably it would be better if we could just restore the millions of factory jobs we lost, mostly under W. But no Democrat or Republican has that magic wand. I will recycle my rant above about Democratic Senators in "red" states, since it is so criitical. I followed the polls closely in 2018. And I was sending money to the Democratic Senators that lost: McCaskill, Heitkamp, Donnelly in Indiana. In Summer 2018 McCaskill was leading in the polls, and health care - for women, for rural areas, for everyone -was a reason why. What changed that is the Kavanaugh thing. What I thought of at the time as The Testicle Vote (aka men) shifted hard and fast against all three of those Democrats in Fall 2018. That turned out to have real consequences for Biden for four years. To be fair, as much as I trash Manchin and Sinema Biden was better off with them than two more Republicans. The problem Democrats face is that I don't think Bernie or AOC or any college-educated socialist can bridge the "culture war" divide. Bernie spent years trying after 2016. He had an army of devoted young people on his side. They hoped by 2020 he could get working class men in places like Michigan and Texas to rally around him. I thought he was particularly good at downplaying culture war issues like reparations. And it was just a bridge too far. In 2020 those people went hard for Biden. I don't think Hillary or Harris could bridge it. Both lost in large part because unlike Bill Clinton, and to a much lesser degree Obama and Biden, they did poorly with the White male Bubba vote that Bill Clinton did well with. But I also don't think Democrats can't win in red states with women. McCaskill and Heitkamp. among others, proved that. I think it does mean Democrats - like those two women - have to focus on the economy and moderate and tone down the culture war issues that keep hurting Democrats. Lots of Gay men despise Bill Clinton because of Gays In The Military. I actually think he was the best Democratic President of my adult lifetime. I put it in the context of history. Arguably, he was Reagan Lite. But he still got his ass kicked in 1994 for being too liberal. Arguably, Clinton's inability to keep his dick in his pants was just bad enough to lose Gore a very tight race in 2000. Although Gore was no gift to campaigning either. My point is, Clinton had huge flaws. But during his 8 years polls show he moved the whole country gradually to the center left, in part by moderating himself. When he left office trust in government was much higher than it was when he arrived. Isn't that what Democrats want? A government that helps, and that people trust? Unlike Clinton, Obama could get a signature health care reform passed. Unlike Clinton or Obama, Biden did not get his ass kicked in 2022 for being too liberal. So I view this as slow progress. Biden governed as the most liberal POTUS since at least LBJ. And he almost got away with it. I will never be sure how I feel about Biden. He was never my first choice. Or second. Or third. But Sanders and Warren could not close the deal. In 2020 Harris didn't even come close. Was the problem for Biden not enough votes? Too much age? Or simply not enough vision? I think all three. He wanted to be FDR. He didn't come close in terms of his legacy. The positive way of saying this is that Democrats did come close. They won in 2020. And they did NOT lose badly in 2024 in an economy ravaged by inflation. In 2028 all of this will likely be working against JD Vance, or whoever Republicans pick. So some Democrat should be able to do that. In theory. I loved Ossoff's speech. I think he uses "corruption" as as an us/them thing. Meaning Trump is part of the Epstein class. At best these rich corrupt fat cats don't give a shit about you, and just want tax cuts while your Medicaid or Medicare or rural hospital suffers. At worst they want to rape your daughter and be above the law. I think that is very effective. Part of the problem is that Ossoff is a liberal college educated policy wonk. So was Bill Clinton. Clinton could hide it by being from Arkansas, speaking like a Bubba, and having a sense Hillary never had of how to avoid becoming a liberal caricature. I think "corruption" gives Ossoff a way to be part of the working class "us". Even though he is, and seems to be, a liberal college educated policy wonk. Ossoff is one of four Democrats I send money to every month (Peltola in Alaska, Talarico in Texas, Brown in Ohio, Ossoff in Georgia. Once Michigan and Iowa and Maine have picked Senate nominees I add them. I assume Cooper will win North Carolina. And if he can't, the other four I just mentioned will likely lose. Hold Georgia and Michigan and win four more and we have a Senate majority.

Difficult moral question, My Beloved Sister In Cock. I consulted with the nuns about it. How do you solve a problem like a maniac? Should Trump be killed for wanting genocide? He said he'd end a whole civilization. That's genocide, too And The Genocide Jew Has tried. Many a times Iran may try to kill him. Maybe just once they even will succeed. I'm tired off all his screeds. Who gives a fuck if he bleeds? No one thinks this is what we really need. Oh how do you solve a problem like a maniac? Should Trump be killed for wanting genocide? And just remember, Sis. We could get JD Vance instead. I consulted with Christopher Plummer He came up with a simple tune. JD Vance JD Vance Every morning you greet me Sycophant Yes man brand I don't want you to lead me. Hillbilly lies told so he can rise He thinks he's so clever. JD Vance JD Vance Hope you will lead me never.

Bingo! I strongly agree with one point, and strongly disagree with another. I agree that Trump won because many Independents and people who don't tune into politics saw him as the more acceptable candidate. To me it was less that he was somehow preferred or trusted. He was the lesser evil. I am really glad I watched Mark Halperin's podcasts with voters a lot in 2024. I don't like his tone sucking up to Trump since Trump won. But in 2024 I think Halperin did a great job just letting voters say what they thought. There was a massive army of voters saying they were trying to figure out whether Trump or Harris were the lesser evil. Biden looked like a wreck, inflation was real, Harris could not close the deal, and Trump played on all that. It is a sign of his arrogance, or dementia, or both that he hasn't really even tried to deliver on his promise to lower prices and end forever wars. So even if Independents and Zoomer men had what could be called "trust" with Trump, I think Trump obliterated that. And, unlike nukes in Iran, I doubt that "oblitereated" trust comes back six months later. Hence Republicans freaking out about the midterms. Where I disagree is that Democrats ranting about Trump is enough. I know this will shock everyone, since it is pretty much unknown. But Trump was impeached. He was indicted. He was convicted as a felon. He was called Hitler - by his own Veep. Even The Divine Miss Graham talked unkindly about him before she got down and obediently licked the shit off his ass. This is not to mention all the corruption and rape and sex and money scandals before 2016 when he was first elected. So, while it is quite unknown, I do think attacking Trump as the piece of shit he is has been tried. And it failed. Actually, it did work once. In 2020. For the reason @RockyRoadTravel said. The economy, stupid. Trump fucked up the economy, thanks in large part to COVID, and he got thrown out of office due to that and his temperament. Now he is doing the same shit again. I want Democrats to focus on the economy. My theory is that one thing could have gotten Harris elected: fighting like hell for those expired child tax credits. My argument is weak, because polling showed clearly that those tax credits never really were wildly popular with the general voting public. But polling also showed they were very popular - and helpful - with the tens of millions of Moms and Dads who got them. And a lot of those working class Moms and Dads voted for Trump in 2024, as far as I can tell. Democrats could not even produce a small monthly subsidy that did help offset rising prices for tens of millions of Hispanic, White, Black, and Asian working class families. Again, many of whom voted for Trump because of rising prices. I don't think Kamala Harris talking about democracy with Liz Cheney and Trump's corruption, all while prices rose and Democrats failed to win what they said they were fighting for, was enough to close the deal. The tax credits cut child poverty in half for one year, and then were allowed to expire when Manchin and Sinema refused to support extending them. Biden even in his best moments could not change that. But my theory is that if Democrats consistently fought like hell for good ideas people care about, eventually they would not need Joe Manchin or Kristen Sinema. They could get Sherrod Browns in Ohio and Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota and Claire McCaskill in Missouri, who did and would support economic help for the working class. If we could again elect Democrats in those working class "red" states. The proof of theory as I see it is Mexico. This is what AMLO and Sheinbaum did consistently for years. They literally put money in the hands of the poor and seniors. They fought for and raised wages for the Mexican working class. It was and is wildly popular. They are populists. And a lot of college educated people in Mexico don't like them. But they win because, like in the US, the majority is not college educated people who are affluent and care about democracy. They care about the economy, stupid. Democrats should be doing what Mexico is doing. All it takes is one leader who fights, like AMLO or Sheinbaum. Because AMLO fought like hell for decades Sheinbaum actually does not have to fight as hard. The wind is at her back. At least for now. Maybe we will find such a leader by 2028. If not, I don't think talking about democracy and why Trump sucks is enough. Carney to me is arguably a distant Canadian version of the same. Definitely not an AMLO. More like opposite, as a technocrat. But his secret sauce now is that he is telling Canadians loud and clear that he will fight like hell for Canada. Including by calling out Trump for the weak stupid pussy Trump is. Trump did argue successfully enough in 2024 that I will fight for you, while Kamala fights for us/them. It was a great line. But now he has lost that fight. The question is whether any Democrat can now win it.

And I guess I have no idea whatsoever how to spell. I just noticed I named the wrong country, Iraq, when I of course meant Iran. And I can't change that typo after an hour. But the Republicans seem to have no idea whatsoever. After Afghanistan and especially after Iraq, it is understandable that Trump was able to con people into voting for lower prices and no more more forever wars. Oh well. I don't think a lot of his voters ever really trusted him. They simply gave him a chance, based on the words coming out of his lying conniving mouth. Oops! I think with that segment of voters, every one of which he and his party needs, they are fucked. Now the question is whether Democrats can actually offer anything better than this.

Ya think? It is a remarkable and well deserved turn in fortune against Trump. I think it confirms what both of us are saying. If we are talking reality, not perception, you are right that Trump is a worthless dangerous piece of shit. Although I wouldn't put it that kindly. 😉 If we are talking perception, Trump moved 70 FUCKING POINTS with Independents. Meaning Independents had a 10 % preference for Trump over Harris on inflation when he was running in 2024. Now he has - 60 points net disapproval on inflation with Independents. I think what makes it worse for Trump is this is all clearly his own stupid judgment and broken promises. Neither Biden nor Trump chose COVID, or the inflation it resulted in.. Trump chose to go to war with Iraq and spike oil prices. Although he claims he had no idea whatsoever that Iran might retaliate that way. He may be telling the truth for once. The piece of shit's ego clearly won't let him even consider the possibility that Iran is outsmarting him. What a stupid worthless piece of shit. Now what Independents need to do is put Democrats in power to restrain him for the last two miserable years of his sorry ass Presidency.

Spoiler alert: rant incoming. I don't disagree that Trump botched COVID. There were many nails in his coffin in 2020. And that was for sure one of them. But one of the reasons he won again in 2024 is people remember that "the Trump economy" from 2017 to 2020, pre-COVID, seemed to be pretty good. I'm not making a statement about whether that is objectively true. I am making a statement that polling showed that is how people remembered it. I'm pretty sure a lot of that feeling was that the inflation that happened under Biden - and to the whole world thanks to COVID - just was not a reality during Trump 1.0. Susie Wiles was sure able to help capitalize on that in campaign messaging, when Trump listened to her. I've had a nice but weird series of discussions with one of my brothers about this, who I refer to as a McCain Republican. He's really mostly apolitical. But he loved John McCain as a fellow Navy guy. So this brother voted for Trump in 2016. When I asked him why, he said, "Whatever he does, it's going to be interesting." I said, "Yes. Nuclear war is interesting. It doesn't mean it's good." That zinger of mine still might prove prescient. I think being an infrequent voter who like most people isn't a fan of government my brother just liked the "break the glass" quality about Trump. That changed bigly by 2020. By then this brother was raging way more than me, the real lefty in the family, about how Trump was a "megalomaniac." He now despises Trump. He of course voted for Biden in 2020, and Harris in 2024. But when I asked him who he would have voted for in 2020 if he had only voted on the economy, he immediately said, "Trump." When I asked him why, he said, "my retirement account was worth a lot more." Stock market did pretty well under Trump. And Biden, too, of course. I'm sure this was a huge part of why young Zoomers who had no real recollections of Trump 1.0 when they were in high school were willing to give him a chance. The economy, stupid. They for sure didn't like high rent and mortgage rates under Biden. Even my left-of-center nieces and nephews who were paying high rent or high mortgage rates were not happy with Biden at all. Final point, which was an interesting poll outlier. In every election since 2004 CNN asks if you are better or worse off than four years ago. No surprise, people who say they are better off vote overwhelmingly like 2 to 1 or more for the incumbent party. People who say they are worse off vote overwhelmingly against the incumbent party, also 2 to 1 or more. People who say they are the same as four years ago usually split their vote 50/50 or so But 2020 was different. So this is the third question down in that exit poll. No surprise, people who felt better off financially under Trump 1.0 voted like 3 to 1 for Trump. And people who felt worse off voted 3 to 1 for Biden. Note that even in Nov. 2020 after months of COVID 40 % said they felt better off and only 20 % said they felt worse off financially after four years of Trump. Had this been like 2004, 2008, 2012, or 2016, Trump would have won. In all those other years the people who said they were about the same financially split their votes 50/50. But for some reason in 2020 people who said "about the same" voted overwhelmingly for Biden, 65 to 34. I think it was Trump's craziness that nailed his coffin shut in 2020. That was for sure true in the family example I gave above. Another indicator of it in this same 2020 survey is that 49 % of voters said only Biden had the right temperament to be POTUS, and they all voted for Biden. 39 % of voters said only Trump had the temperament to be POTUS, and they all voted for Trump. People who said either "both" or "neither" had the right temperament still voted heavily for Trump. But the math problem both in 2020 and 2024 is about half of America is deeply convinced Trump is a lying dangerous asshole not fit to lead. He is an idiot who bombs innocent girls and lies about it. Why would any sane country want this piece of shit as their leader? Other than America, of course! 🤔 So sorry for rambling. But I hope Iran does not return the favor and assassinate this piece of shit. I want to see him bleed out like the worthless piece of shit he is. In 2020 I think the economy mostly did work in Trump's favor. Even if it was just his good luck to inherit an economy that Team Obama, and/or time, healed. But now the piece of shit has both a shitty economy in the eyes of a majority, and his own evil temperament. So he is headed to a worse fate than 2020, I think. Please Iran, do not assassinate Trump the worthless piece of shit. Yes, he is warmonger who kills Iranian leaders and Iranian girls. He is a weak pathological liar who can not even admit he kills children and lies about it. But don't you think he deserves to suffer the one thing he can't stand? That the whole world increasingly views him as a failed worthless piece of shit?

Magyar is still right of center. So he's not exactly my ideological dreamboat, since I am a Berniecrat or a Warren Boy at heart. That said, as Politico noted in a very good article, he is part of what is seemingly a global movement of personality-driven political figures who are not the status quo. And who promise to break the status quo. Which was sorely needed in Hungary. But it is a mixed bag. The American version of "break the status quo" is Trump. Ugh! I am lovin on two countries now: Canada, and Mexico. Aka, my neighbors. They are both respectfully telling Trump's America to go fuck itself. Since I don't consider myself to be part of Trump's America, and I have zero respect for that part of my country, I hope they actually do go fuck themselves. I love seeing Trump die death by a thousand wounds. Please, world leaders. Stab the immoral rapist lying genocidal stupid piece of shit in the back. In the face. In the fat ankles. Make the stupid reckless piece of shit Trump keep bleeding out politically. He is a massive fucking disgrace. What a total piece of shit. Stab him. Take any dull instrument you have and make the worthless piece of shit bleed out just a little more politically. That is what Canada and Mexico are doing, in very different ways. Carney is The Establishment Figure who probably would have lost, since people grew tired of Trudeau. But he ran against Trump, who is an insult to Canada as well as the whole world. So he is stabbing Trump in the face. I fucking love it. Trumo can say any stupid fucking thing he wants and more and more people just laugh at the stupid reckless piece of shit and the country that elected him. We deserve it. Sheinbaum is stabbing Trump in the back. As much as anyplace in the world, Mexico is under the grips of a working class-based somewhat authoritarian movement that actually is working well for the working class. And is left of center. I love it. I wish we had that in America. Maybe someday we will. It seems like at first Sheinbaum did what a typical Mexican does, and gave America - and Trump - the respect it deserved. But now that the worthless stupid raping lying genocidal piece of shit Trump is bleeding out politically, she is standing up against him a bit more. It all weakens the doomed piece of shit stab by stab. And Iran has absolutely castrated the worthless weak piece of shit. Trump's narcissistic personality will not allow him to believe he lost. But he lost. He promised regime change. What a fucking joke. Instead he killed Iranian girls and lied about it. What an immoral raping lying piece of shit. A moral disgrace to the whole world. Yeah, the Gay-murdering theocrats in Iran suck. But so does The Genocide Jew, who dragged us into this. And so does Genocide Trump, who publicly threatened to end a civilization. The Genocide Jew and Genocide Trump are worthless and wrong. I hope The Genocide Jew and Genocide Trump end up chained to Yasser Arafat in hell forever. Three weak pieces of shit who had no courage and used violence to lead. They all deserve to burn in hell forever, as far as I am concerned. So Hungary's change is like an appetizer. I want Genocide Trump and The Genocide Jew taken out, slowly and painfully. I am pretty sure now I will get my wish with Trump. Iran already took the stupid asshole's testicles. The rest will be fun to watch. Not so sure about The Genocide Jew. Israel is turning more right wing be the day. Killing innocent Palestinians and Iranians only makes The Genocide Jew more popular. It's a shame.

And in his pool. He likes water sports. If a guy takes a job that allows Donald Trump to piss all over him, and requires complete obedience to his Master, aka The Warmonger King, what does that tell you about his proclivities?

And then there are nukes. 🤔 I've been listening a lot to Robert Pape. I have no idea what his politics are. But in the context of Iran, he sounds like an expert in the field who has correctly predicted how Trump's war would backfire, at least so far. The regime did not change. Oil prices did. He predicted all that. Professor Pape: Trump Ceasefire Will FAIL As War Metastasizes He recently wrote a NYT op/ed that this is going to help Iran gradually emerge as a fourth world power, with China and Russia and Iran all aligned against the US. Which is increasingly alone and disrespected. Basically, that which does not kill the theocracy makes it stronger. And it guarantees that they will now be on a relentless drive to get nukes. Obviously, America is winning. As @PeterRS notes a few posts up, I am sure genuine true blooded pure real American voters (no filthy Mexicans or socialist Canadians or shit hole immigrants, please!) will thank Trump in November for all the winning he is doing for us. 🤪 As Pape in the interview above notes, the one thing JD Vance stressed is the US (and, more importantly, The Genocide Jew) will not tolerate a nuclear Iran. Granted, JD flip flops. Trump was Hitler, now he is Jesus, if you hadn't heard. Pape argues most Iranians probably would now agree that Theocrats With Nukes is the one thing that will stop Trump or a future US autocrat from blowing the shit out of them. Even if they dislike theocrats themselves, which many do. So this is not on a path to peace, he believes. If he is right, it gets worse. Which is why @PeterRS is likely right. This will get settled at the ballot box. And it won't surprise me if Warmonger In Chief Trump and The Genocide Jew get the bright idea of nuking Iran first.

Sir! Some respect, please. I may be a conniving bitch. But one thing I won't do is move into my Beloved Sister In Cock @Suckrates' territory. She has dibs on Mamdani. And I am just happy that she enjoys him, in all his male glory. Meanwhile, I have made a small fortune as a highly paid escort drilling Pete Hegseth's ass when he feels the urgent need to be tied up and dominated. That is, of course, something Donald Trump can't do for him. It's an ugly job, that is emotionally draining. But for the good of the US, someone has to do it. How else is the US going to keep winning til we get tired of it? 🤪

Great song, Sis. I just had to get up on my feet and dance.

North Korea? 😁 They love autocrats there. Let's send JD to keep Viktor company. It's a nice little preview of how great it will feel when Orban wannabe Trump is gone, too. From Politico on the new Hungarian government: Happily, Trump never won 50 % of the vote, and never had the staying power of Orban. He hasn't degraded institutions nearly as much. Maybe there is hope for America yet. Despite that, Trump has managed to fuck up so much all over the world in the last year. His stench will last for a long time. It would be nice to think this is all about how much Hungary loves democracy. But they tolerated nationalist authoritarianism for a long time. It seems like it is more about a shitty economy. Which is what brought Trump barely to power again in 2024, anyway. So Democrats better be focused on the economy, not just Trump bashing.

I'm not sure either side is all that serious. The US seems to be to doing what The Genocide Jew wants. The Genocide Jew's stated policy is to kill all Iran's leaders. Trump is now all in on genocide with his threat to kill all Iranian people. This could be a difficult negotiation. Who knew? Certainly not our Shit For Brains Arrogant Dumb Fuck Rapist Convict Narcissist President. Iran and Russia benefit both financially and politically from this. If The Genocide Jew continues to drag the US into Genocide Jew Nation's endless war whoring, so The Genocide Jew can avoid jail. I don't see why Iran isn't smart enough to make the whole world pay for it in terms of higher oil prices. Makes lots of money to make lots of bombs in Iran and Russia. Stupid piece of shit Trump did not think that through. Then again, he could destroy Iran with nuclear weapons. That will go down well, won't it? Piece of shit Trump did not think that through, either. Our military is clearly very powerful. But Trump is still a pussy who makes pussy threats about genocide. China will pay for this in oil prices. But my guess is they don't mind watching the US self-destruct while they act as of the voice of peace. Piece of shit Trump handed them that gift, too. Who could have seen all this brilliance coming? 😉

Trump's definitely in a pissed off mood, as Pam Bondi learned recently. Although I can't blame Trump. All this winning must be so tiring! 😉

He lost the war, although he never admits to losing. I never thought I would be listening to John Bolton's "good" judgment. That said, I respect Bolton's logic. Unlike Trump, Bolton has logic and strategy. Not just reptilian instinct and self defense. Bolton's point is if you are gonna go after a snake, or a lion, or a tiger, you better have a plan to win decisively. You have to kill it. Or it will kill you. He said any war against Iran only makes sense if it is committed to regime change. Aka "boots on the ground" and lots of dead Amewricans. In military terms this is kinda sorta like The Powell Doctrine. Win what you plan to win with decisive force that you know is decisive force. Otherwise, you suck and lose. Ego Baby King Trump forgot all that cause he thought after Venezuela his shit didn't stink. Even South Park's "Respect My Authority" Cartman is smarter than this losing piece of shit. He's gonna tank the stock market this year and tank the GOP Senate and House. He is a worthless stupid losing piece of shit. If Iran manages to return the kindness and assassinate his stupid loser ass, as he takes America and the world down the shitter, who is gonna cry about it? What a total piece of shit. That said, AND I MEAN THIS SERIOUSLY, the anti-Gay theocrats in Iran better fucking beware. If you touch Melania or her shoes, I will kill you all.

My Canadian sister-in-law surprised me. I told her recently I thought the US was fucked for good. Like this is the moment in history when America ceded global superpower status to China, whether we realize it or not yet. We are beyond question stupidly and ignorantly trashing every alliance we spent a century or more building. She was more optimistic. Slightly surprisingly, given that she has a whole family and friend network of people pissed off about the 51st state thing. Not to mention serious economic injury added to the insult. She thinks when there is a new POTUS, things may blow over eventually. Count on Canadians to look at the bright side, I guess. If we did not just put China in the driver's seat, it is only because even stupid unhinged democratic capitalism still beats state capitalist authoritarianism. I can see a possible upside, if I really want to wish and, perhaps, pray. I read some interview with Jerry Brown years ago. While he spent a life as an utter pragmatist when it came to governing, he's always had this quasi-religious, prophetic aura going back to Governor Moonbeam. He was talking almost off the cuff about how we really ought to be spending more time thinking about how to avoid a war with China. Because things can escalate quickly, and end badly. This interview had nothing to do with Trump. Just a long term assessment of how easy it is for things to quickly spin out of control. We are now in that moment. So the silver lining on this cloud is the adults in the room maybe will be motivated to speak up and take over. Carney is an adult. I'm not sure the middle powers concept will get as much traction as he wants. But it is sure worth the effort. As a citizen of the country of guns and endless school shootings, I ain't holding my breath. I hope my Canadian sister-in-law knows better.