In the early morning hours of April 29th, 2026, the President of the United States couldn’t sleep. So he did what he often does in those dark moments. He picked up his phone, opened Truth Social, and posted a meme of himself in a suit and sunglasses, holding an assault rifle, standing in front of a burning, bombed-out landscape with explosions rising behind him. Above the image, in bold letters, it read: “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY! 🇺🇸”
He shared a post trying to project power, presenting himself as a one-man army, someone capable of personally blowing up Iran if they don’t sign a deal with him. The man with his finger on the nuclear codes spent the overnight hours posting action-hero fan fiction of himself. And as unbelievable as that is coming from a sitting American president, the rest of the day only became harder to believe.
But tyrant's downfalls make great history lessons. As a high school history teacher, I know how Twump will be taught in the future. We have had Americans in power before who f*ed things up pretty badly for certain groups of people: namely Blacks, women, Blacks, women, Hispanics, Blacks and women.
Trumps skill is fucking things up for everybody (except billionaires) Quite ecumenical really. His grandiose delusions will surely bring him down and detonate catastrophically.
Yes Heather, he is not us, and he's not entitled to take this country from us. His words and actions are signs of desperation, as the walls of his house of cards are closing in on him. We must not allow him to change who we are, because our character is what makes our Democracy worth fighting for. He can never take that away from us as we stand together and say, "Not now, not ever...will we submit to the words and actions of this demented man. We are uniting for the freedom and justice we all deserve as citizens of this country." America will survive this.
The Supreme Court just dismantled the voting rights act. There are going to be a lot of even unhappier black Americans without political representation. So whatever you imagine is the goodness level of America, please be prepared to magnify that by great amounts.
Heather, it is a brilliant insight to see the need and value of your going beyond your critical accounting of Trump's destructiveness to also help build our spirits and morale despite Trump's deepening insanity inside his bubble, the futile persistence of his followers, and our continuing and even increasing objective challenges. Nicely done!
This is how “America” stole indigenous lands here on turtle island. First they came and spread all over the country, and as they were gaining land they had their hired guns, the “American” politicians, legislators and Supreme Court make laws that made it okay and even wonderful that they stole the country. But they didn’t mention the stealing, they called it treaties. As if both sides “agreed” to the deal.
So now, after 250 yrs, American freedom and individualism is again under threat of being stolen. But this time it is by a pedophile (of all people) and his protectors and enablers, just because they’re rich and powerful and can hide behind the scenes.
And they use the ignorant misinformed people and racists to do the dirty work for them.
And you can observe it every day. Indians are never even mentioned anymore, because the indigenous have been all but erased from American memory.
All we hear now days is how unworthy Mexicans and other brown people from “shithole” countries should not be here, and we need to deport them.
From the indigenous perspective, this is how America has always been. Only now it’s affecting white people so there’s a lot more noise from them finally.
So they haven’t really been “woke” as accused, but hopefully they are finally Waking Up!!
Conviction for a felony does not necessarily affect whether one should be able to vote. The Supreme Court of Canada held a few years ago that voting has to be offered to people in federal prisons.
The real bar that should have applied to Trump, except that his Supreme Court did not want it to, is the 14th amendment's prohibition of serving in office to anyone who has engaged in an insurrection against the government.
The nuclear codes should not be held by an aggressive, self-centred moron. The Constitution and the law seem to be silent on that point. Up to now, it may have gone without saying, but ...
I want to thank Justices Kagan, Brown Jackson and Sotomayor for consistently being the sane, wise justices. I don't know where they get the strength to get out of bed and suffer the other justices day after day, but you are our heroes for doing this and greatly admired and appreciated.
Thank you for all the work you put into this (and by "this" I mean the immense daily writing). Few things: first (to me, most importantly), more attention needs to be focused on Stephen Miller. He is a cancer on your nation, and while the POTUS stamp is on all the crap, it is more likely being directed by Miller. I do not understand how an unelected unofficial like him has so much power on the governance of the US, and why nobody is moving in on him to remove his power. Secondly: it is interesting to note that some of the most powerful voices in the shit storm are women. You, Heather Cox Richardson, Leigh McGowan, Jessica Yellin, Jessica Craven, Joanna Johnson, Kris & Dave. Keep yelling, please. Finally...I realized this morning that NONE of your voices are showing up in my social feeds, they've been gone for about a week. Given that I am mainly on IG / FB, and those are both controlled by the same company...all I'm getting is advertising posts and my art community. I'm pretty certain shadow banning is being perpetrated on all these pundits.
We need to all be sure to vote in the elections to get these insane people out of office. Voting percentages are always low. It’s the only way to get changes.
You are doing a great job Heather and pray for your strength to continue.
It is so frustrating when the Scotus reverses decisions that lower courts have made. If/when Democrats regain Congress, reforming the supreme court has to be one of their very top priorities. I'm very concerned that Thomas and Alito will retire before Trump's term ends and very possibly before a new Congress is seated. The tyranny of the current majority has to stop.
Expanding the court and requiring term limits would be a start.
It won’t matter…the Machine is set to keep its agenda no matter who is occupying the “top” spot. The Nazi fascist human vending machine, trump’s family, Vance, KKKabinet, Most SCOTUS, RepubliKKKans and Benedict Fetterman, the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025-26, Epstein Class Tech Bros., especially Elon Musk, and Thiel, Karp, Palantir, ALL taking over our government and while extorting and laundering billions of Blood money. All these sociopathic, serial pedophiles, rapists, sex traffickers, murderers and their sycophantic and Complicit RepubliKKKans and most of SCOTUS will keep going toward their uptime goals of Control, Power, Money, Imperialism…Kleptocracy, Oligarchy, Eugenics MAGA/MAWA agenda.
Heather, I really appreciate you always ending your exceptional pieces with positivity. I agree that what you witnessed at the airport is who we are. I see examples of this nearly every time I go out. No, we are not him. This is why it’s so sickening that he represents us on the world stage. He has literally no redeeming qualities and he is psychologically decompensating before our very eyes.
Be careful who you compare yourself to, DJT. Alexander died at 32, a sick drunk. Julius Caesar was killed by his own men and Napoleon was exiled to a tiny island in the South Atlantic. Sure, he left a triumphal arch and a big old tomb behind. That must be the appeal.
I have been wondering about the E. Jean Carroll case. All of those decisions made by juries after hearing the evidence, and guilty verdict and fines still have not been paid. And he might send it to the Supreme Court? Just stop and pay up—be a man. Oh, I see part of the problem.
Someone needs to remind Trump that as he is a convicted felon he’s not allowed to own a firearm as seen in that image. Only nuclear codes.
It's good to be reminded of all tyrants' downfall.
They are always messy.
But tyrant's downfalls make great history lessons. As a high school history teacher, I know how Twump will be taught in the future. We have had Americans in power before who f*ed things up pretty badly for certain groups of people: namely Blacks, women, Blacks, women, Hispanics, Blacks and women.
True words.
Trumps skill is fucking things up for everybody (except billionaires) Quite ecumenical really. His grandiose delusions will surely bring him down and detonate catastrophically.
Not everyone will survive the crash.
Yes Heather, he is not us, and he's not entitled to take this country from us. His words and actions are signs of desperation, as the walls of his house of cards are closing in on him. We must not allow him to change who we are, because our character is what makes our Democracy worth fighting for. He can never take that away from us as we stand together and say, "Not now, not ever...will we submit to the words and actions of this demented man. We are uniting for the freedom and justice we all deserve as citizens of this country." America will survive this.
That's my mantra, brother: America will survive this.
The Supreme Court just dismantled the voting rights act. There are going to be a lot of even unhappier black Americans without political representation. So whatever you imagine is the goodness level of America, please be prepared to magnify that by great amounts.
Trump is nowhere close to being done making a long term mess of America and the world.
As always your powerful writing has impact
The phrases that stood out to me were
‘He is not us’ And ‘we are not powerless and we are not backing down’
More power to the ordinary Americans who see this man for what he is
Hi Heather,
The Supreme Court has secured its place in history as the most unjust and blatantly partisan, puppet justice body in the US. Racist to its core.
Americans are NOT the administration.
Heather, it is a brilliant insight to see the need and value of your going beyond your critical accounting of Trump's destructiveness to also help build our spirits and morale despite Trump's deepening insanity inside his bubble, the futile persistence of his followers, and our continuing and even increasing objective challenges. Nicely done!
This is how “America” stole indigenous lands here on turtle island. First they came and spread all over the country, and as they were gaining land they had their hired guns, the “American” politicians, legislators and Supreme Court make laws that made it okay and even wonderful that they stole the country. But they didn’t mention the stealing, they called it treaties. As if both sides “agreed” to the deal.
So now, after 250 yrs, American freedom and individualism is again under threat of being stolen. But this time it is by a pedophile (of all people) and his protectors and enablers, just because they’re rich and powerful and can hide behind the scenes.
And they use the ignorant misinformed people and racists to do the dirty work for them.
And you can observe it every day. Indians are never even mentioned anymore, because the indigenous have been all but erased from American memory.
All we hear now days is how unworthy Mexicans and other brown people from “shithole” countries should not be here, and we need to deport them.
From the indigenous perspective, this is how America has always been. Only now it’s affecting white people so there’s a lot more noise from them finally.
So they haven’t really been “woke” as accused, but hopefully they are finally Waking Up!!
Convicted felons can’t vote, can’t own
guns and should be banned from nuclear codes.
whether they can vote depends on state law.
Conviction for a felony does not necessarily affect whether one should be able to vote. The Supreme Court of Canada held a few years ago that voting has to be offered to people in federal prisons.
The real bar that should have applied to Trump, except that his Supreme Court did not want it to, is the 14th amendment's prohibition of serving in office to anyone who has engaged in an insurrection against the government.
The nuclear codes should not be held by an aggressive, self-centred moron. The Constitution and the law seem to be silent on that point. Up to now, it may have gone without saying, but ...
I want to thank Justices Kagan, Brown Jackson and Sotomayor for consistently being the sane, wise justices. I don't know where they get the strength to get out of bed and suffer the other justices day after day, but you are our heroes for doing this and greatly admired and appreciated.
Thank you for all the work you put into this (and by "this" I mean the immense daily writing). Few things: first (to me, most importantly), more attention needs to be focused on Stephen Miller. He is a cancer on your nation, and while the POTUS stamp is on all the crap, it is more likely being directed by Miller. I do not understand how an unelected unofficial like him has so much power on the governance of the US, and why nobody is moving in on him to remove his power. Secondly: it is interesting to note that some of the most powerful voices in the shit storm are women. You, Heather Cox Richardson, Leigh McGowan, Jessica Yellin, Jessica Craven, Joanna Johnson, Kris & Dave. Keep yelling, please. Finally...I realized this morning that NONE of your voices are showing up in my social feeds, they've been gone for about a week. Given that I am mainly on IG / FB, and those are both controlled by the same company...all I'm getting is advertising posts and my art community. I'm pretty certain shadow banning is being perpetrated on all these pundits.
Heather, I love your writing! You have quickly become one of the authors and thought leaders I look forward most to reading each day.
We need to all be sure to vote in the elections to get these insane people out of office. Voting percentages are always low. It’s the only way to get changes.
You are doing a great job Heather and pray for your strength to continue.
It is so frustrating when the Scotus reverses decisions that lower courts have made. If/when Democrats regain Congress, reforming the supreme court has to be one of their very top priorities. I'm very concerned that Thomas and Alito will retire before Trump's term ends and very possibly before a new Congress is seated. The tyranny of the current majority has to stop.
Expanding the court and requiring term limits would be a start.
That infarct needs to happen soonest.
It won’t matter…the Machine is set to keep its agenda no matter who is occupying the “top” spot. The Nazi fascist human vending machine, trump’s family, Vance, KKKabinet, Most SCOTUS, RepubliKKKans and Benedict Fetterman, the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025-26, Epstein Class Tech Bros., especially Elon Musk, and Thiel, Karp, Palantir, ALL taking over our government and while extorting and laundering billions of Blood money. All these sociopathic, serial pedophiles, rapists, sex traffickers, murderers and their sycophantic and Complicit RepubliKKKans and most of SCOTUS will keep going toward their uptime goals of Control, Power, Money, Imperialism…Kleptocracy, Oligarchy, Eugenics MAGA/MAWA agenda.
Looked it up and YES,
Heather, I really appreciate you always ending your exceptional pieces with positivity. I agree that what you witnessed at the airport is who we are. I see examples of this nearly every time I go out. No, we are not him. This is why it’s so sickening that he represents us on the world stage. He has literally no redeeming qualities and he is psychologically decompensating before our very eyes.
Splendid article! It really shows, what we can learn from history, including that there is always hope.
Very, very good, Heather.
👍🇩🇰
Rie
Historian
Be careful who you compare yourself to, DJT. Alexander died at 32, a sick drunk. Julius Caesar was killed by his own men and Napoleon was exiled to a tiny island in the South Atlantic. Sure, he left a triumphal arch and a big old tomb behind. That must be the appeal.
I have been wondering about the E. Jean Carroll case. All of those decisions made by juries after hearing the evidence, and guilty verdict and fines still have not been paid. And he might send it to the Supreme Court? Just stop and pay up—be a man. Oh, I see part of the problem.
He has a problem with paying for anything- he’d much rather laundered money secretly flowing into his accounts ‼️