July 2024
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Passing the Torch

23/07/24 10:58
Biden-HarrisJuly 23, 2024 (Vol. 18 No. 33) - President Joe Biden's decision to bow out of the 2024 presidential election really shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone. It has been clear since his disastrous June 27 debate meltdown that the end of his reelection campaign was growing near. It is a proper, but sad ending to the most successful presidency since Ronald Reagan's. Despite entrenched and fanatical opposition from the MAGA-infested Republican Party, Ol' Joe got quite a lot done. You should remember that the next time you drive on a recently repaired street or bridge. If you know someone on insulin, you can thank President Biden for capping its prescription price. And lest we forget, it was Joe Biden who help lift the American people and economy from the depths of a pandemic disaster mismanaged by his incompetent predecessor. I find it funny that Trumpian sycophants are trying to blame Biden for inflation when it was their guy who created the economic disruption that caused it. They also blame Biden for the disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan while ignoring that it was Trump who lit that fire. Lest we forget, it was Trump and his allies who have repeatedly torpedoed bipartisan legislation to address immigration. While Biden has had amazing success in restoring America in the eyes of the world and has resisted Russian aggression in Ukraine, the Russo-Republicans have done nothing. And how can we forget Trump's attempt to overthrow a free and fair election? In what may be Biden's greatest act of public service, he is passing the torch to a new generation that is more interested in solving problems than sowing chaos. In an amazingly short period, Vice President Kamala Harris has managed to rally her party and much of the country around her. There's a new energy in the campaign. Whether it is enough to propel her the presidency, only time will tell. But the Democrats are now in a much stronger position, as an experienced prosecutor is ready to take on the convicted felon. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

This is the Best We Can Do?

19/07/24 02:49
HulkHoganJuly 19, 2024 (Vol. 18 No. 32) - If any one picture sums ups the recently concluded Russo-Republican Party National Convention, this is it. Thursday's final night festivities could well have been called "Wrestling Night" with the conventioneers wrestling with everything but their own consciences. The speakers included Linda McMahon, former WWE executive, Dana White, UFC CEO, and that renown foreign policy expert Hulk Hogan, who thrilled the audience with his incredible shirt-tearing strength. There was also the golf pro at one of The Donald's golf courses, a Trump attorney who has been widely panned as incompetent, and Franklin Graham, who continues to sully his late father's reputation with every political appearance he makes. Of course, the "highlight" of the evening's freak show was the 93-minute long ramblings of Failure 45, himself. It was the longest acceptance speech in nominating convention history. (I'll bet even William Henry Harrison would have been telling the Bandaged Bandido to wrap it up.) After it was all said and done, the Milwaukee Madman's Marathon Missive amounted to a little more than a great-big nothing-burger. There was little of substance offered to the American voter. Instead, the entire week came across as if it was a Ralph Edwards production of "This is Your Life - or at least This is Your Life as You Would Have Us Believe It - Donald Trump." At home in bed in Wilmington, Delaware - assuming he stayed up that late - was Joe Biden thinking, to borrow a famous line from Saturday Night Live, "I can't believe I'm losing to this guy." And yet, he is. While Biden's refusal to drop out of the race continues at the time of this writing, there are reports that could change within the next 48 hours. Meanwhile, voters are left with the choice of a benevolent, but rapidly aging incumbent and his malevolent - some say demented - and rapidly aging challenger. This is the best we can do? May God - Franklin Graham, you remember him? - have mercy on us all. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

Screw you, Judge Cannon

15/07/24 09:16
TrumpCannonJuly 15, 2024 (Vol. 18 No. 31) - In a rank act of partisan bias, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon this morning threw out the classified documents case against Former President Donald Trump. Her excuse: The appointment of Special Prosecutor Jack Smith violated the Constitution. I am not an attorney, nor have I played one on TV. However, there is a legal term - I think it is Latin - that covers the judge's action: Bullshit. Special prosecutors have been used in this country - with the full support of the judiciary - for decades. This is just another example of Judge Cannon bending over backwards to help her political benefactor. Several times during this case, Judge Cannon has made spurious rulings - some of which have been roundly rejected by higher courts. I have absolutely no doubt today's decision will be overturned. Even the Supreme Courts' recent ridiculous ruling on presidential immunity only covers official acts that occurred during the a president's term of office. In this case, Donald Trump's illegal actions and obstruction of justice occurred after the voters kicked his fat orange ass out of the White House. The timing of this decision is also questionable, just hours before the opening the Republican National Convention. This Stepford Judge has given the neocons in Milwaukee a talking point they will undoubtedly beat to death. In appealing this nonsensical decision to the U.S. Court Appeals, Smith should also seek sanctions against and removal of Judge Cannon. Trump had no business elevating this minimally talented attorney to the federal judiciary. She was grossly under qualified - not that it mattered to the Republican controlled Senate. In Trump World, the only qualification that matters is sycophantic devotion to Failure 45. Because of this past weekend's failed assassination attempt, Trump is now being worshiped among his followers as a martyr. (For the record: I abhor all acts of political violence ) With the Democratic Party in disarray and Trump-appointed judges turning the Constitution on its ear, I fear we are entering the most dangerous period in our nation's history. Donald Trump, I hope you recover from your wounds in time for the American people to reject you, again. Judge Cannon, I hope there is a special place in hell for people who sell out their country for positions of power. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

Should Joe Go?

08/07/24 08:59
GoJoeJuly 8, 2024 (Vol. 18 No. 30) - Following his disastrous performance in the CNN presidential debate, President Joe Biden has been under pressure from within his own party to step aside and let another Democrat challenge Failure 45 in the November general election. To put it in its simplest terms: Should Joe go? Biden is the only person who can answer that question and the only person that can make that happen. There is no doubt in my mind that Joe Biden has slowed down. But that doesn't mean that his ability to make decisions has. One's performance on the debate stage is not a measure of cognitive ability. Unfortunately, it does influence the public's perception - which is all that matters in a presidential election. The questions about Biden have overshadowed the obvious physical and mental decline of the Defeated Former President. An objective evaluation of one of the Count of Mar-a-Lardo's rambling and often incoherent campaign speeches leaves one with the impression that The Orange One is a few fries short of a Happy Meal. There is a very real danger of a Republican victory this fall. That would be a disaster for not only the United States but the entire Free World, as well. It all hinges on what Biden chooses to do, whether that be to step aside or to take actions that will change this negative narrative. I can understand his reluctance to leave. If he were to run solely on his record - and in contrast to his predecessor's chaotic and clamorous term - Biden would win in a landslide. However, the American people are justified in worrying about the mental health of the person steering the ship of state. Frankly, neither candidate fills me with any sense of confidence. However, for now, Biden is the issue. To force him out would be unfair and would split the Democratic Party. Even if he chooses to go under his own volition, there is no scenario that does not threaten to shatter the Democratic coalition. It all comes down to this: It's Joe's decision to make and no one else's. Let's hope he makes the right one. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

Empty Words?

02/07/24 05:57
Independence - 1July 2, 2024 (Vol. 18 No. 29) - How many times have you stood erect, hand on heart facing the flag, and recited these words: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all?" A better question is: Did you mean it when you said it? I'd like to think that most people did - and still do. However, based on the prevalence of American nationalism among millions of our fellow citizens and their loyal adherence to a convicted felon who brags he'd be a dictator on his first day in office, I have my doubts. It was 248 years ago in the very room pictured above, that the Continental Congress dared to proclaim under penalty of death that "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I ask my MAGA friends, do you still believe these immortal words penned by Thomas Jefferson? And do you believe in the nation's Constitution, which was first written and adopted in this very same room? The presumptive nominee of the Republican Party - the same party created 170 years ago to secure the rights of all people - has made it clear that he does not believe that, as president, he can be restrained by any court or constitutional precedent. That, despite the fact that he has taken, and may do so again, an oath to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution." Add to that the horrific ruling this week by the U.S. Supreme Court that gives presidents immunity for prosecution for "official acts" while in office. It is the most dangerous precedent that court has ever set, one that essentially makes presidents de facto dictators. As a result of this and other politically-partisan rulings, the Trump-infected Supreme Court has lost touch with and the support of the American people. That is what makes a Democratic Party victory in November's election so imperative. I cannot remember an Independence Day with as much doubt for the survival of our nation as this one. If we cannot take this annual observance of our nation's birth to reaffirm the values the Founders put forth on the day our nation was born, then we are truly facing the "American carnage" Failure 45 declared in his 2017 inaugural address. During last week's presidential debate, the felon who would be president described the United States as a "failing nation." Do you believe that? I don't. I believe the First Felon's words are less a description of our nation than they are an attempt at a self-fulfilling prophecy. On Independence Day 2024, our nation is at a crossroads. Will we follow the path of adherence to the nation's founding values first articulated in the room pictured above or will we blindly follow a man whose only belief is those things that will benefit himself? As you ponder how you will vote in November, ask yourself if the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are living documents that should guide this nation, or are they just empty words on faded parchment? That's it for now. Fear the Turtle. Independence Hall photo by David Guth, 2007.