After days spent largely hiding away from the public view, the President of the United States finally reemerged this afternoon for a campaign rally at the Nassau County Police Academy in Garden City, New York. With "God Bless the USA" already blaring from the speakers, Donald Trump soaked in the excitement as he gripped the handrail, pushed aside one side of the curtains, and thrust himself into the room full of cheering police officers. Once on stage, he clapped his hands, fist-bumped the audience, threw his hands out parallel to where his suit jacket had bunched at his waist, and puckered his mouth to make kissing faces towards the police officers in the stands.
The event was promoted as the unveiling of the FBI's 2025 Crime Statistics Report, but it was really a highly produced campaign rally ahead of the midterm elections. Because over the 70 minutes that Donald Trump spoke, he praised loyalist politicians, while attacking the press and the Democrats. He lost his train of thought often, even sharing, “I hate reading these boring speeches… to be honest with you.” He declared he would be taking over territories that do not belong to our country, and he said he is not sorry for the high prices we are paying because of his war in Iran. But the most disgusting moment of the entire event was when he became completely fixated on young women and girls in the White House, and went into a bizarre tangent about how ‘beautiful’ they were and how he knows he shouldn’t say what he was saying but that he was going to say it anyway.
I am reminded of a man I knew growing up who was the grandfather of my best friend, who was raised by her grandparents. I spent so much time at their home and he was handsome and dashing but always… just a little too complimentary to the young girls, a little too handsy, a little creepy with his eyes. When she told us all he had repeatedly sexually assaulted her as a child and teen, he denied it, her grandmother defended him, justice was sought and when every adult failed her, my friend moved across the country to get away from it all. But I always believed her, though I never saw anything specific and just felt the ick, the inappropriate and the unsure. My parents were his staunchest supporters and defenders, one of many reasons they are not in my life today. As he aged into his 80s, and dementia set in, the filters fell away, the charm became menace, and one day he assaulted my mother who had been one of the friends caring for him in his home. She was able to escape his aggressive sexual advances and get my father, and the old man was put in a nursing home where he died alone because he kept trying to assault the female nurses. Trump reminds me of him so much - he has always told us who he is, if we can see and hear clearly, but he isn’t even trying to hide it any more.
totally agree... filters are lost normally as you age, but dementia totally destroys them. I almost (almost!) feel sorry for this old man...he has no one...only people that use him and prop him up to keep him alive for their own use...so very sad
As for the police officers, I will think positive and concur that they were being told to not make Trump look bad...if that is not the case, God help us!
Agree with mac jordan, dementia removes all the barriers. So sorry to hear that your family went through this.. hopefully one day our society will believe all the young girls, and the boys who have experienced something so vile, even the adults who seek out help who end up feeling helpless.. One day..
As a child, I always an "ick" feeling about my uncle that I could not explain. Years later, I learned he had molested his two daughters. (When their brothers told my aunt, she brushed them off, saying "Don't say those things about your father.") When my own daughter was young, I taught her to pay attention to her instincts if something doesn't feel right. I wish all children were believed and protected.
Heather, did you have an opportunity to speak to any of those police men or women in the room after Trump had finished? You say they were all cheering or booing as asked but (a) were they? Or (b) did they really agree with what he was saying or (c) was it that they dealt they had to, to fit in, ie coercion? Especially the female officers.
With a tribe like that for law enforcement I can see why you wouldn’t wish to protest about anything.
I was thinking exactly the same thing!.. can someone actually interrupt the President and say..NO 'Sir' that is NOT true (especially about letting out a killer the next day)... plus disgusting comments he made about young 'beautiful' women in the White House'... could they walk out?
He tells so many lies..WHY does no-one say NO..THAT IS NOT TRUE!!!..
He is SO used to saying ANYTHING he wants and not being pulled up on it...
There’s a difference between cheering this lecher and just sitting quietly because you don’t want to be seen disrespecting the office. This reinforced my suspicion and distrust of law enforcement which has developed during this regime
Heather, You must have either a very strong stomach or a very strong will. It makes me so sick to see Trump on television or to hear his voice that I change channels right away or turn it off. Now I also feel sick about the police officers cheering him on and hope I never run into one if them on the street, but I keep reading your columns to stay informed at least second hand about Trump's shenanigans.
Excellent analysis, Ms. Reese. Thank you for your insight and for keeping your eyes on the reality of this corrupt administration on our behalf. (And I’m glad the little girl got her treats tonight. Keeping the priorities in order!)
Agreed. I, too, often feel "completely alone, exhausted, angry, and frustrated." But your posts every day provide the critical information and hope we need for a better day ahead. And it is important to continue to share the lies Trump tells and immediately follow them with the cold hard facts. Thank you, again, for all you do. Stay safe. Stay Protected. Elbows Up. 🇨🇦
Outrageous. Do we actually have this many clueless individuals in our police force and parts of our country who still do not see what is happening? Blind, clueless, ignorant, but...there are still this humans who have somehow been comforted and placated by the last two years of catastophe. Will they ever get it? If you know anyone who is still not able to see what is happening, ask why it doesn't affect him or her. Ask what all of this chaos GIVES to his or her life. Ask what it would take to make their lives complete, their food bills lower their medical care paid for, their children better educated, their streets safer. Ask what they are feeling, thinking, hoping for in their lives and then...listen. But the DOJ is being put on the spot by some sage judges and we shall see how that unfolds...
This all started 30 years ago. We just didn't realize "what evil lurks in the hearts of men"....
I’ve been a subscriber for sometime now because i really appreciate you raising awareness but more so for your deeper analysis and commentary on the larger picture. This essay was especially powerful, thank you for being a bright light in these dark times., The dawn is coming and it is because of you and those of us who refuse to look away and normalize what is extremely abnormal and demented behavior, not by just Trump but his cabinet. They are losing support daily and our strength grows. We do have difficult days ahead but we will persevere, due in large part to independent journalists like yourself. Thank you!!
Let us tell the truth: Trump is nowhere near "dragging the whole country down with him." He is telling us what he imagines is true, but he is (this is no secret) a raving lunatic; what he says is demonstrably false, and there is no evidence that it drags "the whole country" anywhere—as we shall all soon see when it's our turn to speak in November. We need to be very clear and consistent about this.
maybe not the whole country, but when over 30% of people support him and another 30% don't bother to vote, and he has control of all branches of government, and when most of mainstream media pussyfoots around his actions, then he has a whole lot of power to drag.
Evidence, John. He does not control the judiciary, quite the opposite. Nor half of the Congress. What he says is obviously false to substantial majorities of voters. What he has is too much, but certainly not, "a whole lot" of power.
I think you underestimate his control. He owns the DOJ, the Supreme Court and the Pentagon, besides Congress failing to act. I don’t think most people are tuned in to what is happening because they are so worried about their economic situation (that he caused for this purpose). I work with people who don’t pay attention to the news. It’s frightening. I don’t believe we have the election in the bag and I’m afraid of what he will pull to mess with the outcome.
I like your take on this. I’m not going down with him, no way or no how. He only wishes. I have always had a reputation as truth-teller, for better or for worse and can’t be led away r dragged anywhere. I know I am not alone in that.
I am so angry and yet weary of his lies and his efforts to make us hate each other because of our religion, our political affiliations, or the color of our skin. I fear he has permanently ruined our perception of democracy, kindness, neighborliness, and our hopes for a future that includes all kinds of people. That is what defined America until this flawed, angry, greedy lunatic chose to run for office. He has always been totally unqualified to lead a country. His slavish followers have become as cruel as he is, evidently including police forces who will cheer his lies and go back into the streets with borrowed anger and vengeance toward their own citizens.
In 1995 the province of Ontario, Canada, elected a conservative party whose slogan was 'the common sense revolution'. It was, by Canadian standards, very right wing, and did a lot of harm for a decade before more sensible people were elected in their place. The conservatives were nowhere near as bad as Trump, and not so personally corrupt, but the appeal to 'common sense' to dismantle many socially useful policies and programs worked for a while. Eventually people figured out that the label and what they experience in their lives had little to do with each other.
So it's a dangerous label, in part because who's against common sense?
Every morning I read your thoughtful analysis. Your grasp and interpretation of events and explanation of the ramifications of those events is brilliant and at the same time written clearly and understandably. Truthfully, I appreciate most your two last lines every day. Thank you for uplifting my spirits with those two lines.
Thank you, Heather, for bringing into the Light of Day how things in the world of Donald Trump are so very oppositional.
It’s a critical irony that a convicted felon, sex offender and proponent of chaos is given so much adoration by uniformed officers, who are, of necessity, trained to be in control, to be mindful of details and command a sense of order - the public needs and respects them for their professionalism in the line of duty.
Yet, they respond to Trump as if he were Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, or Elvis..yet those folk heroes had something that distinguished them - their excellence in their craft.
Trump, inexplicably has this with members of the military - again, we witness the Law of Opposites at work there as well: On cue, uniformed military rank and file mainly - not officers so much, if at all - give Trump the heroes welcome, yet he is on record debasing soldiers who have died in service of their country, he is a draft-dodger who would not do what they are doing - serve in the military.
You, and others, have pointed out how he claims to “love” women, yet he demonstrates this by objectifying and debasing them.
In fact every group he has verbally expressed “love” for have been tossed aside after they have served their purpose:
Students advocating for gun control, LGBTQ+ advocates, DACA advocates, African-Americans….he’s loved them all, and in his World of Opposites, he has spurned them, distorted his previous references, and continues his lying ways.
Everyone has a “tell” when they attempt to be evasive, to lie - with Donald Trump, his “tell” is when his mouth is speaking.
Trump left no doubt about his racism bragging and encouraging the crowd to agree that DEI is horrible, noting he didn’t see any DEI cops around. Can you honestly believe this? And those cowardly racist cops all cheered!
Thank you Heather, can’t say this enough the thank you’s because you watch him… can’t stomach it anymore..
There are those small occasions that slip that he does tell some truths. We all know what the conditions have been like for our military serving on various ships, such as the USS Lincoln and USS Gerald Ford in his war in Iran. As he speaks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, whether the deployments have gone on for too long and whether he’s worried about troops’ mental health.
“No. No. No — not nearly long enough,” Trump said.
Ah yes the compassion and empathy just oozes from his body.. *sarcasm
The common sense that Heather mentions is by whose standards. Where is the common sense as he delivers remarks at the David S. Mack Center for Training and Intelligence (Nassau County Police Academy) that btw those officers should think twice since he pardoned all the J 6’ers who beat police officers to a bloody pulp, some died. Those police officers think they will be spared from any other possible event that may occur when he decides to unleash a large group of ICE agents out into the streets wearing those GLOVES on that administer a shock that a person can go into convulsions that those officers who are trying to keep the peace will not be accidentally in the way of the ICE goon squads.. Think anyone in any of the communities will ever trust a police officer ever again…
The common sense of some has been drained dry probably it’s at 30% of the population in the nation. Sure, sure he stands there just saying that we all can just pay a “little bit more” for our fuel for our vehicles because that’s just how he sees it. We all can just “suck it up buttercup” for whatever he wants. Because folks that what he wants. He doesn’t give a shite about anyone or anything other than himself, his opulent ballroom to be built, all the statues in DC to have been applied with close to 24 carat gold leafing, his name on nearly every building and of course that monstrosity of an Arch, let alone apply paint to the historic gray granite exterior of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building white to match the White House. Anybody think he’s just going to stop when he gets all he wants in DC on all those buildings.. Anybody think that if you have let’s say a bank account with a little money that he and his regime aren’t going to suck that account dry. Oh btw if you haven’t kept up on the news — cryptocurrency is moving closer to becoming a standard option in 401(k) plans following executive orders and regulatory shifts directing the Department of Labor to encourage alternative assets like digital currencies and private equity. However, the availability depends entirely on individual plan providers and employers.. May want to research a bit on crypto.. here’s just one Crypto is most famous for rapid and massive price swings. Prices can shoot up or crash down by huge percentages in a single day. Now does that give all a nice warm feeling in their investments of a 401k for you know retirement… if ever
See approximately 30% of our population cheering and clapping like circus seals so happy that a small old bone riddled smelly sardine is thrown at their faces by him and this entire regime.. Common sense left the building in November 2015, then just somewhat returned in November 2020 and definitely left the building as of November 2024 to give him another crack at his totality of being an authoritarian of this entire nation… Yep common sense has left the building unless you make the changes needed this coming November…
How much do y’all think you can “suck it up” any longer.. Organize your plan to Vote.. There is 79 days left, check once again to ensure you are not purged from your states voting rolls, it passed the time it should have been done. Make Your Vote Count..
Thank you Heather for your daily brief. I don’t understand all the people cheering him at the police event. These are the people who are to protect and serve their communities! Why cheer and support a criminal, scammer, and a person who is destroying our democracy.
I am reminded of a man I knew growing up who was the grandfather of my best friend, who was raised by her grandparents. I spent so much time at their home and he was handsome and dashing but always… just a little too complimentary to the young girls, a little too handsy, a little creepy with his eyes. When she told us all he had repeatedly sexually assaulted her as a child and teen, he denied it, her grandmother defended him, justice was sought and when every adult failed her, my friend moved across the country to get away from it all. But I always believed her, though I never saw anything specific and just felt the ick, the inappropriate and the unsure. My parents were his staunchest supporters and defenders, one of many reasons they are not in my life today. As he aged into his 80s, and dementia set in, the filters fell away, the charm became menace, and one day he assaulted my mother who had been one of the friends caring for him in his home. She was able to escape his aggressive sexual advances and get my father, and the old man was put in a nursing home where he died alone because he kept trying to assault the female nurses. Trump reminds me of him so much - he has always told us who he is, if we can see and hear clearly, but he isn’t even trying to hide it any more.
In my experience, dementia removes the final barriers.
totally agree... filters are lost normally as you age, but dementia totally destroys them. I almost (almost!) feel sorry for this old man...he has no one...only people that use him and prop him up to keep him alive for their own use...so very sad
As for the police officers, I will think positive and concur that they were being told to not make Trump look bad...if that is not the case, God help us!
If those young graduate police trainees were told by their superiors not to make Trump look bad, shame on the whole bunch for agreeing!!
Lock THEM up with the criminal they cheered!
They had a great opportunity to show what their training taught them. And they failed.
Ditto! Totally agree!
Agree with mac jordan, dementia removes all the barriers. So sorry to hear that your family went through this.. hopefully one day our society will believe all the young girls, and the boys who have experienced something so vile, even the adults who seek out help who end up feeling helpless.. One day..
I think
Most girls have known someone like this. I certainly have.
Sadly, true. I was 18 the first time but still a girl in many ways.
As a child, I always an "ick" feeling about my uncle that I could not explain. Years later, I learned he had molested his two daughters. (When their brothers told my aunt, she brushed them off, saying "Don't say those things about your father.") When my own daughter was young, I taught her to pay attention to her instincts if something doesn't feel right. I wish all children were believed and protected.
Heather, did you have an opportunity to speak to any of those police men or women in the room after Trump had finished? You say they were all cheering or booing as asked but (a) were they? Or (b) did they really agree with what he was saying or (c) was it that they dealt they had to, to fit in, ie coercion? Especially the female officers.
With a tribe like that for law enforcement I can see why you wouldn’t wish to protest about anything.
Very Nazi.
I was thinking exactly the same thing!.. can someone actually interrupt the President and say..NO 'Sir' that is NOT true (especially about letting out a killer the next day)... plus disgusting comments he made about young 'beautiful' women in the White House'... could they walk out?
He tells so many lies..WHY does no-one say NO..THAT IS NOT TRUE!!!..
He is SO used to saying ANYTHING he wants and not being pulled up on it...
So sad.
There’s a difference between cheering this lecher and just sitting quietly because you don’t want to be seen disrespecting the office. This reinforced my suspicion and distrust of law enforcement which has developed during this regime
Heather, You must have either a very strong stomach or a very strong will. It makes me so sick to see Trump on television or to hear his voice that I change channels right away or turn it off. Now I also feel sick about the police officers cheering him on and hope I never run into one if them on the street, but I keep reading your columns to stay informed at least second hand about Trump's shenanigans.
Excellent analysis, Ms. Reese. Thank you for your insight and for keeping your eyes on the reality of this corrupt administration on our behalf. (And I’m glad the little girl got her treats tonight. Keeping the priorities in order!)
Agreed. I, too, often feel "completely alone, exhausted, angry, and frustrated." But your posts every day provide the critical information and hope we need for a better day ahead. And it is important to continue to share the lies Trump tells and immediately follow them with the cold hard facts. Thank you, again, for all you do. Stay safe. Stay Protected. Elbows Up. 🇨🇦
I second this 🇨🇦
Outrageous. Do we actually have this many clueless individuals in our police force and parts of our country who still do not see what is happening? Blind, clueless, ignorant, but...there are still this humans who have somehow been comforted and placated by the last two years of catastophe. Will they ever get it? If you know anyone who is still not able to see what is happening, ask why it doesn't affect him or her. Ask what all of this chaos GIVES to his or her life. Ask what it would take to make their lives complete, their food bills lower their medical care paid for, their children better educated, their streets safer. Ask what they are feeling, thinking, hoping for in their lives and then...listen. But the DOJ is being put on the spot by some sage judges and we shall see how that unfolds...
This all started 30 years ago. We just didn't realize "what evil lurks in the hearts of men"....
I’ve been a subscriber for sometime now because i really appreciate you raising awareness but more so for your deeper analysis and commentary on the larger picture. This essay was especially powerful, thank you for being a bright light in these dark times., The dawn is coming and it is because of you and those of us who refuse to look away and normalize what is extremely abnormal and demented behavior, not by just Trump but his cabinet. They are losing support daily and our strength grows. We do have difficult days ahead but we will persevere, due in large part to independent journalists like yourself. Thank you!!
Let us tell the truth: Trump is nowhere near "dragging the whole country down with him." He is telling us what he imagines is true, but he is (this is no secret) a raving lunatic; what he says is demonstrably false, and there is no evidence that it drags "the whole country" anywhere—as we shall all soon see when it's our turn to speak in November. We need to be very clear and consistent about this.
maybe not the whole country, but when over 30% of people support him and another 30% don't bother to vote, and he has control of all branches of government, and when most of mainstream media pussyfoots around his actions, then he has a whole lot of power to drag.
Evidence, John. He does not control the judiciary, quite the opposite. Nor half of the Congress. What he says is obviously false to substantial majorities of voters. What he has is too much, but certainly not, "a whole lot" of power.
I think you underestimate his control. He owns the DOJ, the Supreme Court and the Pentagon, besides Congress failing to act. I don’t think most people are tuned in to what is happening because they are so worried about their economic situation (that he caused for this purpose). I work with people who don’t pay attention to the news. It’s frightening. I don’t believe we have the election in the bag and I’m afraid of what he will pull to mess with the outcome.
I like your take on this. I’m not going down with him, no way or no how. He only wishes. I have always had a reputation as truth-teller, for better or for worse and can’t be led away r dragged anywhere. I know I am not alone in that.
I am so angry and yet weary of his lies and his efforts to make us hate each other because of our religion, our political affiliations, or the color of our skin. I fear he has permanently ruined our perception of democracy, kindness, neighborliness, and our hopes for a future that includes all kinds of people. That is what defined America until this flawed, angry, greedy lunatic chose to run for office. He has always been totally unqualified to lead a country. His slavish followers have become as cruel as he is, evidently including police forces who will cheer his lies and go back into the streets with borrowed anger and vengeance toward their own citizens.
In 1995 the province of Ontario, Canada, elected a conservative party whose slogan was 'the common sense revolution'. It was, by Canadian standards, very right wing, and did a lot of harm for a decade before more sensible people were elected in their place. The conservatives were nowhere near as bad as Trump, and not so personally corrupt, but the appeal to 'common sense' to dismantle many socially useful policies and programs worked for a while. Eventually people figured out that the label and what they experience in their lives had little to do with each other.
So it's a dangerous label, in part because who's against common sense?
Every morning I read your thoughtful analysis. Your grasp and interpretation of events and explanation of the ramifications of those events is brilliant and at the same time written clearly and understandably. Truthfully, I appreciate most your two last lines every day. Thank you for uplifting my spirits with those two lines.
Thank you, Heather, for bringing into the Light of Day how things in the world of Donald Trump are so very oppositional.
It’s a critical irony that a convicted felon, sex offender and proponent of chaos is given so much adoration by uniformed officers, who are, of necessity, trained to be in control, to be mindful of details and command a sense of order - the public needs and respects them for their professionalism in the line of duty.
Yet, they respond to Trump as if he were Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, or Elvis..yet those folk heroes had something that distinguished them - their excellence in their craft.
Trump, inexplicably has this with members of the military - again, we witness the Law of Opposites at work there as well: On cue, uniformed military rank and file mainly - not officers so much, if at all - give Trump the heroes welcome, yet he is on record debasing soldiers who have died in service of their country, he is a draft-dodger who would not do what they are doing - serve in the military.
You, and others, have pointed out how he claims to “love” women, yet he demonstrates this by objectifying and debasing them.
In fact every group he has verbally expressed “love” for have been tossed aside after they have served their purpose:
Students advocating for gun control, LGBTQ+ advocates, DACA advocates, African-Americans….he’s loved them all, and in his World of Opposites, he has spurned them, distorted his previous references, and continues his lying ways.
Everyone has a “tell” when they attempt to be evasive, to lie - with Donald Trump, his “tell” is when his mouth is speaking.
Trump left no doubt about his racism bragging and encouraging the crowd to agree that DEI is horrible, noting he didn’t see any DEI cops around. Can you honestly believe this? And those cowardly racist cops all cheered!
Thank you Heather, can’t say this enough the thank you’s because you watch him… can’t stomach it anymore..
There are those small occasions that slip that he does tell some truths. We all know what the conditions have been like for our military serving on various ships, such as the USS Lincoln and USS Gerald Ford in his war in Iran. As he speaks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, whether the deployments have gone on for too long and whether he’s worried about troops’ mental health.
“No. No. No — not nearly long enough,” Trump said.
Ah yes the compassion and empathy just oozes from his body.. *sarcasm
The common sense that Heather mentions is by whose standards. Where is the common sense as he delivers remarks at the David S. Mack Center for Training and Intelligence (Nassau County Police Academy) that btw those officers should think twice since he pardoned all the J 6’ers who beat police officers to a bloody pulp, some died. Those police officers think they will be spared from any other possible event that may occur when he decides to unleash a large group of ICE agents out into the streets wearing those GLOVES on that administer a shock that a person can go into convulsions that those officers who are trying to keep the peace will not be accidentally in the way of the ICE goon squads.. Think anyone in any of the communities will ever trust a police officer ever again…
The common sense of some has been drained dry probably it’s at 30% of the population in the nation. Sure, sure he stands there just saying that we all can just pay a “little bit more” for our fuel for our vehicles because that’s just how he sees it. We all can just “suck it up buttercup” for whatever he wants. Because folks that what he wants. He doesn’t give a shite about anyone or anything other than himself, his opulent ballroom to be built, all the statues in DC to have been applied with close to 24 carat gold leafing, his name on nearly every building and of course that monstrosity of an Arch, let alone apply paint to the historic gray granite exterior of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building white to match the White House. Anybody think he’s just going to stop when he gets all he wants in DC on all those buildings.. Anybody think that if you have let’s say a bank account with a little money that he and his regime aren’t going to suck that account dry. Oh btw if you haven’t kept up on the news — cryptocurrency is moving closer to becoming a standard option in 401(k) plans following executive orders and regulatory shifts directing the Department of Labor to encourage alternative assets like digital currencies and private equity. However, the availability depends entirely on individual plan providers and employers.. May want to research a bit on crypto.. here’s just one Crypto is most famous for rapid and massive price swings. Prices can shoot up or crash down by huge percentages in a single day. Now does that give all a nice warm feeling in their investments of a 401k for you know retirement… if ever
See approximately 30% of our population cheering and clapping like circus seals so happy that a small old bone riddled smelly sardine is thrown at their faces by him and this entire regime.. Common sense left the building in November 2015, then just somewhat returned in November 2020 and definitely left the building as of November 2024 to give him another crack at his totality of being an authoritarian of this entire nation… Yep common sense has left the building unless you make the changes needed this coming November…
How much do y’all think you can “suck it up” any longer.. Organize your plan to Vote.. There is 79 days left, check once again to ensure you are not purged from your states voting rolls, it passed the time it should have been done. Make Your Vote Count..
Thank you Heather for your daily brief. I don’t understand all the people cheering him at the police event. These are the people who are to protect and serve their communities! Why cheer and support a criminal, scammer, and a person who is destroying our democracy.
I'm disgusted that ANYONE still cheers the rapist, and it's disturbing that the fools cheering him are cops.