I have an emotional day ahead and still trying to cope with the loss of Sue…..we will pick up ashes and death certificates today and I will deal with the rushing emotions.
Please forgive me I will try to get back on track as soon as possible.
chuq
Month: March 2025
That Unitary Government Thing
With all the consolidations that trump and his thug Elmo are doing to this government it looks like a push for a unitary government….I recently wrote about this opportunity for the boyz in the Trump administration to enact a new form of American government.
What could go wrong right?
This should answer many questions that have lingered since my original post….
Before going into detail, it’s worth emphasizing what unitary executive theory (UET) is – and what it is not. UET is a theory of the distribution of executive power, not a theory of its scope. Even if all or nearly all executive authority is concentrated in the hands of the president, its scope could potentially still be quite narrow, if the total amount of executive power is very limited. For example, even if UET is correct, the Trump administration’s multifaceted effort to usurp the spending power is still unconstitutional, because the power of the purse is not an executive power at all. It belongs to Congress.
Still, the modern scope of executive power is very broad, in large part because the federal government has intruded into so many areas beyond what it was supposed to control under the original meaning of the Constitution. And that undermines the case for UET.
In some ways, the originalist case for a unitary executive is as compelling as ever. Article II of the Constitution states that “The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.” It does not say that executive power can be divided between the branches of government or given to bureaucratic agencies independent of presidential control. This strongly implies that he is supposed to have all the power given to the executive branch, except such as is specifically allocated elsewhere in other parts of the Constitution.
If the executive branch still wielded only the relatively narrow range of powers it had at the time of the Founding, the case for the unitary executive would be pretty strong (at least on originalist grounds). Unfortunately, however, the current scope of executive authority goes far beyond that. To take just one noteworthy example, the president now presides over a vast federal law-enforcement apparatus, much of it devoted to waging the War on Drugs (which accounts for the lion’s share of federal prosecutions and prisoners). Under the original meaning of the Constitution – and the dominant understanding of the first 150 years of American history – the federal government did not have the power to ban in-state possession and distribution of goods. That’s why it took a constitutional amendment to establish federal alcohol Prohibition in 1919. Giving the president control over the waging of the federal War on Drugs is giving him a power the federal government was never supposed to have in the first place. Immigration is another field where the executive now wields vast power, despite the fact that, as James Madison and others pointed out, the original meaning of the Constitution actually did not give the federal government any general power to restrict migration into the United States.
https://reason.com/volokh/2025/03/02/perils-of-unitary-executive-theory/
I my opinion the unitary executive theory(UET) should be fought with every fiber of our being for it is not what this country was founded on….the checks and balances that have worked for us for over 200 years is slowly being eaten away and giving rise this abortion called UET.
Will you stand by and do nothing?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Who Are These Americans?
WE Americans think of ourselves in glowing lies….we are patriotic, but few actually knows what that means, we love our Constitution and yet elected a dick that is stripping it of all the benefits it provided, we think of ourselves as free thinkers (a joke at the best of times and finally that we are anti-racist.
Let’s look at two of these considerations….free thinking and racism and I shall begin with racism…
I know a guy, we will call him Al to protect the innocent….he does not think he is a racist but he believes that the Civil War was about taxes and people of color are all ‘welfare queens’ to use a Reagan insult…
But deep down we all are a bit racist maybe not to the extent of some of the more mouthy of Americans….the twice elected Donald the Orange illustrates just how much racism effected the election…
The country is going backward in terms of civil rights, women’s issues and equality for all. His “America first” mantra should be called “white Americans first” because that is what it is. The fact that he pardoned some of the Jan. 6 participants is understandable. The fact that he pardoned those who committed violence is unacceptable. Anyone in law enforcement who supports him are in the wrong occupation.
…
I never thought I would see such chaos caused by an arrogant, petty man-child and it is sad that this country reelected him. It demonstrates that, sadly, a large segment of our residents are racist and white supremacist. Even when most don’t think they are, in fact by definition, they are racist.
Americans like to think of themselves as individuals and free thinkers….a pipe dream….
America has long been celebrated as the land of the free — a place where agency, independence and self-determination are enshrined in our national mythos. Whether idealizing the rugged frontiersman or the daring entrepreneur, Americans take pride in the idea of forging their own paths. Yet despite these stated ideals, we often surrender our liberty in surprising ways.
Compliance is the act of going along with something — often imposed by a person or system — through reactive or passive obedience. It’s vandalizing a book on command, going against our better judgment when someone tells us to or administering electric shocks to another person, as in Stanley Milgram’s famous experiments. We say yes when we could and should say no.
Experiments I’ve conducted suggest that Americans regularly comply with advice even when they know it is bad. In a series of studies, I gave participants obviously poor recommendations to choose a clearly subpar lottery over one in which they stood to win twice as much. I found that compliance rates soared as high as 85%. In a nation that so cherishes independence, why are we so inclined to comply?
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2025-02-28/american-liberty-obedience-research
Conclusion is the Americans are not who they want to believe they are….it takes a certain ability to be a free thinker and most Americans do not have that ability without social media.
Anything to add?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Tracking Project 2025
In case anyone missed the facts.
Project 2025 was a conservative plan/playbook for the changing of our democracy written by the Heritage Foundation….during the campaign His Lord High Master of the Universe disavowed knowledge of the document and yet once elected he set off doing many of the changes that Heritage wants to see….in other words changing what our democracy in many scary ways.
While researching I found a site that tracks just how the GOP is following the plan almost to a tee.
A website that tracks Project 2025 and GOP implementation of the initiative thus far has popped up online and quite frankly, it’s brilliant.
The site was created by Reddit users Rusticgorilla and Mollynaquafina, who started the tracker to make Project 2025’s rollout way more transparent.
Project 2025 was one of the most talked about topics during the 2024 presidential election, but voters overall ignored the warning signs of its potential impact on America.
The 900+ page Republican agenda aims to fundamentally change how government works.
As previously reported by NewsOne, The conservative manifesto, titled Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, was created by the GOP think tank group, the Heritage Foundation. Filled with confusing and vague language, Project 2025 calls for eliminating the Department of Education, looks to abolish the ideals of affirmative action, wants to eliminate access to abortion rights and calls for eliminating social welfare programs. The agenda also pledges to erode civil protections for the LGBTQIA+ community, criminalize homelessness, eradicate “wokeness,” end immigration and make it easier to fire federal employees who aren’t Republicans.
Sadly, a lot of Project 2025’s agenda has already been implemented within Trump’s slew of executive orders, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be paying attention.
That’s where the Project 2025 tracker comes into play. The website allows you to select different agencies and subjects while allowing you to see the statuses of each subject and what agencies they will affect. The tracker also has an overall progress bar so you can see how much of Project 2025 has already been implemented and how much is left. Progress by agency is also tracked with a dropdown to see every agency, plus the objectives affecting each agency.
Most of the Magats are ignoring the fact that their new master is screwing them. Is hate that instilled into some Americans that they will look the other way and screw themselves just to hit back at what they perceive as ‘woke”?
Please bookmark the website and please if you have a blog or other social media accounts pass on as often as you can just how dangerous this ‘plan’ is to us poor peasants.
Thoughts?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Trump And The Constitution
Yes my friends it is that time again….time for a short history lesson from our founding days.
Let’s go back to Trump’s speech on 04 March….
If there are any limits to a president’s power, it wasn’t evident from Donald Trump’s speech before a joint session of Congress on March 4, 2025.
In that speech, the first before lawmakers of Trump’s second term, the president declared vast accomplishments during the brief six weeks of his presidency. He claimed to have “brought back free speech” to the country. He declared that there were only two sexes, “male and female.” He reminded the audience that he had unilaterally renamed an international body of water as well as the country’s tallest mountain.
“Our country is on the verge of a comeback the likes of which the world has never witnessed, and perhaps will never witness again,” Trump asserted.
The extravagant claims appear to match Trump’s view of the presidency – one virtually kinglike in its unilateral power.
It’s true that the U.S. Constitution’s crucial section about the executive branch, Article 2, does not grant the president unlimited power. But it does make this figure the sole “Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States.”
This monopoly on the use of force is one way Trump could support his 2019 claim that he can do “whatever I want as President.”
…
When the Constitution was written, many people – from those who drafted the document to those who read it – believed that endowing the president with such powers was dangerous.
Ratified after a lot of huffing and puffing, on May 29, 1790, by rather nervous citizens, the text of the Constitution had stirred many controversies.
It wasn’t just the oftentimes vague language, which includes head-scratchers such as the very preamble, “We the People of the United States.” Nor was the discomfort due solely to the document’s jarring brevity – at 4,543 words, the U.S. Constitution is the shortest written Constitution of any major nation in the world.
No, what made that document especially problematic, to borrow from John Adams, was that it provided for “a monarchical Republick, or if you will a limited Monarchy.”
In essence the Constitution was put together to avoid the US from having to answer to yet another king….the actions of our dearly clueless leader is trying to circumvent the Constitutional powers that the office has and make it all about what he wants.
Sorry I do not see any constitutional priority that allows Donny these unlimited powers.
If he wants this to be the law of the land then maybe it is time for constitutional upgrade.
There are, of course, opportunities to amend the constitution without completely scrapping it. Article V states that Congress itself can propose an amendment “whenever two-thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary,” and once the amendment is “ratified by three-fourths of the several states” it becomes “Part of this Constitution.” This process (simpler than the other option, a convention of states) has been successfully used 27 previous times. The convention of states method, on the other hand, may not be restricted to a specific subject and could be used as a vehicle to overturn the entire Constitution.
This will not happen.
Today’s political climate makes it impossible to find an intellectual giant like the founders…there is no one to ‘lead’ the way to saving this country and its laws.
Any thoughts?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
A Game Of ‘Hide And Seek’
There has been some problems for the GOP when they return home and have a townhall so the peons can feel included in the process….in other words the townhalls are scaring the crap out of the GOP….
For the past six weeks, we have witnessed just how far President Donald Trump is willing to go to reshape America in his dystopian vision. Now we’re witnessing Republican fear of having to account for that reshaping.
Trump signed more executive orders during his first month than any president in over 40 years. USA TODAY has reported that there are more than 100,000 federal job cuts already. Half the country is, understandably, concerned, and they’re speaking out about it.
As a result, GOP lawmakers holding town halls nationwide are having to answer for Trump and Elon Musk’s reign of chaos – even in deep red districts. Instead of facing those criticisms head on, Republicans have decided to hide.
Time to hide from the public and only focus on the Robber Barons…..
NBC News reports that House Republicans have decided to “hit the brakes” on all this town hall rigaramarole. They’re “weary and wary,” says the article. And the party leaders are saying “oh bless your hearts!” and “oh you poor things!” and saying they shouldn’t do town halls anymore if they’re scary, and they ARE very scary:
Party leaders suggest that if lawmakers feel the need to hold such events, they do tele-town halls or at least vet attendees to avoid scenes that become viral clips, according to GOP sources.
A GOP aide said House Republican leaders are urging lawmakers to stop engaging in them altogether.
Hate those viral clips where a voter tells their congressman they don’t like getting fired from their important jobs so that a South African terrorist and his team of young incels can lob nuclear bombs into the very functioning of the federal government under the obviously fake auspices of “finding fraud and waste.” Some of those voters even suggest that Republican congressmen have power to do something about it, if they’d pull their mouths off Donald Trump’s anus long enough!
https://www.wonkette.com/p/republicans-quitting-town-halls-to
Just yesterday another GOPer had a run in with his constituents….
Things did … not go well for GOP Rep. Chuck Edwards at a town hall in Asheville, North Carolina, this week as he was grilled about cuts made by the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. ABC News reports that the Edwards town hall, held in a college auditorium and attended by hundreds, got so heated that security eventually had to escort Edwards out of the building. “You don’t get to do this to us!” one attendee yelled at Edwards during the gathering, which the AP notes was 90 minutes of Edwards enduring “a constant barrage of jeers, expletives, and searing questions on Trump administration policies.”
I don’t want to hear about your latest week in your office,” said one constituent who pressed Edwards on Trump’s push to squeeze a mineral deal out of Ukraine, as well as on Trump’s apparent plans to annex Greenland and Canada. Another furious attendee was shown being led out of the meeting by security after directing that fury toward Edwards. “And you wonder why folks don’t want to do these town halls,” the “visibly exhausted” lawmaker said at one point, per the AP. The incident in Asheville comes after the head of the House GOP’s campaign unit instructed Republican lawmakers earlier this month not to hold any more in-person town hall meetings, due to public backlash, per Politico. Edwards apparently ignored that order.
How long can they hide?
Will they show some cajones and face the people or will they hide in their office like the scared cowards they are?
A political game of hide and seek…..now the GOP faithfvul will have to depend on misinformation and conspiracy theories to try and understand what their elected leaders are up to in this time of political chaos.
And sadly they will probably get away with it.
Thoughts?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Will The US Collapse?
Yes I know this is mostly unthinkable for most of us….but with all the division, hatred and confusion is it possible the US could collapse like the Soviet Union?
A little background for my younger readers….
The once ‘powerful’ USSR, Soviet Union, was in place from 1917 and then at the closing years of the 20th century upheaval and political tension the broke apart sending there sphere of influence into chaos….this break-up began in 1991….
There is a website, The Conversation, that has asked this same question and did a deep dive into the implications…
“You’re next,” said a Russian historian I interviewed in 1993 about the Soviet Union’s collapse in late 1991. I was an American student in St. Petersburg, and he was referring to the United States.
His argument was informed by a pseudo-scientific demographic theory that would eventually find favour in the Kremlin, but more remarkable to me then was the hopefulness with which he spoke.
If this man is still alive, he must be feeling vindicated. America’s current retreat from its engagements around the world — from gutting USAid to abandoning European allies — constitutes a surrender of power comparable in living memory only to Mikhail Gorbachev’s unilateral withdrawals from Afghanistan, Eastern Europe and elsewhere between 1988 and 1991 — right before the Soviet Union’s collapse.
Accompanying both foreign policy about-faces, we can’t miss profound shifts in the two states’ ideological foundations.
As long as his sacredness remained unquestioned, referring to Lenin could legitimize a range of policies and actions. Viewing Lenin through a historical lens, however, called his sacredness into question. It consequently became impossible for Soviet citizens to agree on what policies and actions were legitimate. This crisis of meaning allowed chronic political, economic and social problems to suddenly to become devastating.
America’s master signifier is its Constitution, reverentially enshrined in Washington, D.C., rather like Lenin’s body is in Moscow. Under President Donald Trump, however, violations of the Constitution have become routine, and the federal government’s legislative branch has shown little will to guard its powers from executive encroachment. Like Lenin under Gorbachev, it seems that the sacred centre of America’s political system has become destabilized.
https://theconversation.com/will-the-u-s-collapse-like-the-soviet-union-did-250212
This is a fascinating piece and should be read if one is truly looking for answer to the current situation in the US.
As usual….I am not endorsing anything at all….I just think that all aspects of the happenings in the US and any possible ideas about the future, if one is interested in the future, should be looked and understood.
Please if you have anything constructive or in opposition keep it simple and civil.
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Is This Necessary?
Trump has made many threatening gestures toward some of our allies….like Greenland, Canada and Panama….and recent report is most disturbing is there a possibility that the whole canal thing could turn ugly….
President Donald Trump has directed the Pentagon to prepare plans for carrying out his threat to “take back” the Panama Canal, including by military force if needed, two U.S. officials familiar with the situation told NBC News Thursday.
According to the outlet, the officials said that U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) is drawing up potential plans that run the gamut from working more closely with Panama’s military to a less likely scenario in which U.S. troops invade the country and take the canal by force. They also said that SOUTHCOM commander Adm. Alvin Holsey has presented draft strategies to be reviewed by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who is scheduled to visit Panama next month.
The officials explained that the likelihood of a U.S invasion depended on the level of cooperation shown by the Panamanian military.
Trump has repeatedly refused to rule out use of military force to seize control of the vital U.S.-built waterway, as well as Greenland, an autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.
Last week during his joint address to Congress, Trump proclaimed that “to further enhance our national security, my administration will be reclaiming the Panama Canal,” but his administration has not clarified precisely what “reclaiming” entails.
The Republican president says the U.S. needs to retake control of the Panama Canal to enhance “economic security,” and has falsely claimed that the waterway is “operated by China.”
https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-panama-canal-invasion-plan
This is ridiculous…..at what point does this fool stop trying to flex his muscle and he learns to cooperate with our allies?
Just what the US needs now…..yet another war to make things worse.
Any thoughts?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Trump’s Version Of The ‘Brown Shirts’
Back in the 1930s in Germany the Brown Shirts, SA, were tasked with rounding up dissents, gays, mentally ill, socialists and Jews…..and now his Majesty Donny has a version of this horrendous group.
The DOJ is now tasked with controlling the protests against Israel cleansing of Gaza under the guise of ‘antisemitism’….
The US Department of Justice said Thursday that its recently created “Federal Task Force to Combat Antisemitism” will be heading to four US cities as part of the Trump administration’s broad crackdown on college protests critical of Israel.
The DOJ said the task force, led by attorney Leo Terrell, will be visiting the leadership of New York, Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles to discuss “their responses to incidents of antisemitism at schools and on college campuses in their cities over the last two years.”
While the pro-Palestine protests that swept college campuses have been labeled “antisemitic,” many Jewish students and organizations have participated. The DOJ said that Terrell informed city leaders that he “was aware of allegations that the schools in their respective cities may have failed to protect Jewish students from unlawful discrimination, in potential violation of federal law.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi accused officials of not taking enough action against the protests. “Too many elected officials chose not to stand up to a rising tide of antisemitism in our cities and campuses following the horrific events of October 7, 2023,” she said. “Actions have consequences – inaction does, too.”
The DOJ, along with several other federal agencies, recently announced the cancellation of approximately $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University over claims of “inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students” even though Columbia has taken a heavy hand against students critical of Israel.
The federal agencies said the grants were being canceled in “light of ongoing investigations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act,” which the agencies are likely enforcing using a definition of antisemitism that includes criticism of the state of Israel.
Back in 2019, President Trump signed an executive order directing all executive departments to consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism and the organization’s list of examples of “contemporary antisemitism” when enforcing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
The IHRA’s examples of “contemporary antisemitism” includes “drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.” It also lists applying “double standards” to Israel by “requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation” and “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination” by “claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.”
(antiwar.com)
Last Week At The Sh*t Show–16Mar25
Another week passes and the Sh*t Show keeps crapping along.
Clueless leader continues to circumvent the Congress with his magic Sharpie and EOs. over 50 in less than 2 months, his newest is to create another ‘reserve’….
President Donald Trump’s decision to establish official government cryptocurrency reserves in the US has drawn criticism from industry watchers.
He has signed an executive order creating what he calls a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve as well as a Digital Asset Stockpile, which will consist of other forms of digital currency.
The funds will be stocked with coins forfeited to the federal government as part of criminal or civil proceedings.
White House AI and crypto tsar David Sacks likened them to a “a digital Fort Knox for the cryptocurrency”, drawing comparison to the Kentucky military base that stores a significant portion of US gold assets.
However, some crypto enthusiasts have criticised the government for not being bolder, while others have raised question marks about the lack of transparency over the process.
Sacks has ordered a full accounting of the federal government’s existing crypto reserves, which he estimated at 200,000 Bitcoin alone. That’s worth $17.5bn (£13.6bn) at today’s prices.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqx0g1py5v0o
If you are truly interested in the BS then go to the White House link…..https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/03/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-establishes-the-strategic-bitcoin-reserve-and-u-s-digital-asset-stockpile/
Was this truly a necessary move at this point in his administration? Would it have anything to do with his crypto holdings?
Those ‘amazing’ deportations that the Trump Administration is carrying out around the country….it has been in the news nightly but how are they doing number wise?
ICE arrests spiked to around 800-1,200 per day during Trump’s first week in office, then fell off as detention centers filled up and officers surged to target cities returned home.“It’s going to be like turning a supertanker for the first few months,” Isacson said. “The civilian part of the U.S. government can only do so much.”During Trump’s first month in office, ICE doubled arrests of people with criminal charges or convictions compared with the same period a year ago, according to data provided by DHS.While arrests have risen, ICE detention space remains a limiting factor. The agency currently holds around 41,100 detainees, with funding to hold 41,500.About 19,000 of those detainees were arrested by ICE while about 22,000 were picked up by U.S. border authorities, according to agency data published in mid-February.Of the 19,000 arrested by ICE, around 2,800 had no criminal record, according to the same agency data. The figure was up from 858 in mid-January, before Trump took office.The Republican-led U.S. Senate on Friday passed a bill to provide $340 billion over four years for border security, deportations, energy deregulation and additional military spending. But the party remains divided on how to move forward with the funding plan, with Trump pressing for the funding to be combined with tax cuts.
I am sure that these numbers will make some very happy….personally I had rather see the resources being used to help eliminate some of the problems that face our seniors and poor.
Trump accuses a Jewish lawmakers as being a ‘Palestinian”….
President Trump on Wednesday called Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) a “Palestinian” while criticizing the Democrats for not supporting the GOP’s spending plan.
“Schumer is a Palestinian, as far as I’m concerned,” Trump said in the Oval Office while hosting Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin. “He’s become a Palestinian. He used to be Jewish. He’s not Jewish anymore.”
Trump began using “Palestinian” as an insult while on the campaign trail and even called President Biden a “bad Palestinian” during their debate. Trump first labeled Schumer a “Palestinian” while campaigning, apparently criticizing the Jewish senator for calling for elections in Israel
Trump recently referred to Schumer as a Palestinian when discussing his plans for the US to “take over” the Gaza Strip.
(antiwar.com)
I wish this garden slug would put that same energy into solving pressing problems instead of insulting anyone he has a problem with….
Does Israel control our government?
To answer that question I offer up one of their hit pieces….
Jewish Insider magazine ran a story saying that the White House tapped retired Lt. Col. Danny Davis for Deputy Director of National Intelligence, working under the newly confirmed DNI Tulsi Gabbard. It was a hit piece by a pro-Israel platform that primarily focused on Davis’s critical views — published only in articles and on his popular podcast — on Gaza and Iran.
Within hours, he was informed there would be no job, Responsible Statecraft has confirmed. “Investigative journalist” Laura Loomer celebrated. We are sure neoconservative radio jock Mark Levin, who helped spread the Insider story to his 4.9 million followers on Wednesday, celebrated. We should not. President Trump should not.
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/daniel-davis/
Trump is pilling out all stops even tom,use an act from 1798….
President Trump on Saturday invoked the seldom-used Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a law giving the president broad power to detain or deport nationals of an enemy nation in wartime. Trump said the US is being invaded by a Venezuelan gang in a proclamation on using the law to order the deportation of five men, the AP reports. Legal scholars said the administration could use the authority against immigrants in the US legally, as well, per the Washington Post, as it carries out Trump’s promise of mass deportations. Use of the law “may be the administration’s most extreme measure yet,” an ACLU lawyer said.
Trump said during his campaign that he would invoke the act, which has not been used since World War II. The law allows for deportations with little due process, per the New York Times. Legal experts said any use of the law is likely to face more court challenges, since the US is not at war. Only Congress can declare war.
That does it for this Sunday….I hope everyone has a great day and as always….Be Well and Be Safe….
I Read, I Write, You KNow
“lego ergo scribo”