378 Comments
User's avatar
Kathleen Weber's avatar

I think this reveals a profound unconscious misogyny. The failures of his male lieutenants reflect the fact that they are persecuted just as he is persecuted. The failures of his women lieutenants represent the failure of all women to slavishly adore him and desire to be raped by him.

Nancy's avatar

How about conscious misogyny. He just doesn't think it's a bad thing.

Mr Anderson's avatar

And neither do his supporters!

Daphne McHugh's avatar

It also says a lot about the sort of women who are willing to work for him/his administration. I don’t know of any that seem especially competent, but they all seem to overestimate their own ability. Do they really think it will be different for them? Even men working with this administration ought to realize that they have a sell by date and that the end is usually humiliating.

Kotzsu's avatar

internalized misogyny - MAGA women also hate women

Robin's avatar

This is the truest statement on the internet today.

Pat Dumond's avatar

They also hate themselves. Why else would they denigrate themselves by turning themselves into the Stepford wives?

Laura's avatar

This could be my next yard sign!

jeffChill's avatar

Reminds me of an old Chris Rock bit:

"Who's more racist, black people or white people?

Black people, because we hate black people too!"

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

Co-conspirators in misogyny? So it appears. But isn't it part of the "vision" of America, wherein, white male power was the top of the pyramid? MAD MEN!

Pat Dumond's avatar

Excellent points, but I don't believe he and his minions are entirely unconscious of their misogyny. They know what they are doing. They want us barefoot, pregnant, and compliant. They want us "in our place".

David Court's avatar

Sign at NO KINGS in Frankfurt Germany on Saturday:

The Handmaids Tale

Is Not an Instruction Manual

Robert Jaffee's avatar

It’s not? Because from my vantage point, the same dystopia from The Handmaid’s Tale’s isn’t just a figment of my imagination—it’s starting to look like our new normal—reality! Just saying….:)

Mike Lew's avatar

All of the horrible things in that book have been done somewhere in the world.

Robert Jaffee's avatar

Excellent point! And now it’s coming closer to home—and fast!…:)

Richard Kane's avatar

It wasn't just a novel, it was a warning!

Robert Jaffee's avatar

Agreed, these people don’t hide their disdain for minorities and women in general—it’s a feature, not a bug!🐛

Laura's avatar

So do the Heritage Foundation, NAR Seven Mountains Mandate, and White 'Evangelical' Christians.

Craig J's avatar

And once women are past the point of being pregnant, their job is to provide childcare for grandchildren.

As JD Vance said: "That’s the whole purpose of the postmenopausal female."

RebelXIII's avatar

JD Vance: Converting women to lesbianism since 2009!

Gigi's avatar

???? These women are in there 50s. Settle down.

Kate Fall's avatar

I'm not sure. Bovino also got the boot. Trump has a rapist's philosophy, and some men can manage to convince him that they are victims of the evil MeToo femiNazis who think rape should be a crime, but he'll fire them if they get in the way of his income streams.

My personal opinion / guess is that Trump is flailing, and his sons are convincing him that if he gets rid of women in his Cabinet, it will look strong. His sons are not very bright, and Trump screws up whenever he listens to them, but he can't trust anyone else.

Katherine B Barz's avatar

They probably see how bad his mental decline is advancing, and are scrambling to hide it, while working to steal as much money as they can. Unless at his next public appearance he starts drooling and barking like a dog, will any in his administration do anything about their “problem.”

Daphne McHugh's avatar

I would do almost anything to see him bark like a dog and to hear the explanations after the fact.

James Byham's avatar

Why he's doing the weave and triggering us libnuts while playing 5 dimensional chess . 🙄

CLR's avatar

You can be sure that Fox already has those explanations lined up, beginning with it's all Biden's and Obama's fault.

James Byham's avatar

That damned Jimmy Carter !

SandyG's avatar

They'll say it's a false flag,

J AZ's avatar

“like a dog” will be the final Florsheim to drop 😉

David Court's avatar

Bovino got the boot as the most present (in the news) and highest one in the chain who could be spared. It also gave the Felon a chance to bring in the Czardine, Homan, from the wilderness of having to be rescued from the videos of him taking a (GASP!) bribe from an undercover Federal Agent.

Kate Fall's avatar

Which brings up a paradox. If a man takes a bribe openly, does that mean Trump can trust him more or less?

Jeri in Tx's avatar

I'm pretty sure there is no trust in this administration starting at the top. These folks were supposed uphold the Constitution, not pledge loyalty above all else to Hair Fuhrer. What does that say?

Ugh, I'd hate to work in this environment - your back is always vulnerable to the shiv. What a life.

OJVV's avatar

Agreed. They'll all turn on each other (or are working to undermine others) at the first opportunity.

J AZ's avatar

Jeri - yeah, thought they were signing up for 🎼 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLkAo0Kbfl8 ...instead end up feeling like they're in Shawshank. Poetic

J AZ's avatar

Kate - (in 12th Dr Who voice): That’s not the question! …trust, I mean. The question is, how much can I use this pigeon?

A significant variable here: size matters. 50k in a fast food bag is street thug penny ante - THIS pigeon is a lazy hack, insufficiently equipped to be any threat to The Boss. You’re hired! You’ll take orders, try to please, not stab the boss nor skim too much from whatever assets you get your grubby mitts on.

OTOH, someone who can engineer multi millions or even a billion (koff koff musk koff) worth of extraction? …with no telltale video of the handoffs (koff jeffrey koff)? Now THERE’s a playa to be reckoned with. Time for a little art of the deal. Still, no trust. Just a different type of use

Jeri in Tx's avatar

Homan - $1 thug

musk, epstein - $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ - Gentlemen Thugs

Kate Fall's avatar

You cracked the code!

Kate Fall's avatar

Oh man, now I feel slow. You're right, the amount of the bribe is extremely important, as is who the bribe is coming from.

Heidi Richman's avatar

I think the open bribes are only an issue if the mob boss doesn’t get his split. Did the Nutlick family properly share their recent insider trading spoils?

David Court's avatar

Depends how much of the bribe wanders to the Felon.

J AZ's avatar

Bribe… such an ugly word. Baksheesh, vigorish, juice, sweetener - so many nice ways to say tribute for the tribune. Let’s be dignified gentlemen while we take up our collections

JMP's avatar

Trust him to do his dirty work - yes.

Richard Kane's avatar

I think Bovine Boy got the boot because he designed his own Nazi uniform and wore it in public. trump wanted to design it himself. He was mad Bovino beat him too it and it didn't have enough gold on it.

V J's avatar

I think Bovino did nothing with media that bothered trumpy, it was the judge embarrassing the whole shebang in Chicago, he lectured him after catching him, by video in a outright lie, media has power to embarrass the administration. maybe I'm wrong. He always looked lost anyway, bovino never belonged more than 100 miles from a border, idiot stuff. He called MN that damn place, so it was a personal attack. trumpy's words, that damn place, where he lost every time

Linda Oliver's avatar

But even though he’s male, Todd Blanche better get cracking on getting Comey.

SandyG's avatar

He won't do any better than Bondi did. The facts and the law are not there to get an indictment. Trump doesn't control grand juries, thank God. Until Trump 2.0, I didn't realize how brilliant the grand jury requirement was. It's a bulwark!

Kathe Rich's avatar

The delicious part of it all is that none of the people whom Trump wants to target have done anything wrong. So Trump is going to end up like the Queen in Wonderland, beheading successive hapless AGs for the remaining days of his pathetic administration.

Frau Katze's avatar

And burying Epstein.

FareDaze62's avatar

He and a lot of his admin have a rapists philosophy and I keep hearing it more and more in the language they use. The most recent was his weird TV speech about the Straight of Hormuz "...take it and cherish it." Dude!!

FareDaze62's avatar

I got the quote wrong, it's “They must cherish it. They must grab it and cherish it.”

You gotta grab it first and he's previously informed us where you need to grab something before you can cherish it.

Sumi Ink 🇨🇦's avatar

Dan Bongino was also pushed out (though he was allowed to "resign"). And it seems like everyone has already forgotten how Elon Musk, "the head of DOGE" and nearly as visible as Trump at the start of this regime, abruptly left. Granted, Bovino, Bongino, and Musk did not hold official cabinet positions, but they were still pretty high profile.

Sharon Herrick's avatar

This isn't unconscious, this is basic, blatant, run-of-the-mill anti-women behavior--- and the misogyny ---they're wearing it on their sleeves. They're proud of it. It's part of the image they want to project.

ERNEST HOLBURT's avatar

Women don’t even get a pass when they defend a child rapist.

Frau Katze's avatar

I wouldn’t rule out him firing male staff too.

D.J. Spiny Lumpsucker's avatar

I'm thinking, semi-seriously, about the idea that are indeed more than two genders. (In the sense of social constructions on top of chromosome patterns, of which there are also more than two as it happens, but that's a different matter...)

In which case, we may question whether 'Trumpwoman/Foxwoman' is a kind of distinct gender that doesn't generalize out to 'women' neatly at all.

Which is, admittedly, an idea with the benefit of allowing me to dispense with any sympathy at all for Bondi, Noem et al.

Kathleen Weber's avatar

I think the fact that I'm a woman gives as much clarity about who I am as the fact that I have brown hair. It's a start, but it gets you 100th of the way to figuring out actually who a person is.

Gigi's avatar

There are many female archetypes.

R Mercer's avatar

It is NOT unconscious, by any stretch of the imagination. It is quite deliberate and intentional. They don't even really try and dog whistle any more.

One of the primary attractants of the previously non-aligned voters who came out for Trump in 2024 was exactly the racism and sexism. That is what the data tells me.

Justin Lee's avatar

Jon Lovett was robbed of the great honor of being today's "Cheap Shots". I demand a recount!

https://x.com/jonlovett/status/2039770187952697401?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet

Marcia's avatar

For those of us who try to avoid xwitter, Lovett’s Cheap Shot-worthy observation:

“In a surprise twist, the Epstein files released the attorney general”

LHS's avatar

Easy to avoid twitter. Just insert "cancel" after the x. Like this:

https://xcancel.com/jonlovett/status/2039770187952697401?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet It may take a few seconds to load, but it works 99% of the time, for any X.com tweet, video, etc. And the traffic does not go to X! (Thanks to Jay Kuo of Status Kuo on Substack, for teaching us to use xcancel.com!)

Different drummer's avatar

Thank you for sharing that! Leave it to Lovett....

Clay Banes's avatar

That was a great one.

Kathleen Weber's avatar

Damn straight!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Sharon Genung's avatar

Yes! This is the best! Chef's kiss!

Judith Berghuis's avatar

Saying the quiet part out loud.

Firing a general because he approved the promotion of a black woman who then would stand near Trump who cannot tolerate being close to a black woman. Once again I ask, why that is not enough to impeach this man?

Linda Skinner's avatar

It is enough. But that is what is so terrifying about Kegseth. We immediately see he is batsheet crazy, seriously damaged and dangerous for the entire planet and then crickets.

Kate Fall's avatar

Of course it's enough. Let's just check with Congress and the Supreme Court ...

Oh they say Trump gets anything he wants no matter how stupid and venal and harmful to the country. Weird. Well, I'm sure they don't get anything like bribes out of it, and the Supreme Court's recent rulings on bribery cases (bribery is good and we need more of it) aren't related at all.

https://www.scotusblog.com/2024/06/supreme-court-limits-scope-of-anti-bribery-law/

https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2023/04/26/u-s-supreme-court-justices-take-lavish-gifts-then-raise-the-bar-for-bribery-prosecutions/

https://fixthecourt.com/2024/07/recent-supreme-court-cases-that-license-corruption/

https://afj.org/article/supreme-court-rules-bribes-are-fine-if-youre-paid-later/

https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/1e6elt1/supreme_court_justices_by_gifts_received_oc/

It's not like a pattern or anything concerning!

David Court's avatar

Which "man"? The actual trigger puller or the one who no doubt at least blessed, if not ordered it? (Quotation marks for the obvious reasons: Chromosomes do not a man make.)

J AZ's avatar

Sorry David. Pushback incoming on your chromosome comment… helmet handy?

David Court's avatar

Five hours later: ???

dcicero's avatar

I suspect the consensus would be that being a jackass does not constitute a high crime or misdemeanor.

Seriously, Trump doesn't have to say anything for his poodles to know what he would prefer. I doubt he knew who this woman was. Hegseth knew what to do and did it.

TomD's avatar

People pay for desalinization plants because they have no ground water or rainfall. Attacking desalinization plants is a war crime on par with deploying dirty bombs, in my opinion.

David Court's avatar

Not just your opinion, Tom. but, as my sign at the US Consulate in Frankfurt showed yesterday:

I can do what I want

What's a war crime to me

I'll do what I say

And then all will see

When I your out "Jump"

My Army will go

Until I revert to

Donald J. Taco

J AZ's avatar

David - Kipling got nuthin on you bro!

Bryan Fichter's avatar

The member of the cabinet who most deserves to be fired- Pete Hegseth- is the least likely to be fired. because he has perfected the art of performing belligerent masculinity for Trump.

Sheri Smith's avatar

I’m not sure. Hegseth and this war are not popular with Americans. Trump’s poll numbers are dismal. Someone has to take the blame. It won't be Trump of course!

Oldandintheway's avatar

And Trump might need him for the election if the Dems are successful at putting limits on ICE.

OJVV's avatar

Hegseth's job is to fire anyone who would stand in Trump's way when turning the Military against Americans (the enemy "within"). Once done, he'll get whacked. Classic corporate move.

FareDaze62's avatar

Hegseth was given the position to willingly and possibly gleefully turn the military on the American people when needed. if they get too uppity.

V J's avatar

I think he a ' token ' like if I was still young ( trumpy ) I could look like that, act like that.

something is hollow about what he actually says about heggy. transference ?

LHS's avatar

Just read this headline on the NYT. "American Fighter Jet Downed Over Iran, U.S. Officials Say". Maybe Kegsbreath will be getting the boot sooner than we think, because this is gonna backfire on Trump bigly.

dcicero's avatar

Over a lost fighter? I doubt it. This is a war, after all, and pilots do get shot down.

What's amazing to me is the ability of the Iranians to continue to project some combat power with the 0% combat power remaining to them. Maybe they need to extend that zero out to a few decimal places. They have 0.4499999% combat power remaining.

JMP's avatar

Iran could score big points with the rest of the world if they find these fighters and treat them with respect and dignity. If they go another route by treating them harshly, then it will be the catalyst that Trump wants and needs to get America behind him in hating Iran and supporting this war. Mark my words, this will be a turning point, whether for good or evil, we just don't know yet.

dcicero's avatar

Might. But they could also publicly state that American service members captured in Iran will be designated as illegal aliens who because they entered the country illegally, are criminals and will be treated as they are in the US: caged, denied due process and deported to a foreign land, say, North Korea.

Show them in the cages with their tin foil blankets sleeping on the floor next to the toilet. How long do you think it'll be before Hegseth starts calling that a war crime? I'm guessing 3, 2, 1...

OJVV's avatar

The Iranians seem willing to play this game, so I wouldn't be surprised if it comes to pass.

MAP's avatar
Apr 3Edited

Hey and let's make sure that the only thing Americans' tax dollars pay for are his and Hegseth's misadventures to the tune of 1.5 TRILLION next year.

"It's not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all of these individual things. They can do it on a state basis."—Donald Trump

Because they are so successful at "military protection."

The stupidity of this nation and many of its voters burns.

FareDaze62's avatar

So this daycare thing, further destabilizing the labor market and economy. No daycare, can't work, can't work, can't buy things. I imagine this admin like a giant game of Jenga, yanking random blocks out they thinks are useless or that displease him. Pull enough of the blocks out and you destabilize the tower. It feels like we're getting to that point. If he was trying to destroy America on purpose, would he be doing anything differently?

On the other hand, I have a bit of schadenfreude for all the Republicans who used to loudly proclaim "STATES RIGHTS!!" Please enjoy your state figuring out how to deal with FEMA disasters, daycare and having your elections federalized.

J AZ's avatar

MAP - that soundbite should fit into every Dem ad between now and 2028!

MAP's avatar

Thanks! I hope so. It’s a no-brainer. And these unaffordable things aren’t just about “those people” anymore.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

Trump = a short term answer to grievances perceived and real. (This just shows where grievances get you!)

Jzcode's avatar

It's almost like when a woman puts on the Mar-a-lago face to advance her MAGA career, that doesn't win her respect or loyalty from MAGA.

Keith Wresch's avatar

There is no loyalty in MAGA beyond loyalty to Trump: everyone else is expendable and loyal do none but themselves.

David Court's avatar

But even "loyalty" is not a guarantee, as the Felon's history has shown time and again.

Richard Kane's avatar

With trump, loyalty is a one way street.

TomD's avatar

When I watched Bondi snarling at members of Congress the other day, I thought that she likely never did anything like that as AG of Florida; and that the notebook of counter attacks had been handed to her by someone else.

Kotzsu's avatar

don't give her so much credit, as AG of Florida she postponed an execution for a fundraiser and tried to steal a kid's dog:

https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna53103834 -> "Attorney general vows to never again delay an execution for a fundraiser"

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/pam-bondi-exposed-as-dog-thief-who-got-in-costly-standoff-with-four-year-old-boy/ar-AA1WobZG --> "Pam Bondi reportedly hired a lawyer to stop a boy from getting back his dog that was lost during Hurricane Katrina."

LHS's avatar

Eventually, the boy won the lawsuit and got his dog back. As part of the settlement, Bondi was given visitation rights. Guess who never bothered to visit the dog? 🤔

J AZ's avatar

I appreciate knowing there’s a dog in there somewhere! …pattern development. Paging O Henry

TomD's avatar
Apr 3Edited

I'll bet the condemned was okay with it.

dcicero's avatar

What's this thing with Trump women and dogs?

David Court's avatar

If she had, she would have, or should have, been disbarred. Hmmm. Now that she is not AG, she is "only" a member of the Florida Bar, no? Of course, she always has been (poor Florida) but now she is without the MAGA Mantle of Protection from the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune....

LHS's avatar

According to an article in The Atlantic, "Multiple lobbying firms were trying to hire Bondi this afternoon, as they fielded calls from corporations and other clients with matters before DOJ." https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/04/pam-bondi-trump-attorney-general/686673/ So she'll be making millions now.

David Court's avatar

Only if she can deliver...and is not barred from the place by a vindictive old man.

FareDaze62's avatar

I used to call that look being Foxified, but he has totally taken it over. I would love to see a piece written about who the person is that talks to these incoming women or newly loyal supplicants about what they need to do to make themselves physically acceptable to the president. You go back and look at before pics of these women and it's shocking. Lara Trump, Alina Habba they look like normal people.

JMP's avatar
Apr 3Edited

Leavitt, as well. Where is their self respect?

dcicero's avatar

Kristi Noem does too!

She mutilated herself for that fat pig. How do you get to that point?

FareDaze62's avatar

The duck lips just kill me

dcicero's avatar

I wonder if that's painful. It looks painful.

Frau Katze's avatar

Habba looks pretty MAGA to me.

FareDaze62's avatar

Check out old photos, she's been pretty heavily magafied. She was a pretty woman, in need of no work. Now she's all scowly duck lips.

Jeri in Tx's avatar

Poor kristi...all that work I had done and all I got was the boot and a t-shirt.

Oh the humanity!

FareDaze62's avatar

At least 'lil Marco and the boys can take their super-sized Florsheims off, women have to disfigure themselves. Are duck lips permanent?

JMP's avatar

Well, at least it was a cowboy boot.

Pat Dumond's avatar

Who'd a thunk it?

Daniel I's avatar

I'm shocked that a confirmed rapist is not a fair employer of women in the workplace.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

Yes. Shocking. (They're 100% predictable)

Daniel I's avatar

The only thing that is shocking is that there is a single living sentient woman on this planet who believes her loyalty and support of Trump will be rewarded or reciprocated.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

By now, shouldn't people realize that the only people Trump likes are himself and his reflection?

Mike Lew's avatar

Soooo, he's not a vampire? At least that's one good thing about him. 😀

Katherine B Barz's avatar

Are you sure? With all that makeup troweled on his face.

Mike Lew's avatar

At this point, I'm not sure about anything. 😀

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

That's an acknowledgement that he's not an eternal being. (Dodging a bullet there...)

Oldandintheway's avatar

We will see if Hegseth gets the blame for the failure of the war. Of course, the war isn't a failure. Of course, it really isn't a war.

What it really is, is an extension of blind, stupid hubris by a man who is an emperor in his own mind, and all the gold gilt that surrounds him serves to confirm that.

But this is MY Money, and those are real soldiers getting killed and injured, and the people in Iran are already oppressed by their government, and now they are losing their lives and homes because some madman needs to show that pedophiles can be powerful if left unchecked.

FareDaze62's avatar

They'll blame the "woke" military first for failing, then they'll fire a bunch of generals but eventually it will come back to Petey.

dcicero's avatar

Will Hegseth get the blame for the failure of the war? Sure. But first, we have to lose the war. And I start to wonder what that looks like. This isn't a war that the US can lose militarily, just as Vietnam couldn't be lost militarily. We have, compared to the Iranians, overwhelming military superiority. In the words of Captain America, "We can do this all day."

The "weakness" we have, compared to the Iranians, is democracy. We'll have elections. Sure, Trump will meddle in the national ones, but we do have state and local elections and those people do make a difference. The Iranian government never has to worry about that, which is why Trump and Hegseth need to bring this to some kind of conclusion -- not victory, although they'll call it that -- quickly. When gas gets expensive, the people become restless and express displeasure at the ballot box.

John Joss's avatar

Two things are noteworthy about the regime of the orange narcissist-felon:

1. This is a fundamentally criminal enterprise and all its enabler/sycophants are complicit;

2. The seeming 'concession' by Squeaker Johnson does not include the requested Democratic provisions of uniforms, names, no masks, and body cameras for the DHS thugs.

The essential Democrat mandate is not to yield on . . . anything. The criminal enterprise must be thwarted at every turn, and the return to conventional law enforcement must be achieved. Until these two salient points (and many others, such as obeying judges' decisions) are made, adhered to, and repeated again and again, nothing will change.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

We can't do everything, so we should do what we must.

LHS's avatar

"The essential Democrat mandate is not to yield on . . . anything." I've often wondered why the Dems haven't done exactly that. Bring Congress to a screeching halt. Do absolutely nothing. Approve absolutely nothing that Trump wants. AND have daily sitdowns at the Capitol. Sigh. I guess I am expecting too much from the "Let's play nice" Dems. I am glad they have refused to fund ICE without the very reasonable rules re: masking, etc. being passed. And enforced.

John Joss's avatar

The Democrat problem is that they keep using the antiquated rules of sanity, good manners and proper behavior, whereas the regime doesn't give a toss for any of that old stuff. This grotesque impedance mismatch makes genuine dialog impossible. Many metaphors come to mind, and a silly one is this: trying to use a water pistol on a charging rogue elephant, or speaking seriously to a malevolent idiot.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

This is a long game. The power is so unbalanced that it limits choices. Stand for the wisest choices possible.

Lewis Grotelueschen's avatar

"Once again, Trump here betrays his staggering ignorance of the inadvisability of trying to reshape mammoth global supply chains by “hey, here’s an idea” presidential fiat."

The TV watching brain in action.

The Blockhead Chronicles's avatar

With President Man, I'm often reminded of Albert Brooks feeding lines to William Hurt (via Holly Hunter) in "Broadcast News": "I say it here, it comes out there." Except he was providing good information.

Richard Kane's avatar

I had flashbacks of possible bleach injections and lights shining up my ass!

No 1 Potato Boys Fan's avatar

I greatly appreciate Andrew not subjecting us to Barak’s multiple siren emojis. It was interesting to note that no where in the Axios piece did it mention that the bridge was still under construction and not entirely open. But hey, when you’re dead set on committing war crimes like this admin is, why bother worrying about the facts.

I found it weird that Trump hadn’t fired anyone for the first 14 months of this administration. I thought maybe it was because this time everyone he put in the Cabinet was handpicked and so there was likely to be less turnover. No, it turns out that his biggest tongue bathers just took longer to let him down. Now that he’s broken the seal, I do expect many more personnel moves going forward. Well, good riddance to bad rubbish. These people should find no employment in polite society for the rest of their miserable lives.

Keith Wresch's avatar

The Orange menace is flailing around at the moment which means he’s is looking for those who have *betrayed* him since it is never his fault. No number of loving tongue lickings will save them from his feelings of betrayal.

max skinner's avatar

Yeah I think the Bondi firing at this particular time was an attempt to distract people from the War in Iran and from the stupid speech he gave. Yes, he's been mad at Bondi for not getting results on his political persecutions but I think he probably spends a lot of time grumblings about the failings of his employees but doesn't usually act on the grumbling unless he has some precipitating temptation to do so.

J AZ's avatar

Fan - I recall reading some months back, perhaps over Epstein cover up botching or Kash Komix follies, that ‘sources’ said he wouldn’t fire anyone YET because it would make him look weak. In a sentient moment he could’ve grokked that his hiring decisions DO reflect on his judgement (admit that’s bit of a stretch but at least possible in terms of his concern about image)

Katherine B Barz's avatar

To me, it’s a sign that he was mentally declining when he took office. He let Wiles, Vought, and Miller run the show so he could revise his TV personality. Being hit by reality, he would rather spend his time thinking of places to build and put his name on. He does not know what is going on, therefore he cannot figure out who he needs to fire. Or rather get someone else to fire. He never does that. Can’t face the person directly.

Jeri in Tx's avatar

Good.

Now let's do Kegseth and that pudding-faced Liar Leavitt. Keggers needs to fired then jailed immediately. Maybe just don't bring her back after maternity leave.

Richard Kane's avatar

While she's out on leave, they should box her things and put it out on the curb and invalidate her WH credentials.

Robin's avatar

My husband predicted yesterday that after the Iran War Apprentice challenge concludes (badly) that Hegseth will be fired. Right now Little Marco seems to be in the middle of the Topple Cuba challenge...we'll see how long Trump lets that one go on before convening the boardroom and firing him.

V J's avatar

both my brothers are suddenly saying well rubio is okay, never said that before.

so, they are getting desperate for a replacement, someone new to admire.

I just smirked.

V J's avatar

it was odd. not like him at all . something is off this term with his ego/brain/age something.

Kate Fall's avatar

"Respecting the dignity of every individual is part of the American creed." - Bill Kristol

Do you guys need a new tagline for the Bulwark, or maybe a banger phrase for merch? Or a sentence to advertise what you do? Or do you just want to yell at people that respecting the dignity of the individual is the American creed like I do?

Damn, I think I teared up. Do you know how long it's been since I heard someone say, yes, this is what it means to be an American. We respect your rights even if you dye your hair blue. We respect your rights regardless of your skin color or genitals. We respect your rights even though we HATE how you vote. We respect your rights if you worship the Flying Spaghetti Monster. If you're a young child from South America. If you only speak French or Hindi.

Yesterday, the New York Times notes that taking the right to vote away from women is an idea that is "catching on." Funny, if I wrote an article stating that we should take the right to vote away from fathers who abandon their children, do you think the Times would be willing to publish it? I think not. They would say "We respect your rights even if you have made horrible mistakes in the past." But restricting rights by genitals is A-OK for publication.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

You're spot on. But we need to realize that we cannot keep being outraged every time someone notices that Fascism is mysanthropic - by definition.

Outrage plays into their hands.

Kate Fall's avatar

Eh, nobody cares about my outrage. I've been outraged at misogyny since I was 8 and became aware of it as bigger than just my social circle. It's been decades. It never matters. Why would my emotions matter to the country anyway? They probably shouldn't. Some of us just carry our outrage around as part of our personalities, I guess. And I'm not really sure that saying "Hey, these guys are incredibly sexist and racist" plays into their hands, although you're right that saying water is wet doesn't accomplish much either.

It's just getting harder and harder to say Bill is right about America and MAGA is wrong. But I'm going to keep saying it even if it becomes less and less true each passing day.

Mike Lew's avatar

I want Bill's vision to be true. I sadly accept that your vision IS true.

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

I don't blame you - at all. But I'm learning that outrage is expended energy and attention.

We already know that our leadership is amoral and weak.

Solidarity is relatively simple. Instead of being outraged, we can use our energy and attention to follow our wisdom traditions regarding neighbors, and refuse to participate in mysanthropic schemes.

Kate Fall's avatar

Oh, definitely, and I'm trying very hard to do more than just complain online. I'm trying to ignore the sordid, soap-opera-like stories of people's personal sexual peccadilloes that the Trump Admin likes to spread like wildfire. Do my Holy Week reading. Do my volunteer work. Work on forgiving those who trespass against us. You are spot on that we can be stuck in outrage like flies on flypaper. I am conscious of the fact that I don't want to become a misanthrope, and that things are going to get worse so we had better be checking on our neighbors. But I still long for the invite-only commune sometimes despite my best intentions!

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

We will never be able to do enough. But we can do what we can. Solidarity is acknowledging that one person cannot do much - alone. We are "threads in a cloth." The cloth is much harder to cut.

J AZ's avatar

Kate - I haven’t done cross stitch in decades (back when Rosey Grier made stitchery cool for cats)… “outrage is part of my personality” is just SO pillow worthy ☺️

OJVV's avatar
Apr 3Edited

This would do well on etsy.

J AZ's avatar

gotta get the old skills back for when we're stitching our own clothes in the pending depression

JMP's avatar

As a heterosexual woman, I, too, learned at a very young age that boys had all the fun. I used to actually pray at night that God would turn me into a boy. Watching them on TV, it was always Timmy having all the fun and adventure with Lassie. Keep up the fight, Kate, we have made progress over the past decades with more and more girls participating in TV adventures as positive role models. Although I still see most Disney movies about girls as them getting in trouble for disobeying their fathers, and in the end, getting rescued by their male hero. Not always, but still too often. There is more work to be done, Trump is trying his best to reverse any advances we have made culturally, professionally, or personally. Never give up, never give in.

V J's avatar

thanks for your previous post, just the simple word dignity. I was about that age, 8 when I had a brother who loved to act out, now he had some problems, I never talk about ' that ' brother. He kneeled on my chest let drool stream into my face and called me a ' squaw '. Then he asked, do you want to help me, with whatever he was doing that day. Like, it was not personal. Kids are kids, he was acting out all the time, now he quietly lives marooned from all family after our second parent died. Never speaks to anyone, No one knows how he voted, or cares, we are tired of reaching out to him, I think of him often. He's overcome a lot, became a success.

Jeri in Tx's avatar

Kate, I gave up on NYT over a year ago, and reading that they think the 'idea' of stripping women of another right is catching on is money well saved. How stupidly unserious this is. This is not an cool 'idea'. By framing it in such a way normalizes it - hasn't enough been done to women without NYT carrying water for mysogenists?

I believe most women go through life carrying a low level of fury at the way society always reminds that we are the lesser. Yet, we're revered because we can carry children - even if we have to bleed out in the hospital parking lot because we couldn't get the maternal healthcare we needed because the pregnancy went south. God's will...

I'm 68, and many times have had to smile and keep moving to keep my daughter fed and clothed, cared for. But if I could've gotten away with it, that unleashed fury would've left men, and a few women, smoldering piles of ashes on top of grease spots.

I try to do better, but it ain't easy.

Kate Fall's avatar

"I believe most women go through life carrying a low level of fury at the way society always reminds that we are the lesser."

Pretty much spot on here, although I do agree with the many women who say it takes the form of depression before menopause, when it transforms into rage.

Jeri in Tx's avatar

With me, it just just skipped depression. I knew who I was mad at and why from the jump, lol! But yeah, I get it.

V J's avatar

I fight, and keep fighting, to convince the males, I am smarter better, just as strong.

now ingrained, so can't stop now.

Keith Wresch's avatar

Abigail Adams was more prescient than most would give her credit for. I am surprised at Bill’s surprise about misogyny and fascism/authoritarianism as the will to male dominance has always been clear. The male figure was always the prominent/dominant one in Nazi Germany always portrayed at height of masculinity. The male will to dominate is a feature not a bug of these regimes.

M. Trosino's avatar

"Was this irrational?", Andrew asks of oil pricing.

I ask in turn what, exactly, about any of this effin' Iran business *is* rational?

The Blockhead Chronicles's avatar

Andrew, I don't know how you can say all that stuff about the oil market.

Our President went to WHARTON. He was a BUSINESSMAN. He knows more than all the economists in the world put together, including the moldering body of Milton Friedman. Why, I'll bet he even knows more than John Galt!

Next you'll be telling me that the Strait of Hormuz is crooked.

M. Trosino's avatar

Well, there's a way to straighten it and the rest of this mess out that Trump hasn't mentioned yet. I'm surprised he apparently hasn't thought of it.

Maybe Newt should give him a call...

“Instead of fighting over a 21-mile-wide bottleneck forever, we cut a new channel through friendly territory. A dozen thermonuclear detonations and you’ve got a waterway wider than the Panama Canal, deeper than the Suez, and safe from Iranian attacks,” Gingrich said on X Sunday, appearing to quote a satirical Substack article, which he linked in the post.

https://www.newsweek.com/newt-gingrich-nuclear-detonations-strait-of-hormuz-iran-war-11685261

The Blockhead Chronicles's avatar

I saw that! Well, Newt was just as smart. He said so himself.

J AZ's avatar

The route is easily drawn in Sharpie. The digging is then a simple matter of MAGAtonnage

Avoiding Reprisal's avatar

It appears we keep reading about "keen observations into the obvious."

Isn't it ironic that news and opinion organizations keep playing into the fascists hands - by stirring up daily outrage?