Make America Wince Again

Donald Trump enters the Oscar De LA Renta Fashion Show, New York. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

AS Americans celebrated what might be one of the last July Fourths as a free country, President Donald Trump provided the fireworks.  He does that every week, actually.  Some of them happen to be duds.

At the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, Trump did not say or do anything stupid--which is a change from the last time he visited Europe.  He even let his daughter Ivanka save a seat for him during one of the meetings.  How sweet.

What was noteworthy during the summit were the latest examples of American prestige in freefall since Trump took office.

• Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin finally met face to face.  You might say it was a one-sided discussion with Putin doing most of the talking, no matter how much the White House tries to spin it.  From what we heard, there were questions about whether there was a serious back-and-forth between the two leaders over the Russians' alleged hacking of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.  You might also say that Trump wouldn't dare offend the man to whom he owes his job.
• The rest of the G-20 leaders reiterated their commitment to the Paris climate accords, telling Trump in so many words that his decision to take the United States out of the agreement is non-negotiable.  Hoping to pick up the slack, many American states and cities have said they're going to abide by the climate agreement with or without the federal government's help.  However noble that gesture is, it just wouldn't be as effective without Washington's backing.

Another sign of American weakness comes from North Korea, where they launched an experimental ICBM that's supposedly capable of reaching Alaska.  Short of war, there's not much Trump can do to put a lid on Kim Jong-Un's destructive ambitions except impose more economic sanctions.  China could help, but they've apparently decided that a united Korea with U.S. troops at its border would not be in their best interests.  Meanwhile, we wonder how the International Olympic Committee feels about staging its Winter Games in a potential war zone.  It's scheduled for Pyongchang, South Korea next February, and who knows what might happen by then.

The gulf between the President and the "fake news" media grows ever wider.  At the summit, trump did not hold a news conference.  His secretary of state Rex Tillerson did hold one, but only with no cameras present.

Before leaving for Europe, the President took to Twitter to pick fights with CNN and the "Morning Joe" program on MSNBC, whom he believes are guilty of not being as deferential to him like the hosts of "Fox and Friends" are.  So he tweets about "Morning Joe" co-host Mika Brzezinski's appearance in an unflattering manner, much like he's done with other women in the media.  He also retweeted a video showing him punching out a man with the CNN logo on his face at a pro wrestling match.  Classy.

Some believe Trump should be kicked off of Twitter for his constant violations of their policy.  But Twitter's not going to do that.  Just like Republicans and other Trump supporters are looking the other way, not seeing what he's doing to them.  He's the President of the United States, for goodness sake.  Nobody wants to do anything about him.

In the six months since President Donald Trump took office, he's done more through his actions to diminish the status of the United States at home and abroad (except maybe Russia) than any other leader in recent memory.  And we're just getting started.

Supreme Partial Justice

U.S. Supreme Court building. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As another U.S. Supreme Court session concludes for the summer, we're getting the usual run of controversial decisions and what cases the justices want to hear next fall.  All this with a full bench too, as Neil Gorsuch joined in halfway through after being confirmed.

This year's prize for the most controversial decision goes to the Court's partially upholding President Donald Trump's travel ban.  It bars people from six Muslim-majority countries--Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen--from entering the U.S. unless they already have an existing relationship such as relatives, students and workers.  It's not the total ban the President sought in the name of national security, nor is it the repudiation of Trump's executive orders that lower courts have blocked in the name of civil liberties.  But it'll have to do until the Court decides on the constitutional issues in the next session.  By then, the 90-day ban should be over with.

Elsewhere, the Court ruled in favor of same sex couples in Arkansas who claimed that they were discriminated against because their kids' birth certificates were treated differently than other couples.  The justices will also hear the case of a Colorado baker who refused to bake a cake for a same sex wedding, citing religious beliefs.  They won't, however, hear arguments for and against carrying guns in public.

The makeup of the Supreme Court is always a concern, and if the reports are true, the Republicans and President Trump will soon be picking someone who will make the Court more conservative than it already is.  Justice Anthony Kennedy is reportedly thinking of stepping down, either before the next term or afterwards.  If that is the case, the fate of the Constitution lies in whoever replaces them.

Random Thoughts 2017, Volume 1

Official portrait of United States Senator (R-KY) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Republican Senate is making another attempt to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act with its own version of the health care law the House passed recently.  Despite all the secrecy majority leader Mitch McConnell surrounded the bill with, Senate Democrats complaining about the lack of their input and the haste with which this is all being put together before the July Fourth recess, not much has changed.  Medicaid will be cut way back, tax breaks for the wealthy are included, and penalties for skipping out on health care will be retained.  According to the Congressional Budget Office, however, 22 million folks will end up without any kind of health insurance if the law passes--15 million in 2018 alone.  More to the point, most everybody outside the GOP and President Donald Trump hates the Senate bill.  But there are those GOP senators who need to be convinced that this is a good idea, so the vote will be close.  Meanwhile, more and more health insurance companies are getting out of state exchanges, so something needs to be done.

UPDATE (6/27/17):  The vote now won't take place until after the July 4th recess.  Maybe that'll get some of those senators to actually read the bill.

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The Russian hacking scandal was enlivened by the testimony before Senate committees and national TV audiences of former FBI director James Comey and current Attorney General Jeff Sessions, neither of whom succeeded in nailing Trump and his cronies to the wall on whether they had anything to do with it.  Instead, the headline was that the closer special prosecutor Robert Mueller  got to the truth, the more the President is inclined to fire him.  Meanwhile, a Washington Post article seems to have put the blame on former President Barack Obama for not doing enough to stop the Russians during the 2016 campaign.  Trump, as usual, gloats over Twitter.

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Recent special elections in which Democrats keep losing to GOP candidates should have told the party to come up with a different message besides being anti-Trump.  And to start thinking beyond Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Nancy Pelosi.

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Why are there no cameras allowed at White House press briefings any more?  Does Trump and his staff hate the American people and their representatives in the media so much  that we're now on a "need to know" basis?  And why is the mainstream media putting up with this?

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The family of Philando Castile has reached a $3 million out-of-court settlement with the city of St. Anthony, Minnesota, after one of their police officers was exonerated for killing Castile during a traffic stop--with the whole world watching.  No amount of compensation will be enough to ease the pain and suffering of Castile's family.  But if it takes a bad cop off the street, it's a small comfort.

America in Black and Blue, Revisited

Before we begin, we should tell you that this is an update on a post we did nearly a year ago, with new information added and/or substituted.

The United States is about to celebrate its 241st birthday with fireworks, Pentagon-sponsored salutes to the troops at Major League Baseball games, tweets and speeches from President Donald Trump boasting about Making America Great Again, and heightened security at public venues prompted by terror attacks in Paris, London and Manchester, England.

Land of the free, home of the secure.  Unless, of course, you happen to be African-American.  It's all part of what's been going on since the murder of Trayvon Martin and the disturbances in Ferguson, Missouri:  Misguided police officers who target African-Americans for even the most minor offenses,  No matter how much of a model citizen you are, if you take one step out of line, you're dead.  Or get sent to prison if you're lucky.

Friday, after a long trial and almost a week of deliberations, a jury in St. Paul, Minnesota acquits a police officer from nearby Falcon Heights named Jeronimo Yanez, who shot and killed an African-American man named Philando Castile during a traffic stop for a broken tail light on his car.  Yanez believed Castile was about to reach for his gun, when he was really fishing for his ID.

There was video of the incident taken by Castile's girlfriend (who was driving the car), which was shown live on Facebook.  The jury apparently thought there was more to this story than the camera did not cover, and chose to believe Yanez' side of the story.  Which is unfortunately not surprising, because juries more often than not would rather side with the men and women in blue in spite of damning evidence to the contrary.

After the verdict, Castile's supporters and others reacted in a form of protest that's become unique to Minnesota.  They didn't just take it to the streets, they also chose to make their stands by blocking traffic on the freeway.  On past occasions, such venues as shopping malls and the entrance to the Minnesota State Fair (which just happens to be in Falcon Heights) were also used for staging protests.  The majority of them have been peaceful, but there have been some arrests.  These situations, while understandable, do tend to leave ordinary (white) folks angered and confused over whether the unorthodox protesting is really accomplishing anything.

Not all police officers are trigger-happy racists, but there are enough of them to make everyone uncomfortable no matter who you are.  And using military-style weapons on Main Street, especially tanks and 'robot bombs', is not a good look.  This isn't Kandahar or Baghdad.

Just as law enforcement expects us to follow the rules put down by society, we expect them to treat everyone with the respect and dignity we deserve.  Having said that, how can they respect us if they know they're not going to be prosecuted for some of the reprehensible things that they do?

In 2017, we don't need al-Qaeda or the Islamic State to come over and kill Americans.  We can handle that job ourselves, thank you very much.  Every mass shooting, every racially-motivated murder-by-cop, and every dollar sent to the National Rifle Association to make sure that Congress keeps the Second Amendment intact just adds to the perception that we never really left the Wild West.

As long as guns--its misuse by criminals, authority figures and reputed racists remain facts of life, the potential for catastrophe remains high.  We need a real solution, and no more wasting time on prayers, flags at half staff, moments of silence and expressing condolences.  What's it going to take?

Happy birthday, America.  How many more?

Shots Fired at Partisanship

Photo of Congressman Steve Scalise (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We interrupt coverage of Russia-gate for breaking news:  Four people were shot and wounded during a baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia early Wednesday morning.  Among them was Steve Scalise, a Republican congressman from Louisiana who is also House Majority Whip.  As of this posting, he is hospitalized in critical condition.

The man who local police say did the shooting supported Senator Bernie Sanders in the last presidential campaign, and who allegedly had an intense dislike for the GOP and President Donald Trump.  The suspect was killed by police.

With all the incendiary political rhetoric by both Republicans and Democrats in the past few years, we should have seen this coming.  Whether it's politicians who put party before country, Presidents who turn their backs on the rest of the world, conservative talk radio, raucous open forums, name-calling on the campaign trail and other things, it doesn't take much for some demented individual to take matters into his or her hands.  Just ask Gabrielle Giffords.

Gun control?  Are you kidding?  Congress won't pass legislation even when thousands of kids  are murdered every year due to gun violence on the streets.  Or, if you believe people like Alex Jones, it's all fake news.

Of course, Alexandria wasn't the only place where violence has occurred.  In San Francisco later that morning, four people including the gunman were killed at a UPS facility.  Just recently, London and Manchester, England were hit by terrorists, killing dozens.  And maybe in your town, there have been reports of random shootings resulting in the deaths of those who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Everyone in Washington from the President on down offered messages of unity and outrage as one of their own lies in a hospital fighting for his life.  The baseball game Rep. Scalise was preparing for, which is the annual tilt between the Republicans and Democrats, will go on as scheduled Thursday.  Obviously, it's going to take more than a game to heal the nation's divisions that the participants themselves helped to create.  It is they who must set an example in toning down the toxic and divisive political rhetoric, which threatens to do more damage to this country than the Russians ever could.

Until then, we return you to our regularly scheduled scandal and gridlock.

Having a Tremendous Time. Wish You Were Here.

Donald Trump & Melania enter the Oscar De LA Renta Fashion Show, New York (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

President Donald Trump and his family/entourage have just returned from their first overseas tour of Europe and the Middle East.  He declared the trip a great success, as is his wont, though to most observers it was anything but.  All this trip really proved was that American prestige can no longer be taken for granted.  Not with this guy at the helm.

First, the Trumps went to Saudi Arabia, where they were wined and dined by the sheiks in exchange for his take on Mideast foreign policy.  He responded by telling them the U.S. isn't going to harp on the Saudis and other Arab countries for their human rights abuses, or to tell them how to live.  That kind of sucking up should keep the oil flowing for a few more years.

Then the Trumps went to Israel, where they reiterated the U.S.'s lasting devotion to that country, whether they deserve it or not.  He also declared his hope that the Israelis and Palestinians can work out some kind of peace solution, but didn't offer details.  It was also rumored that Trump asked his aides to take the measure of the walls Israel built to keep the Palestinians confined to the West Bank, so he could build one of his own to keep out the Mexicans.  But that's so fake news.

Finally, the President and his entourage came to Europe, where he told NATO members to pay up or else, and to pick a fight with Germany over trade practises that he thought were unfair to Americans.  That prompted German chancellor Angela Merkel to declare that Europeans can no longer depend on the United States for much of anything.

The European leaders also tried to persuade Trump to continue with the Paris accord on global climate change, which would reverse a campaign promise he made to get the U.S. out of it.  The President said he's still thinking about it, but there are reports indicating that he's already made the decision to pull out.  If that's true, then what did you expect from a man whose exposure to nature is limited to the golf courses he owns?  Thanks to Trump, there will be bigger swamps to drain by the end of this century, if predictions of rising oceans swallowing up coastal lands comes true.

Now that the Trumps are home, the President can go back to being captain of a sinking ship.  The latest is that senior advisor Jared Kushner, who also happens to be Trump's son-in-law, is part of an FBI investigation into whether he and others colluded with the Russian government over last fall's election results.  With that going on, it should be real interesting to hear what former FBI director James Comey, former National Security advisor Michael Flynn and others have to tell Congress.  Oh, and Trump still has to name Comey's replacement.

In just a few short months, the reputation of the United States has plummeted to the point where anything President Trump says or does has the potential to do great harm to his country and the world at large.  A few days of alienating his allies on their home turf should have driven home the point.  If the President doesn't realize this now, maybe he never will.

Trump: The End, or Just the Beginning?

Official portrait of the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations Robert S. Mueller. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In recent weeks, revelations about alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and its influence on Donald Trump's campaign have made it sound like the beginning of the end for the man who is now President.  Or should it be the end of the beginning?

• Before Trump fired FBI director James Comey, he had asked the director to back off on his investigation of Michael Flynn, the National Security adviser who lasted only a couple of weeks on the job before details of his alleged collusion with the Russians did him in.
• After Comey was fired, Trump held a meeting in the Oval Office with two Russian officials, in which he claimed he had classified documents on how to handle the Islamic State.  He also told them that Comey was a 'nut job' whose removal helped to cool the investigation.  All this was reported by Russian state media who were in the room, not the White House press corps who were kicked out.  Now we know why.
• Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, was named special prosecutor by the Justice Department.  He is apparently well respected by almost everyone in Washington, but he might want to look over his shoulder.  Even though Mueller can't be fired by Trump, let's see how long it takes the President to undermine the special prosecutor.
• Is there a problem mentally with Trump?  Amateur psychologists and real doctors can only speculate from afar on his erratic behavior since taking office, and what it means.  It is also very dangerous to do so, since Trump has yet to release his full medical history for the same reason why he hasn't released his recent tax returns.

All of this is leading to talk of a possible impeachment.  Granted, this current scandal ranks just behind Watergate and ahead of Monicagate so far in terms of how damaging it is to whoever is in charge, depending on what Mueller turns up about the misdeeds (if any) of the Trumps and the Russians.

Impeachment would be difficult to pull off, no matter what the evidence, since (A) there's never been one that's removed a President from office, and (B) the Republicans have the numbers in Congress to beat back any attempt.  After working so hard the last eight years to undermine the legacy of the previous Democratic president, why should the GOP do that to one of their own?  Even if it is Trump threatening to louse up the party's 2018 midterm election chances, but that's doubtful.

The most likely scenario, if it happens at all, is for Trump to resign.  His ego might not permit it, but the daily crush of revelations from the investigations and the souring of his base just might change his mind.  Then it really will be time for President Mike Pence.