The Conversation -- June 15, 2025
Here's a summary of yesterday's protest in Austin, Texas, from KUT, the local NPR station. Thanks to laura h. for the link: "The scene at the Capitol remained peaceful as crowds listened to speakers including U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett and state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, both Democrats representing Austin." ~~~
~~~ Marie: From what I've read today, it appears to me that across the nation there were millions of people protesting, and almost every one was nonviolent. On the other hand, in a few places, extreme violence was waged against them: a shooting in Salt Lake City, a vehicular attack in Culpeper, Va.
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Thank you to everyone -- including Jeanne & Victoria B. -- who protested yesterday.
Annie Gowen of the Washington Post: “Americans turned out en masse in communities across the country Saturday, raucously pushing back on what they see as ... Donald Trump’s widening authoritarianism, attacks on immigrants and deep cuts to scores of federal programs.... Relatively few disruptions were reported during rallies where the mood ranged from joyful to defiant.... [Demonstrators] carried hand-lettered signs focused on democracy, the rule of law and human rights.... The day was marred by the news of deadly violence overnight in Minneapolis, where two Democratic state legislators were shot with their spouses in what Gov. Tim Walz called a 'politically motivated' attack.... The Texas Department of Public Safety warned of “credible threats” to lawmakers planning to attend the evening rally at the state capitol in Austin.... And Saturday night, a person taking part in the 'No Kings' rally in Salt Lake City was critically injured during a shooting. The police department posted on X that a person of interest was in custody and that the situation downtown remained 'very fluid.'” The story includes vignettes of the protests in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nashville, Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City.
New York Times photos of some of the protests around the country are here.
Christian Piekos, et al., of ABC 7 Chicago: "Thousands in the Chicago area rallied for 'No Kings Day' protests against the Trump administration on Saturday. It was quite the demonstration, and it seemed like there was just a never-ending crowd of people that marched from Daley Plaza all throughout the Loop in downtown Chicago. Official attendance numbers from Chicago police have not yet been released, but the expected number of 10,000 people appeared to be far exceeded.... Everything had remained peaceful throughout the day as of 4 p.m., with a significant presence from Chicago police on every corner of the rally."
Drew Dixon of Florida Politics: "More than 4,000 people turned out to protest against the Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agency and ... Donald Trump Saturday outside the Duval County Courthouse in Jacksonville[, Florida].... tate Rep. Angie Nixon, a Jacksonville Democrat, was the keynote speaker at the Duval County event that lasted more than two hours in the sweltering heat.... Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office police kept their distance for the most part with department vehicles blocking road traffic at key intersections establishing a several-block perimeter surrounding the event."
Orlando Mayorquin, et al., of the New York Times: “Tensions flared between protesters and the police in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday as a major demonstration against the Trump administration gave way to yet another night of smaller but raucous protests against recent immigration raids. With the city’s downtown area facing an 8 p.m. curfew, the Los Angeles police began using tear gas and crowd-control munitions to break up protests after issuing a 4 p.m. dispersal order. Officers on horseback forced hundreds of people away from a federal building downtown, where a crowd had gathered, chanting at a line of National Guard troops guarding the structure as helicopters circled overhead. 'Shame on you! Shame on you!' the demonstrators shouted, as the troops stood at attention. In several posts on X, the Los Angeles Police Department accused protesters of throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers. Law enforcement also said that “outside agitators” had blocked a portion of a street with fencing and other materials.”
Faris Tanyos of CBS News: "One person was wounded in a shooting Saturday evening that occurred during a 'No Kings' protest in Salt Lake City, Utah, officials said. Salt Lake City police said in a post to social media that the shooting was 'possibly associated with the demonstration.' The victim was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries and a person of interest was in custody, police said. No further details were provided, and the circumstances that led up to the shooting were unclear. Police said about 10,000 people had been taking part in the protest."
Elissa Salamy of Fox 5 Washington, D.C.: "Police say a driver in an SUV intentionally drove into a crowd of protesters in Culpeper, [Virginia,] hitting at least one person. Police say Joseph R. Checklick Jr, 21, of Culpeper intentionally accelerated into a crowd of protesters near James Madison Highway Saturday afternoon.... Culpeper Democrats posted on Facebook, thanking Culpeper Police Department for their 'quick response and for keeping our protest safe.'"
Ben Johansen of Politico: “The Texas state capitol was evacuated on Saturday after the state’s Department of Public Safety warned of a 'credible threat' against legislators, ahead of a planned anti-Trump protest Saturday evening in Austin.”
David Sanger of the New York Times: Donald “Trump presided over a show of American military might in the nation’s capital on Saturday evening, a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States Army that became a test of wills and competing imagery, with demonstrators around the country decrying his expansion of executive power. Mr. Trump sat in a reviewing stand on Constitution Avenue as armored vehicles dating from two World Wars and overflights of 80-year old bombers and modern helicopters shook downtown Washington. The city was locked down, divided by a wall of tall, black crowd-control fences designed to assure that the parade, the first of its kind since American troops returned from the Gulf War in 1991, was an uninterrupted demonstration of history and American power. It went off without a hitch, but also without even a nod to the current moment. When Mr. Trump left his seat between his wife, Melania Trump, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, it was to swear in new soldiers — 'Have a great life,' he told them after the brief ceremony — and then, at sundown, to recall the Army’s greatest moments. He invoked George Washington and recalled Gettysburg. Yet he spoke more to the Army’s power than to its purpose.” ~~~
~~~ The AP has photos of the parade here. Viewer discretion advised: there are way too many photos of Trump in the mix; one would have been more than enough. ~~~
~~~ Washington Post Editors: “No one needed ... Donald Trump’s military parade, which just happened to take place on his birthday, to know that the United States’ fearsome armed forces deserve respect. Ostentatious muscle-flexing does not make America appear confident — particularly when there are questions about whom, exactly, it is meant to honor.... This was the week that Trump politicized the military, challenging the core principles of civilian-military relations. The week began with his deployment of troops, including more than 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines, in response to protests of immigration raids in the Los Angeles area.... Trump appeared to revel in the politics of his stunt, warring with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on social media and portraying Los Angeles as a hellscape of 'third-world lawlessness' that only military forces could pacify.... Then, on Tuesday, Trump led what felt like a political rally with enlisted troops at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.... Trump also used the Fort Bragg event to drag the military into another political battle, announcing that he would restore the names of seven Army bases that had originally honored Confederate leaders....”
New York Times liveblog Sunday: “The manhunt in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region for a man suspected of assassinating a Democratic state lawmaker and wounding another entered its second day on Sunday morning. The attacks shook leaders from both political parties and shocked a state that prides itself on political civility.Officials identified the suspect as Vance Boelter, 57. Officials said the gunman had been impersonating a police officer and was carrying a list of about 70 potential targets, including politicians and locations for Planned Parenthood clinics. The suspect was believed to still be in the Twin Cities area on Saturday but might be trying to flee, they said. The gunman killed Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, officials said, and wounded State Senator John A. Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, in separate attacks at the lawmakers’ homes in the Minneapolis suburbs on Saturday. The gunman also fired at police officers before fleeing. 'This was an act of targeted political violence,' Gov. Tim Walz said.” ~~~
~~~ Tim Sullivan, et al., of the AP: “A massive search was stretching into its second day for a man who authorities say posed as a police officer and fatally shot a Democratic state lawmaker in her suburban Minneapolis home.... Authorities said the suspect also shot and wounded a second lawmaker and was trying to flee the area.... Authorities identified the suspect as 57-year-old Vance Boelter, and the FBI issued a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction. They shared a photo taken Saturday of Boelter wearing a tan cowboy hat and asked the public to report sightings. Hundreds of law enforcement officers fanned out in the search for the suspect.” ~~~
~~~ E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post: “Melissa Hortman, the former Minnesota House speaker felled by an assassin’s bullet at her home on Saturday, really did understand what democracy looks like.... Hortman lived her highly constructive life in politics in the knowledge that achieving change democratically requires painstaking work: planning, coalition-building, persuasion, conciliation, vote-counting.... I can’t do full justice here to all that Hortman and her colleagues achieved, but a lengthy partial list can give you a sense of just how much they got done. The miracle included legislation for paid family and medical leave, sick leave, transgender rights protections, driver’s licenses for undocumented residents, abortion rights and voting rights. Also on the list were background checks for private gun transfers, red flag laws, legalized recreational marijuana, expanded education funding, investment in affordable housing, big steps toward a carbon-free electric grid by 2040, new reading curriculums based on phonics, a $2.58 billion capital construction package, laws strengthening workers’ rights, unemployment insurance for hourly workers, a refundable child credit for lower-income Minnesotans; and free breakfast and lunch for all Minnesota K-12 students.” ~~~
Speaker Hortman was someone who served the people of Minnesota with grace, compassion, humour and a sense of service. She was a formidable public servant, a fixture and a giant in Minnesota. She woke up every day determined to make this state a better place. She is irreplaceable and will be missed by so many. -- Gov. Tim Walz ~~~
~~~ Grace Panetta of the 19th: Melissa "Hortman worked closely with Gov. Tim Walz to enact policies that prioritized children and expanded protections for abortion and gender-affirming care."
See commentary by Akhilleus & RAS at the top of today's thread. These brief remarks put today's major news events in appropriate context.
Ben Johansen of Politico: “Democratic congressional leaders are calling for heightened security on Capitol Hill after a pair of Minnesota state lawmakers were shot in their homes early Saturday. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a statement Saturday afternoon said that he’s requested and received increased security presence for Minnesota Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, who were both reportedly additional targets of the suspected assassin. Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said in a press conference the suspect had a manifesto that 'identified many lawmakers and other officials.'... Schumer sought additional security earlier this week for Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), who was forcefully taken down to the ground and handcuffed after interrupting a press conference by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries issued a similar statement, asking the House sergeant at arms and U.S. Capitol Police to 'ensure the safety of our Minnesota delegation and Members of Congress across the country.' Both [Senate Majority Leader John] Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson released statements strongly condemning the assassination, but did not weigh in on additional security for the Minnesota congressional delegation.”
The TACO King Plays Songs of Weakening. Tyler Pager, et al., of the New York Times: Donald “Trump’s decision to pause most raids targeting farms and hospitality workers took many inside the White House by surprise. It came after intensive lobbying by his agriculture secretary [Brooke Rollins].... Some influential Trump donors who learned about the post began reaching out to people in the White House, urging Mr. Trump to include the restaurant sector in any directive to spare undocumented workers from enforcement.... It remains to be seen how effective the order will be and whether Mr. Trump will stick with his decision. Raids at other work sites, like the one in Los Angeles’s garment industry that led to mass protests, are still allowed. On Friday, the day after Mr. Trump issued the new guidance, farm workers were being rounded up in the fields of Oxnard, 50 miles north of Los Angeles, according to advocates. But the president’s decision to shield farmers and the hospitality industry — a business he knows well from his years as an owner of luxury hotels — reveals the tension between his deportation efforts and concerns about maintaining crucial support in his political coalition. This account of Mr. Trump’s retreat is based on interviews with 11 people....”
Marie: I linked to a couple of stories on this yesterday, but the WashPo does a better job of highlighting Trump's 2024 personal haul, IMO: ~~~
Grifter-in-Chief Cleans Up. Clara Morse & Matt Viser of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump reported over $600 million in income and $1.6 billion in assets in a public financial disclosure filed late Friday, including cryptocurrency holdings, income from his properties and lucrative licensing deals with foreign developers. The 234-page disclosure form, made public along with a large batch of other White House officials, provides a new window into his finances in 2024, before Trump was elected for a second term. It also reflects a period when he was raising money during his 2024 presidential campaign through various merchandise and marketing. One of his largest single sources of income was his stake in the cryptocurrency platform World Liberty Financial, where he reported income of $57.3 million off token sales. He holds 15.75 billion governance tokens in WLF, according to the filing.... The legal damages Trump incurred in court in 2024 still officially loom over him. He reported owing over $50 million to both E. Jean Carroll, who sued Trump, and the New York attorney general, who prosecuted him in a civil fraud case. In total in the court cases, Trump was ordered to pay nearly $90 million in two judgments, and $350 million plus interest in the civil fraud suit. However, he said in the disclosure any payments are 'pending appeal.'”
AP: “Russian President Vladimir Putin and ... Donald Trump held a lengthy call Saturday to discuss the escalating situation in the Middle East and Russia’s war in Ukraine. Trump in a posting on his Truth Social platform said they spent the bulk of their conversation focused on Israel’s ongoing blistering attacks aimed at decapitating Iran’s nuclear program and Iran’s retaliatory strikes. But Trump said that he also pressed Putin to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. 'He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end,' said Trump, who added the conversation went about an hour. Putin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin briefed Trump on his recent talks with the leaders of Iran and Israel and reiterated Russia’s proposal to seek mutually acceptable solutions on the Iranian nuclear issue.” MB: This is a report based on reports from serial liars and propagandists, so it's impossible to tell if a single word is true. For all we know, the fellas talked about nothing but Trump's big military parade, or maybe the call never took place at all.
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Israel/Iran., et al. AP: “The death toll grew Sunday as Israel and Iran exchanged missile attacks for a third consecutive day, with Israel warning that worse is to come. Israel targeted Iran’s Defense Ministry headquarters in Tehran and sites it alleged were associated with Iran’s nuclear program, while Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses and slammed into buildings deep inside Israel, causing civilian causalities.... Israel, which views a nuclear-armed Iran as an existential threat, launched its attacks after weeks of escalating tensions over Iran’s progressing nuclear program. Iran announced Thursday that it planned to activate a third nuclear enrichment facility shortly after the U.N. nuclear watchdog censured Iran for failing to comply with nonproliferation obligations.” ~~~
~~~ The New York Times' live updates are here. ~~~
~~~ Eliza Gkritsi of Politico: “... Donald Trump said the United States will retaliate 'at levels never seen before' if attacked by Iran.... 'The U.S. had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight,' said Trump in the small hours of Sunday. 'If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the U.S. Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before.' He added: 'However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!' Talks between the U.S. and Iran scheduled for today were canceled, said Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi in an X post.... On Sunday morning, Israel’s Defense Forces called on Iranian civilians living near weapons production facilities to evacuate....
“Shortly after the IDF issued its evacuation call on Sunday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel 'will strike the sites and continue to peel the skin off the Iranian snake in Tehran and everywhere, stripping it of nuclear capabilities and weapons systems.' Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said on Sunday that 13 people had been killed, according to the Associated Press. Iran’s U.N. ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said on Saturday that 78 people had died in the country and more than 320 wounded, wrote the Wall Street Journal.”
Nearby, our Very Good Friends in Saudi Arabia have murdered another journalist: ~~~
~~~ Saudi Arabia. Gabe Levin of the AP: “A prominent Saudi journalist who was arrested in 2018 and convicted on terrorism and treason charges has been executed, the kingdom said. Activist groups maintain that the charges against him were trumped up. Turki Al-Jasser, who was in his late 40s, was put to death on Saturday, according to the official Saudi Press Agency, after the death penalty was upheld by the nation’s top court. Authorities had raided Al-Jasser’s home in 2018, arresting him and seizing his computer and phones. It was not clear where his trial took place or how long it lasted. According to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists, Saudi authorities maintained that Al-Jasser was behind a social media account on X, formerly Twitter, that levied corruption allegations against Saudi royals. Al-Jasser was also said to have posted several controversial tweets about militants and militant groups.... “The international community’s failure to deliver justice for Jamal Khashoggi did not just betray one journalist,” [CPJ’s program director Carlos Martínez de la Serna] said, adding it had 'emboldened de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to continue his persecution of the press.'”
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Chess master.
As Fat Hitler, his furniture fondling VP, his drunk of a Defense Secretary, his Christmas hating “Einstein visa” gold digging bimbo wife, and assorted lackeys sat like Playskool figures in a toy reviewing stand to watch his Kim Jong Trump birthday whoop de do, out in the real world both Americans and foreign leaders showed what they think of the bumbling, mumbling, stumbling fat boy and his little parade:
Zip.
Millions jeer his strongman pretensions while leaders in Moscow, Ukraine, Tel Aviv, Teheran, and dozens of other capitals give him their middle fingers.
If the military is a tool of both defense and strategic power on the world’s chessboard, Fatty showed himself to be a numbnut showing off his shiny chess pieces, a toddler who has not the faintest clue how to play the game.
“Look! I have a horsey! And this piece over here looks like a castle. Aren’t I a smart little boy!”
Yeah, Donny. You’re a fucking genius. Now go play with yourself.
NYT: "The attacks shook leaders from both political parties"
I'm willing to bet that one political party is more shocked and scared than the other. Republicans and their media empire, plus FH their leader, have continually for decades now portrayed Democrats as enemies of the nation and dehumanized them at the same time as they have glorified, mythologized, and encouraged violence. That this was violence of the Right perpetuated on the Left is a shock to no one paying the slightest attention. A year ago DHS warned of attacks on politicians' homes. Unfortunately this terrorism is to be expected in an administration that actively encourages violence and has already rewarded perpetrators for their participation, pardoning Jan. 6th insurrectionists and military war criminals. As far as I have seen the current president* has only issued a written statement pro forma condemning the assassination most likely compiled by a staffer. The lame stream media will be mostly satisfied by it and most of his supporters, especially his most rabid and dangerous ones, will understand that it is not really from him, if they even read it. Yesterday we also had people shooting at demonstrators and trying to run them over. The political violence today is too common and too commonly from the Right. It takes real bravery to be a Democratic politician in this environment. Hopefully we are not having these same conversations anytime soon. Unfortunately I do not see this administration bringing back the resources to try to identify and thwart these attacks. Plus I would never trust the current FBI leadership to do the job competently or earnestly.
So much news, so little time to process it.
Seems I'm always at least one week behind. One of the reasons maybe that my latest weekend sermon, which appeared in the local paper yesterday morning, seems a bit tame when I reread it this AM.
Is School Out?
(Sedro Woolley is a town upriver from where I live....)
The threatened closure of Sedro Woolley’s Cascade Job Corps Center prompts a familiar question about our country's commitment to education. Are we for it or against it? The best answer is: It depends.
From the White House to the Supreme Court to local communities, education is under constant examination. What kind of education should we offer? How much is too much? Who deserves to get it? Who should pay for it? All old questions, their responses today frequently more confusing and strident than ever.
If Trump’s Department of Labor does close Skagit Valley’s Job Corp center, 250 students will be affected. Though a federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order delaying the closure, the students whose education will be interrupted and dozens of young men and women who might find themselves without a home are now living in an educational limbo, their futures clouded by uncertainty.
In fact, when it comes to the nation’s attitude toward education, there’s a lot of limbo going around.
As a matter of policy, what kind of education should our schools offer? Who should provide it? Should the public be required to fund private religious schools, further blurring the line between church and state? The Supreme Court just ducked this one, letting stand an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision that said no, but it was a close 4-4 call. Do some states’ education vouchers that move tax money from public to private schools really improve student performance? According to numerous studies reported by the Brookings Institution, Stanford University, and others, that call is not close. The answer is no.
On the practical plane, more questions. Beyond the fate of the nation’s Job Corps Centers and their 250,000 students, will the funding the Department of Education has traditionally directed to poor school districts disappear? Will schools in even more states, by one count already eleven (Future-Ed.org), teach only a sanitized version of American history? Will Oklahoma succeed in requiring its students to seriously consider thoroughly discounted claims about the “stolen” 2020 election (usatoday.com)? How will the war the Trump administration is waging against universities like Harvard end? Will the country or the courts accept the administration’s questionable claim that any criticism of Israel is antisemitic?
Why, I wonder, all the fuss and uncertainty? Education is a good thing, isn’t it? How can learning be so controversial?
Something someone asked the other day suggests the answer. He asked the group I was with if schools shouldn’t be teaching the basics, like two and two is four. Of course, schools should teach the basics, I said. But I think I understood his unstated point. He wanted schools to teach facts and skills and stay out of the values business.
What I didn’t say is that it can’t be done. There is no such thing as valueless education. When we apply what we’ve learned, we are always evaluating: High, low, expensive, cheap, good, bad. The numbers in Trump’s Big Beautiful (budget) Bill do mean something. They tell us who wins and who loses. They tell us who the budget writers value and who they don’t. Even basic arithmetic is often burdened with judgments about our values.
As readers of the Skagit Valley Herald know, the reported school board splits in Stanwood and Sedro Woolley are also about values. Which goals should the districts prioritize? Should schools be inclusive or exclusive, providing more opportunity to some than to others, or should they work to provide an equal opportunity for all?
I’ve long wondered how “liberal” became a bad word on the Right. The word means “generous” and “open-minded,” which I would think are good things. A liberal education expands one’s world and mind, liberating it from unthinking habit and slavish belief. In a universe so vast, who would want to live in a narrow, shrunken world in which all questions were answered and there was nothing left to learn?
Some apparently do wish just that. Trump’s executive order announcing a new “gold standard” for government research is a good example of such a restricted world. The order uses all the right words, like “transparency” and “peer review,” but examined closely, as a recent piece published in a Skagit Valley Herald online “Conversations” section points out, the standards set are anything but golden. The order proposes research overseen and disseminated by political appointees rather than by the scientists who conducted and understood it. In other words, future government research must be politically approved to be “golden.” Politics and belief, not facts or reality, define Trump's gold standard.
One can only hope American education will not accept that same standard of politically motivated ignorance.
Yesterday was a sunny, breezy day in my community of Bellingham, WA, where we saw a No Kings turnout of probably a couple of thousand massed around City Hall to hear speeches and celebrate democracy. Pretty good for a community of about 97,000 people!
What should schools teach? Values?
This week I attended a grandaughter's "promotion" celebration, leaving elementary for middle school. Public schools.
The school principal gave the farewell address, and reminded us that each year, each grade has an organizing theme. The 2025 5th graders' theme was "kindness." The principal provided a few examples of how that worked this year, and then advised the graduates that their ability to show kindness will enrich their lives in all aspects.
I know some of my grandaughter's classmates and can say that they do seem to internalize the values their school inculcated. It's not just skills, but values.
I hope they can maintain and grow in middle school.
Credible threats
Following the murder in Minnesota, the Department of Public Safety in Texas ordered the evacuation of the state capital after what they described as a”credible threat”. Those poor MAGA sycophantic pols! Always the victims, somehow. Apparently a man was arrested. No information was released except to say he was “far-left leaning”. Up in Minnesota, media outlets made a bee line to their copy desks to report that the shooter was an appointee of Tim Walz.
Another far-left leaning Democrat?
Of course! Because no violence is ever perpetrated, threatened, or carried out by far-right leaning types. They’re all harmless citizens. Great ‘mericans, like then poor J6 people who were unfairly painted as violent insurrectionists when they were really just peaceful tourists.
Some mouthpiece in Texas was quick to point out that the murder in Minnesota was an “isolated incident”, I’m guessing just in case it turns out the guy is not a Biden-Obama-Clinton loving commie soshulist hater of ‘merica and the Dear Leader.
Sure are a shitload of isolated incidents involving nuts with guns, but what can we do? Guns is from god, “thots N prayrz”.
Why is it no one is pointing out that the seminal “credible threat” is the Goddam fat fuck waddling around the Blight House?
And how is it that the right is totally without blame when you have law enforcement types declaring their intention to shoot dead any No Kings protesters who look cross-eyed at them? That’s not a “credible threat” to public safety?
Laura posted a link to a piece the other day that makes a lot of sense about how responsibility is only for Democrats. Any violence from the right, well, it’s not their fault. Democrats made them do it, the standard excuse offered by wife beaters and murderers: “The bitch made me do it!”
This is a standard Trump excuse as well. “If they do X, we’ll kill them! They asked for it.”
Credible threat?
Look to the Dear Leader, the Pandora President*. He encourages violence on a daily basis and, as RAS points out, rewards far-right leaning thugs, bullies, and killers. They’re all blameless. I mean, if shit happens, those fuckin’ demycraps asked for it!
But they are thrilled to be able pin threats of violence on Democrats. Look at Cosplay Kristi. “He LUNGED AT ME!”
And the media plays right along. So sick of this crap.
Despite the ^^ 'credible threat', there was a good turn-out in Austin - much larger than the previous protests. The public address system was completely inadequate for the crowd size. The capitol building has been under scaffolding for the last couple years and scaffolding will remain at least through the summer so space close to the speakers is reduced. The capitol building remained closed due to the threat, so no chance to enter for cool-offs and restrooms, but it was good to see so many others outside in the miserable humid heat, peacefully hanging out while admiring costumes and signs. A summary from our NPR station: The scene in Austin
Signs at the No Kings rallies.
Less polite signs.
Here’s Fat Hitler caught on a hot mic demanding that “his people” sit up and obey him. He’s comparing himself to Kim Jong-Il. “When he speaks, his people sit up and pay attention. I want my people to do the same.”
No kings, fat boy, remember? And by the way, we are not “your people”. You are our employee. You listen to us, douchebag. We listen to you and all we hear are lies.
How about this 🖕 instead?
Now fuck off with that “my people” bullshit.
Someone named Ian Johnson posted the sad scenes from the DC parade on BlueSky -
The parade in Washington
If you need a little patriotic lift after all the fascistic garrbahj of the past few months, Neil Diamond has it for you:
https://youtu.be/cRTHdC7k4uY
Copied from Miss Cellania.
More (ahem) “transparency”
Violence is a staple of the current fascist Reich, both physical violence as perpetrated by Fat Hitler’s Brownshirts like the J6 thugs and the Proud Boys, and the kind of violence Mr. Best Words does to the language. But both current reporters and future historians are being purposely hobbled by Fatty’s latest fatwa against transparency as his words are being dumped down the memory hole.
“President Donald Trump’s second term as president will surely go down in history, though of course, just six months into his four-year term, much of this story has yet to be written.
But it is already clear that most Americans will not be able to read exactly what Trump has said, as they have with previous presidents, during his current term in the White House.
The White House has removed the official transcripts of Trump’s public remarks from its government website, NBC News reported in May 2025, replacing the written transcripts with select videos and audio of Trump’s…For years, translators, reporters, students, historians and presidential scholars like me have used official presidential transcripts to understand a president’s exact words and track government decisions. Without these written transcripts, it becomes harder to get the full story of exactly what the president has done or said.”
“Select videos”. Right. The problem is that with AI, Fatty’s elves can easily massage, manipulate, edit, and completely change those “select videos” both to edit out the mumbles and hysterical mispronunciations, and make adjustments that hide moments when he mistakenly tells the truth about his criminal and unconstitutional intentions.
Truth and accuracy are anathema to this Reich.