“In a normal year, this could be a campaign-ending event,” people (mostly in the media) have said as Trump has re-Tweeted neo-Nazis, lied about his charitable donations, casually suggested pulling out of NATO, and most recently (as of this writing) asked a hostile foreign power to spy on us to benefit his campaign. (Editor’s note:…
Stop Waiting for a Congressional “Pivot”
Just like Donald Trump will never “pivot” to presidential, Congressional Republicans will never “pivot” to standing up to any of Trump’s activities. It’s not going to happen, so we just need to quit pretending. President Trump unceremoniously fired FBI Director James Comey. This brazen act – firing the man heading up the investigation into your…
“Religious Liberty” Or The Death of Honesty?
Throughout the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump lied as easily as he breathed. Fact-checkers were bewildered and unable to keep up with the pace and brazenness with which Trump would just make shit up. Despite the cascade of falsehoods, voters across the country decided that having a liar-in-chief was perfectly ok. Most stalwart amongst Trump’s supporters were…
True Costs of Tax Cuts in Trump’s America
A few days after the election, I wrote this on Facebook: By voting for Trump, you empowered racists. By voting for Trump, you empowered sexists. By voting for Trump, you empowered bigotry. At the time, many folks were unhappy with me. Snowflake conservatives, despite supporting someone who “tells it like it is,” recoiled at the…
The Complete Unmitigated Failure of Republicans on Health Care
The Republicans failed. Not a minor setback, but one of the most consequential and complete political failures in generations. Epic failure that can scarcely be contained in words, memes, gifs, or languages known and unknown. When Speaker Ryan went to the White House Friday afternoon to beg and plead with Donald Trump to not force…
This Is Not Normal
I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts lately. Most are political or pseudo-political (The West Wing Weekly is fantastic for reminiscing about the Bartlet Administration). Like the overwhelming majority of sentient beings on the planet, the Trump Administration feels like a waking nightmare, each moment more frighteningly depressing than the last. Through all the…
Want To Win? Then Don’t Moderate The Protest Movement
We’re just over a month into Donald Trump’s presidency, and not a day goes by without coverage of protests. Big protests, yuge, luxurious protests, full of the most magnificent people protesting bigly, all doing an unbelievably great job being recognized by more and more people. Sure, the protests haven’t all been pretty, though the flagship…
Nevertheless, She Persisted
If the first few weeks of Trump’s presidency were a bottle of wine, it would be described as foul rancid filth with an overpowering nose of bigotry, unsubtle notes of daft incompetence, and a sour finish leaving one longing for the end of patriarchy. It would also probably cost $40/glass at his shitty DC hotel.…
Super Bowl Commercials 2017: The Good, The Bad, And The Creepy
It is weird how the possibility of impending fascism and the ever-present messages of resistance make everything seem political. Like the Super Bowl, the Super Bowl halftime show, and the Super Bowl commercials. Mind you, messages like “Americans: we are nice people who don’t endorse bullying” are not viewed as political any other year and…
Not Ready To Make Nice with Trump’s America
Donald J. Trump is kind of an asshole. Rather than seeking to unite the country after a bitter, hate-filled campaign, he has instead mocked and belittled those Americans who voted for a different candidate. He embarked on a victory tour not to bring the country together, but to revel in the adoration of his base. His…