At 3:29 this afternoon, Donald Trump held a strategic press conference in the Oval Office right before he left to spend a secluded weekend at Camp David away from the eyes of the press and the public. As the cameras came on, the president was already sitting in his high leather chair inside the Oval Office, surrounded on both sides by his yes-men and women, all dressed in the approved color palette those near him must wear. He fiddled with his papers, holding up random ones as proof that what he was saying was true, and then read a prepared statement announcing a deal that all 50 states had supposedly joined, yet he couldn't provide a single detail.
But the real story behind this event was much more alarming. The President took credit for foreign leaders being elected into office. He declared it was not believable that Black and Jewish people could vote for a Democrat. He wandered into a story about grabbing Melania’s bottom on an escalator. Most disturbing of all was that the President of the United States of America announced a ban not just on his latest media targets, but this time he declared a “ban on the free press” itself.
I do hope you are right about Trump himself creating this big blue wave! I’ve often thought about how often he shoots himself in the foot and then wondered if I were being overly optimistic.
Heather you are right, IMO. We cannot be complacent with our potential victory.
That is just another step in the process to take our government back and save our Democracy.
Every day we are met with more and more of their tactics to steal and rig this election as they have basically declared they are NOT going to hand over power peacefully.
Jan.6, 2021 was the test run, pardoning ALL the J6’ers, wiping their records clean, and now they are ICE Gestapo, fully armed, ready and more than willing to fight for their MAGA/MAWA KKKult leader.
So WE NEED to be prepared and still VOTE BLUE because our LIVES DEPEND ON IT.
Lance Rosen wrote this very important article I feel should be greatly shared along with some others.
Every time I see or hear someone say "we have to be prepared" I wonder to myself what that actually means. We all know they will not go peacefully. Trump has said it, Johnson has said it. Both publicly. Johnson can simply refuse to seat Democrats in January and then where will we be. J6 we had Mike Pence stand up and certify the vote. We have no Mike Pence now. What to do? So, "being prepared." Counterattack the J6 crowd with our own militia crowd? Military coup - no military leaders left to accomplish this. So how exactly are we to "be prepared?"
Here's some thoughts--“being prepared” means having lawyers, election officials, state authorities, courts, and security agencies ready BEFORE Election Day for the specific ways results could be challenged or disrupted: refusal to certify, frivolous lawsuits, intimidation of election workers, attempts to seize or discredit ballots, or physical disruption of counting and congressional proceedings.
The goal is to eliminate ambiguity—document everything, enforce deadlines, preserve evidence, and move disputes immediately into courts and established legal procedures.
MAGA Mike could not remain Speaker after losing the House and refuse to seat a new Democratic majority. The old Congress expires; the new House is called to order by the Clerk, members-elect are seated based on certified election credentials, and they elect the Speaker.
Individual races can be contested, but an outgoing Speaker does not have a unilateral veto over the incoming House. So “be prepared” should mean something very specific: identify every possible choke point in advance and have a lawful response ready for each one—rather than trying to invent one AFTER the crisis begins.
Thank you for your explanation, Jay. I'm concerned because I have read articles that say Mike Johnson could go ahead anyway and seat his own selection as House Clerk thus disrupting seating Democrats who actually won. Is this possible?
The courts have so far held more or less. Mandamus is one approach should there be a refusal to seat Democrats who won their races. What is most needed is a GOP rout that is so clear as to be beyond any credible challenge (we expect the usual garbage such as occurred in AZ in 2020).
Hang in there my friend. This fever is going to break. His insanity is worsening daily. And although it may not be a drastic bubble burst, the steam is leaking through many more cracks than we can currently see. Good does always triumph,. It takes a bit of time but it gets there.🩵
I think your post today is the most heart searing piece you have ever written, or at least, that I've read.
It's as if the world has been overturned, up is down, right is wrong. DT is obviously terrified, fighting, pushing the only way he knows how - like a rabid dog; snarling and almost unaware of his condition. A dangerous dog but pathetic. The ghosts standing behind his back defending him are equally pathetic.
And then Heather, you turn the world back to it's correct position! You remind us what is still in the hearts of most people. In spite your own personal concerns, you are finding good things to write about - the Service Dog, (the antithesis of DT), the dog's owner, the kindness of strangers, the basic Humanity within us all. (The Service Dog made me cry!)
I'm grateful and pleased to subscribe to your account. You and your family are worth it!
Heather, having recently been in your same situation with a family member, your words couldn't ring more true when you describe the similarity between family and our current national crisis. After all, as Americans we are family in what we are enduring with the day to day life under this impossible tyrant and his enablers. Just as we depend on the knowledge and skills and ethics of healthcare providers we must believe there are people who will do everything they can to educate us and find the best ways to heal our very sick nation. You are one of those people.
I think each one of us has their own personal truths to begin with. And as a country we all share certain truths that is relevant to all of us. As we know, those common truths can and are manipulated and can be turned around against us to confuse or control us. The only thing we have is our own integrity to keep standing tall and not fall under the weight of rumps ego and manipulations. Rump is a cornered rat and he’s scurrying around. And looks like he knows that and trying to find an exit. He’s not trying to build a wall any more. If he does he’ll wall himself in. 😃
Sending you and your family lots of love and support. As much as they try desperately to separate us, instill fear and keep people in fight or flight, the human spirit and heart are programmed to love. When all the noise is gone the small acts of kindness and compassion are what is real.
Trump is running scared...he knows it and we know it! He can try all he wants to "ban" the press from the White House but the truth will come out anyway...thank God for independent journalists as yourself, Heather, who keep the public truthfully informed!
As for the sycophants behind him, remember...Karma is a bitch!
While trump’s latest move against the free press is outrageous..it’s still yet another distraction. He can ban them from the WH until they take him to court and he knows he’ll lose.
He’s biding for time…slinging more mud into the waters to keep all the horrible things that are actually HAPPENING out of the spotlight.
The more he slings the more ground he loses so let him sling..those banned news agencies are going to stand right outside the door and keep reporting.
They’ll be more dogged in their reports because they now have an axe to grind..again his big mouth and power crazed ego is his on worst enemy.
But..the time is getting shorter…things are not going well for him on any front..he KNOWS it and his desperation time is closing in.
This is why we must be hyper vigilant…we can put nothing past him..he is now capable of creating anything to stop the midterms…to keep the people from speaking.
Their wheels are now fully in motion and he’s just created the scenario where nobody but his enablers are allowed in the room to question him and their reports to us are guaranteed to be favorable to him even if known to be false.
We will NOT be getting the TRUTH…we will be getting his version which are always lies.
NOW is the time for all to come to the aid of their country…remember those words..we must BEWARE..watch EVERY move he makes..every word he spews..everything he does so we’re prepared to fight him.
NOTHING is out of the realm of possibility from him.
The press..especially the banished ones have to watch him and expose him immediately..we must be warned so we’re prepared and can put the brakes on him at the outset …stop him.
His massive ego..the thing that drives him and makes him the most obnoxious and dangerous creature to ever hold this office ..will be his downfall …we MUST make sure of that.
Especially this: "By her own [Sarah Huckabee's] logic, the moment those reporters can no longer stand in that room, the press is no longer free." And Trump has regularly argued that fair coverage means favorable coversge. Absurd!
It is up to the American people in November to decide if they support his definition of a free press. If they do, then our democratic experiment will not survive..
The Covid memorial is touching and reminds us of how many souls were lost and how dedicated our healthcare professionals are. It is evidence of Trump's continuum of idiocy. His selfishness and stupidity; his hubris and his myopic vision of Trump world. But it also reminds me, at 70 years old, of the AIDS crisis which for those who were close to the ground in places like Boston and NYC, was a shock to the system that has never faded completely. Covid's tsunami tore at the scar tissue of our trauma. Not just the deaths but the incompetence and uncaring of our political leaders. Trump must be destroyed. His world must be brought down. Sarah Huckabee Sanders sharpened her teeth as a liar and continues as a lapdog to power. F her.
The longer this administration goes on, the more blatant the damage becomes. Republicans initially believed that this MAGA movement was going to bring a new wave of responsible government to American politics. They could forgive an off color remark. Chalk it up to the political naïveté of a strong businessman who needs a little help. Or when he pushed against the boundaries here or there. Probably not what they would do but it’s the price we have to pay for righting the ship. A little discomfort is a small price to pay, especially for the big changes promised. But the more they coveted MAGA and stood by their leader, the more he figured he could get away with. And when his party didn’t object, he got more brazen. Two years later, many of his supporters are seeing what a train wreck he has become. But admitting it means they will have to say, we were wrong. This is not how we expected to get our vision for America. But now they’re in too deep. There are signs that some of them are waking up. Lots of Republican candidates are trying to distance themselves from their party leaders without making them enemies. Even many MAGA cultists are starting to have second thoughts. They kept saying, “He’s going after all the things that we believe are wrong with America and we support him”. Except, now he’s coming after them. Just ask the farmers in Iowa or the ranchers in Texas or the growers in California. But he doesn’t want you to see it so he’s going after the freedom of the press because they won’t support his lies. It’s all out in full display. The only way to right this horrible mess is, to quote the president himself, “YOU’RE FIRED”. Make America Great Again. Go out and vote. Take friends with you. We need to show up in numbers like never before. So that even he can’t lie his way out of it. VOTE!
Sending you caring thoughts with hope for improvement in your loved one's medical condition. As a physician with over three decades of experience, I, too, appreciate all the healers... especially the volunteer with her therapy dog!
Just watched a reporter from MS NOW recount her experience of being denied access to the White House this morning. This is chilling not only on the face of it but what we may be headed for. He wants to control everything. He's starting with the arts and the press.
Prayers for a full and swift healing, Heather, for your family member. I hope you'll feel it's OK to take a night off to care for yourself!
Agree! We won’t mind if you take a night or two off, Heather, and we’ll still be here when you get back.
I do hope you are right about Trump himself creating this big blue wave! I’ve often thought about how often he shoots himself in the foot and then wondered if I were being overly optimistic.
Heather you are right, IMO. We cannot be complacent with our potential victory.
That is just another step in the process to take our government back and save our Democracy.
Every day we are met with more and more of their tactics to steal and rig this election as they have basically declared they are NOT going to hand over power peacefully.
Jan.6, 2021 was the test run, pardoning ALL the J6’ers, wiping their records clean, and now they are ICE Gestapo, fully armed, ready and more than willing to fight for their MAGA/MAWA KKKult leader.
So WE NEED to be prepared and still VOTE BLUE because our LIVES DEPEND ON IT.
Lance Rosen wrote this very important article I feel should be greatly shared along with some others.
https://lancefrosen.substack.com/p/what-will-trump-do-to-steal-the-midterms-835?r=71veyx&utm_medium=ios
UNITED WE STAND And DIVIDED WE FALL.❤️🩹
W.A. Lawrence, Glass Empires…https://wendy664.substack.com/p/the-conditions-that-preceded-the?r=71veyx&utm_medium=ios
Lance Rosen…ICE Gestapo….https://lancefrosen.substack.com/p/part-2-ice-agents-and-recruits-are?r=71veyx&utm_medium=ios
Every time I see or hear someone say "we have to be prepared" I wonder to myself what that actually means. We all know they will not go peacefully. Trump has said it, Johnson has said it. Both publicly. Johnson can simply refuse to seat Democrats in January and then where will we be. J6 we had Mike Pence stand up and certify the vote. We have no Mike Pence now. What to do? So, "being prepared." Counterattack the J6 crowd with our own militia crowd? Military coup - no military leaders left to accomplish this. So how exactly are we to "be prepared?"
Here's some thoughts--“being prepared” means having lawyers, election officials, state authorities, courts, and security agencies ready BEFORE Election Day for the specific ways results could be challenged or disrupted: refusal to certify, frivolous lawsuits, intimidation of election workers, attempts to seize or discredit ballots, or physical disruption of counting and congressional proceedings.
The goal is to eliminate ambiguity—document everything, enforce deadlines, preserve evidence, and move disputes immediately into courts and established legal procedures.
MAGA Mike could not remain Speaker after losing the House and refuse to seat a new Democratic majority. The old Congress expires; the new House is called to order by the Clerk, members-elect are seated based on certified election credentials, and they elect the Speaker.
Individual races can be contested, but an outgoing Speaker does not have a unilateral veto over the incoming House. So “be prepared” should mean something very specific: identify every possible choke point in advance and have a lawful response ready for each one—rather than trying to invent one AFTER the crisis begins.
Great response, Jay.
Also, in the meantime we need to get people to VOTE BLUE in numbers never seen before.
Make sure young people vote, those away in college, elderly, people being targeted, etc. These are things we can actually do.
Lance Rosen has outlined some things, Thom Hartmann, RobertReich, Heather Cox Richardson.
We are hoping that our Democratic leaders are preparing for now, November, and what comes after that.
I know our state, Maine and other states have several lawsuits going already. We have to maybe make phone calls to find out more.
I’ve tried calling and emailing various levels of government, but only get form letters or no response.
The most important thing is to be ready to do whatever NEEDS to be done, helpingfamily, friends, neighbors, volunteering, whatever we can do.
And DO NOT fall VICTIM to fear and defeat, and exhaustion…that is exactly what they want.
UNITED WE STAND AND DIVIDED WE FALL❤️🩹
Thank you for your explanation, Jay. I'm concerned because I have read articles that say Mike Johnson could go ahead anyway and seat his own selection as House Clerk thus disrupting seating Democrats who actually won. Is this possible?
The courts have so far held more or less. Mandamus is one approach should there be a refusal to seat Democrats who won their races. What is most needed is a GOP rout that is so clear as to be beyond any credible challenge (we expect the usual garbage such as occurred in AZ in 2020).
Yes! Absolutely.
Hang in there my friend. This fever is going to break. His insanity is worsening daily. And although it may not be a drastic bubble burst, the steam is leaking through many more cracks than we can currently see. Good does always triumph,. It takes a bit of time but it gets there.🩵
Dear Heather,
I think your post today is the most heart searing piece you have ever written, or at least, that I've read.
It's as if the world has been overturned, up is down, right is wrong. DT is obviously terrified, fighting, pushing the only way he knows how - like a rabid dog; snarling and almost unaware of his condition. A dangerous dog but pathetic. The ghosts standing behind his back defending him are equally pathetic.
And then Heather, you turn the world back to it's correct position! You remind us what is still in the hearts of most people. In spite your own personal concerns, you are finding good things to write about - the Service Dog, (the antithesis of DT), the dog's owner, the kindness of strangers, the basic Humanity within us all. (The Service Dog made me cry!)
I'm grateful and pleased to subscribe to your account. You and your family are worth it!
With love from the UK.🇬🇧
Heather, having recently been in your same situation with a family member, your words couldn't ring more true when you describe the similarity between family and our current national crisis. After all, as Americans we are family in what we are enduring with the day to day life under this impossible tyrant and his enablers. Just as we depend on the knowledge and skills and ethics of healthcare providers we must believe there are people who will do everything they can to educate us and find the best ways to heal our very sick nation. You are one of those people.
I think each one of us has their own personal truths to begin with. And as a country we all share certain truths that is relevant to all of us. As we know, those common truths can and are manipulated and can be turned around against us to confuse or control us. The only thing we have is our own integrity to keep standing tall and not fall under the weight of rumps ego and manipulations. Rump is a cornered rat and he’s scurrying around. And looks like he knows that and trying to find an exit. He’s not trying to build a wall any more. If he does he’ll wall himself in. 😃
Spot on
Sending healing thoughts to your family member, and strength to you as you support them--and all of us--in this hour of need.
Sending you and your family lots of love and support. As much as they try desperately to separate us, instill fear and keep people in fight or flight, the human spirit and heart are programmed to love. When all the noise is gone the small acts of kindness and compassion are what is real.
Trump is running scared...he knows it and we know it! He can try all he wants to "ban" the press from the White House but the truth will come out anyway...thank God for independent journalists as yourself, Heather, who keep the public truthfully informed!
As for the sycophants behind him, remember...Karma is a bitch!
Thank you, Heather, our watcher in the night. God be with you and with every member of this community.
While trump’s latest move against the free press is outrageous..it’s still yet another distraction. He can ban them from the WH until they take him to court and he knows he’ll lose.
He’s biding for time…slinging more mud into the waters to keep all the horrible things that are actually HAPPENING out of the spotlight.
The more he slings the more ground he loses so let him sling..those banned news agencies are going to stand right outside the door and keep reporting.
They’ll be more dogged in their reports because they now have an axe to grind..again his big mouth and power crazed ego is his on worst enemy.
But..the time is getting shorter…things are not going well for him on any front..he KNOWS it and his desperation time is closing in.
This is why we must be hyper vigilant…we can put nothing past him..he is now capable of creating anything to stop the midterms…to keep the people from speaking.
Their wheels are now fully in motion and he’s just created the scenario where nobody but his enablers are allowed in the room to question him and their reports to us are guaranteed to be favorable to him even if known to be false.
We will NOT be getting the TRUTH…we will be getting his version which are always lies.
NOW is the time for all to come to the aid of their country…remember those words..we must BEWARE..watch EVERY move he makes..every word he spews..everything he does so we’re prepared to fight him.
NOTHING is out of the realm of possibility from him.
The press..especially the banished ones have to watch him and expose him immediately..we must be warned so we’re prepared and can put the brakes on him at the outset …stop him.
His massive ego..the thing that drives him and makes him the most obnoxious and dangerous creature to ever hold this office ..will be his downfall …we MUST make sure of that.
V O T E.
Think SCOTUS might do the right thing and stop this BS? Like right now? Maybe finally realize that we have a tyrant in the Oval Office.
45 days.
Great points!
Especially this: "By her own [Sarah Huckabee's] logic, the moment those reporters can no longer stand in that room, the press is no longer free." And Trump has regularly argued that fair coverage means favorable coversge. Absurd!
It is up to the American people in November to decide if they support his definition of a free press. If they do, then our democratic experiment will not survive..
The Covid memorial is touching and reminds us of how many souls were lost and how dedicated our healthcare professionals are. It is evidence of Trump's continuum of idiocy. His selfishness and stupidity; his hubris and his myopic vision of Trump world. But it also reminds me, at 70 years old, of the AIDS crisis which for those who were close to the ground in places like Boston and NYC, was a shock to the system that has never faded completely. Covid's tsunami tore at the scar tissue of our trauma. Not just the deaths but the incompetence and uncaring of our political leaders. Trump must be destroyed. His world must be brought down. Sarah Huckabee Sanders sharpened her teeth as a liar and continues as a lapdog to power. F her.
The longer this administration goes on, the more blatant the damage becomes. Republicans initially believed that this MAGA movement was going to bring a new wave of responsible government to American politics. They could forgive an off color remark. Chalk it up to the political naïveté of a strong businessman who needs a little help. Or when he pushed against the boundaries here or there. Probably not what they would do but it’s the price we have to pay for righting the ship. A little discomfort is a small price to pay, especially for the big changes promised. But the more they coveted MAGA and stood by their leader, the more he figured he could get away with. And when his party didn’t object, he got more brazen. Two years later, many of his supporters are seeing what a train wreck he has become. But admitting it means they will have to say, we were wrong. This is not how we expected to get our vision for America. But now they’re in too deep. There are signs that some of them are waking up. Lots of Republican candidates are trying to distance themselves from their party leaders without making them enemies. Even many MAGA cultists are starting to have second thoughts. They kept saying, “He’s going after all the things that we believe are wrong with America and we support him”. Except, now he’s coming after them. Just ask the farmers in Iowa or the ranchers in Texas or the growers in California. But he doesn’t want you to see it so he’s going after the freedom of the press because they won’t support his lies. It’s all out in full display. The only way to right this horrible mess is, to quote the president himself, “YOU’RE FIRED”. Make America Great Again. Go out and vote. Take friends with you. We need to show up in numbers like never before. So that even he can’t lie his way out of it. VOTE!
Sending you caring thoughts with hope for improvement in your loved one's medical condition. As a physician with over three decades of experience, I, too, appreciate all the healers... especially the volunteer with her therapy dog!
Just watched a reporter from MS NOW recount her experience of being denied access to the White House this morning. This is chilling not only on the face of it but what we may be headed for. He wants to control everything. He's starting with the arts and the press.