For my own purposes, I am going to log the actions Donald Trump is taking that I see as dangerous, illegal or threatening to the long term health of our nation, or simply evidence of his lack of understanding what America is all about or what truly makes us great. These are in reverse chronological order, with most recent first.
- Donald Trump and HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr. today made claims that both vaccines and Tylenol/acetaminophen usage by pregnant mothers were likely responsible for increased rates of autism, something far from supported by the evidence. One study actually showed that fever in expecting mothers seems to be a risk factor for autism, one that was mitigated by using antipyretics, which includes acetaminophen. This appears to be a classic case of starting with a hypothesis, then twisting evidence to fit that hypothesis.
That a president who once asked if a "really strong flu shot" could work against COVID, demonstrating a complete lack of understanding how vaccines work, is promoting unfounded theories put forth by his HHS secretary who lacks any formal science training would seem to be more evidence of just what - I hate to say it but it's the most accurate and descriptive term I can come up with - a clown show this administration is. Perhaps I should just say how dangerous and inept. (September 22, 2025) - ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel after pressure from, among others, the FTC, whose chairman, Brendan Barr, said the following on Sunday morning talk shows: “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action, frankly, on Kimmel,” Carr remarked. “Or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
It is hard to argue that this is anything but the use of government power to suppress dissent, a direct attack on not just the spirit of the First Amendment, but on its very purpose for being. (September 22, 2025) - There are multiple issues with Donald Trump's deal to keep TikTok alive in the U.S. First, it violates and all too rare circumstance where Congress overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan measure to ban TikTok due to national security concerns arising from Chinese government data collection from and access to tens of millions of American users. Second, the deal apparently still might rely upon algorithms provided by China's Bytedance organization, suggesting this deal may not address the central concern that made passing the law banning TikTok so overwhelmingly popular. Finally, giving control of monitoring or managing TikTok to Oracle, which is run by Larry Ellison, concentrates even more control of our social media in the hands of a small cadre of Silicon Valley titans, who are becoming increasingly more vocal in their proclamations of moral and intellectual superiority.
Peter Thiel, Marc Andreesen and their anti-democracy muse, Curtis Yarvin have all espoused to one degree or another that the people and their government should get out of the way and let them run things. With control of the social media in just a few hands, backed by algorithms designed to deliver what we want rather than what we need, they may not need the government or us to get out of their way. - The Trump administration allegedly shut down an investigation into Dept. of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Homan, who reportedly accepted a $50,000 bribe from undercover FBI agents involved in another investigation. FBI Director Kash Patel determined there was nothing to it and closed the case. Given the FBI director's extreme partisanship, this would appear to be a case where the adage blind justice has been reversed 180 degrees from blind to prejudice that may lead to unfair convictions to blind to actual crimes that lead to the guilty going free. (September 21, 2025)
- I need to investigate and ponder this further because H1B visa holders may take jobs from Americans, but the new $100,000 fee imposed on them risks driving talent away, where they'll now work against us rather than for us. (September 20, 2025)
- The pardoning of three Trump cronies earlier this year has led to the end of attempts to collect approximately $800 million in restitution to their victims. This would appear to be a matter of our president feeling more empathy for those ordered to reimburse their victims than for the victims themselves. One can only speculate why. Oh, and one of them is Devon Archer, Hunter Biden's former partner. (September 19, 2025)
- Today, RFK's vaccine commission limited access to COVID vaccines, among others, including a requirement that 65+ year-old patients consult a doctor before receiving the COVID vaccine. I have a degree in Medical Technology and well-versed in statistical analysis regarding such matters and this is going to kill people. (September 19, 2025)
Deaths from COVID - vaccinated vs unvaccinated Age 65-79 - After 30 years of nurturing our relationship with India as a counterbalance to China's rise as a military and economic power, India's leader Narenda Modi met with China's Xi Jingping in an open slap intended to send a message to the US and Donald Trump, as reported in the New Delhi Times of India that bullying and "belittling a country like India" makes little sense. The next day, Modi was seen holding hands - yes, holding hands - with Vladimir Putin at the SCO summit held by China that preceded an elaborate parade showcasing China's ever-expanding military. I've been arguing that the president's lack of strategic thinking skills and desire to withdraw from the world would allow Russia and China (and now, apparently, India) to fill the void left by our withdrawal. It would appear even the president is admitting that failure. (September 1, 2025)
- The fate of public health was already in perilous shape before the Trump administration named a Silicon Valley exec to head the CDC. That he is a crony of Peter Thiel only adds insult to injury. I-m not sure what would be worse - if this were by design or if there is no design at all. (August 30, 2025)
- Giving podcaster and conspiracy theorist Benny Johnson the newly created new media seat at White House press conferences, granting him the first question at those events.
- Kari Lake is seeking to fire all the remaining journalists at the Voice of America, further damaging whatever credibility it may have had. (August 29, 2025)
- Taking a 10% stake in Intel after asking their CEO to step down seems to be a cross between socialism and a mob shakedown. Likewise the demand for 15% of all sales to China made by Nvidia and AMD, which seem to be reverse tariffs, working to either make our products more expensive or less profitable.
- Firing Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook, politicizing the Fed. This is just another of the thousands cuts by which we undermine our position as the global financial leader.
- Doug Wilson, founding Pastor at Christ Church believes women are to be subservient to men, that the 19th amendment should be repealed and that the vote should be a "household" vote cast by the husband, with input from the wife. If the two disagree, the husband trump's the wife. This is Pete Hegseth's church.
- The deployments of National Guard troops (and Marines in the case of LA) to LA, Washington, DC and perhaps Chicago soon are normalizing the presence of uniformed soldiers in our major cities, all heavily Democratic. In each case, the leaders of those cities and states have vociferously opposed those deployments. Other than when enforcing civil rights in the South, it is rare for federal troops to be deployed without the request coming from state and city officials. That we have a president promising to issue executive orders to rewrite voting rules in the various states, which is in violation of the Constitution, and a Secretary of Defense who expressed his willingness to go to war against our own military if he felt the country was on the wrong track prior to his confirmation, these deployments have the possibility of being far more nefarious than we might imagine. (August 23)
- In another example where every accusation is a confession, the Trump administration hired a lawyer who equated the prosecution of January 6th rioters and insurrectionists to the Holocaust to serve as a member of the Justice Departments Weaponization Working Group, itself an example of Orwellian Doublespeak. To compare the arrest and prosecution of people participating in a violent attempt to interfere with a Constitutionally mandated process to legally certify an election that had successfully survived more than sixty court challenges - the way the rule of law is meant to work - with the deliberate arrest, relocation, imprisonment, abuse, starvation and execution of more than six million people for simply being born into the wrong race, religion or nationality is disgusting. In normal times, such a statement would disqualify the man from any public office, including dog catcher. These are not normal times. (August 22, 2025)
- The NY Times reported that European countries have been building a shadow diplomatic effort that excludes the US, as leaders try to adapt to a world where we are no longer predictable. This is one of the threats we face - the other is a more militarized Europe - from demanding more from our allies militarily while treating them erratically on economic and diplomatic fronts. We may take temporary pleasure at seeing them carry more of the weight of Defense, but at what cost to our influence and security.
- Capt. Sully Sullenberger raises serious questions about the qualifications and character of the man nominated to be FAA administrator, another nominee that appears to fit the Trump administration profile. Of particular concern, beyond the nominees willingness to lie, is his refusal to commit to the 1500 hours of experience historically required of airline pilots and his intention to allow a financially strapped industry regulate itself.
- RFK, Jr. ordered the cancelation of $500 million in research contracts for mRNA vaccines. Their role in helping end the Covid pandemic notwithstanding, mRNA vaccines promise to greatly enhance our ability to combat infectious threats far more quickly. Even if they are not perfect today, that is precisely the type of research that our government has so successfully funded in the past that has made us the economic powerhouse we are today. Even fracking technology, which has made us both energy independent and the world's largest exporter of natural gas, was developed through funding of unproven technologies provided decades ago by the US Department of Energy. Thanks to this administration we continue to shoot ourselves in the foot. (August 6, 2025) [just two weeks before these cuts were announced, the University of Florida announced results of an mRNA vaccine study showing exciting success in fighting brain tumors] (August 5, 2025)
- This makes one believe that loyalty to the nation and the Constitution is actually a negative in the eyes of the current administration. Jen Easterly, former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency had her appointment to teach at West Point revoked by the Army secretary on the advice of Laura Loomer, who has claimed that 9/11 was an inside job and that the Parkland High School and Las Vegas mass shootings were staged. This is how Ms. Easterly responded on LinkedIn:
"As a lifelong independent, I’ve served our nation in peacetime and combat under Republican and Democratic administrations. I’ve led missions at home and abroad to protect all Americans from vicious terrorists, rogue nations, and cybercriminals. I’ve worked my entire career not as a partisan, but as a patriot—not in pursuit of power, but in service to the country I love and in loyalty to the Constitution I swore to protect and defend, against all enemies
"Every member of the Long Gray Line knows the Cadet Prayer. It asks that we 'choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.' That line—so simple, yet so powerful—has been my North Star for more than three decades. In boardrooms and war rooms. In quiet moments of doubt and in public acts of leadership."Here is a take by Ian Bremmer, considered a centrist and political independent by the World Economic Forum: https://bit.ly/4mumoiI It is worth your time to hear how he describes Jen Easerly. Nothing could better represent who Ms. Easterly is than her words demonstrating class and love of country, as confirmed by Ian Bremmer. Sadly, it's become a country that now sees those traits - class and love of country - as disqualifying. (August 5, 2025)
- An FDA panel released a report on using anti-depressants during pregnancy that could have been a transcript of a dinner table discussion at my grandmother's house, with one panelist flatly claiming Selection Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) don't work, adding that some people "spontaneously recover" from depression, as though that should be reason to believe they are not necessary. Another panelist suggested depression in pregnant women isn't a real illness, but simply a matter of "women just naturally experiencing their emotions more intensely."
Yes, according to this panel appointed under Robert f. Kennedy, Jr.'s leadership, says depression in women might just be their hormones acting up. It's why hysterectomies are named after hysterics - it's just women being women Or, so the Trump administration would have us believe. We are literally returning to the dark ages. God help us. (August 1, 2025) - Few will notice this one, but I will because anyone who analyzes data knows that nothing is more important in identifying trends than the consistency of the data's collection and reporting - and I am just such a person. I have been keeping a file of jobs data, unemployment, GDP, inflation and more, being diligent in getting each month's data from the same source. In the case of jobs, that is the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Services (BLS) monthly jobs report. Today, those numbers were not good, and prior month's numbers were revised downward - so Donald Trump fired the BLS commissioner hours after the report came out. This is as clear an example of firing the messenger as we're likely to see.
There is a PBS Frontline episode where Julia Ioffe, a Russian emigre and expert on Russian politics, discusses the meeting where Putin challenges his chief spy over his findings on Ukraine. Ioffe says it's reminiscent of such meetings under Stalin, where ministers were aware what had happened to their predecessor that had put them in their seat and were thus hesitant to speak the truth.
There were no bullets to the back of the head here as there were in Stalin's day, but how likely do you think we are to get accurate jobs numbers if they are likely to upset Donald Trump. In other words, how likely are we to know the truth about jobs under Donald Trump? Let's not forget this is the man who claimed Trump Tower was 10 stories taller than it actually was, leading to confusion among first responders when answering emergencies. As I wrote in my piece predicting what would transpire during Trump's second term, "All will be "fixed" by Donald Trump, via nothing but proclaiming them to be so, which is exactly how most of them came to be problems in the first place - by Trump proclamation." I thought that would be accomplished via bluster. This is much worse. Combined with the bias monitor referenced in the item below and we are in scary territory. (August 1, 2025)
[Note: I was wrong that no one would notice this. Plenty have, including a London bond trader who wrote the following on his blog Morning Porridge (note the year referencing the Trump administration):
A Porridge from May 2031 contained a link to a release from Trump’s Ministry of Economic Truth, formerly the US Treasury:
“Under the leadership of President Trump, the US economy continues to grow at record speed. Payrolls data from the Ministry of Truth, a subsidiary of Truth Social, show full employment across America. Tensions in the inner cities have never been so low. All recent graduates have found highly paid jobs across America’s expanding manufacturing sector, causing many large companies in Trump Inc to report significant labour shortages. Due to this success The Ministry of Plenty is cutting the bread ration by a further 30% to reward workers for choosing to do more overtime. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Love has tightened quarantine restrictions on West Coast cities hit by the latest Chinese plague to facilitate the swift movement of ICE logistical heavy units, with supporting US Marine units, to these areas. The president remains in robust health and is fighting hard from the White House South to ensure the ongoing success of the economy and prosperity on behalf of all Americans.” - I thought it was an AI joke, misinformation, but it is real. The agreement that the Trump administration reached with Paramount in its attempt to merge with Skydance - an agreement finalized just after Paramount's CBS group announced the cancelation of Stephen Colbert's Late Night - includes the appointment of a "bias monitor" who will report directly to President Trump. I cannot think of anything more Orwellian than something that smacks of a Ministry of Truth.
- Tariffs 3.0 (1.0 was during the first Trump term, 2.0 back in April). The stock market's rebound from the president's April round of random tariffs seems to have emboldened him, as he is now threatening 30% tariffs on Mexico and the EU, prompting the EU to withhold retaliation as they strategically try to establish themselves as the model of reason and stability in world trade. Indonesia, for one, seems to be interested, praising the EU for filling the vacuum left by US unpredictability. We are on track for a trifecta we should all dread - the loss of financial leadership thanks to exploding deficits resulting from the Big Beautiful Bill, the loss of technological leadership thanks to the brain drain resulting from attacks on our universities and on immigration, and finally loss of economic leadership as the world economy organizes itself in ways intended to isolate themselves from US unpredictability, thereby isolating us in the process. All the result of the president's lack of strategic thinking skills that I have referenced so frequently in these pages.
- Somehow I missed it, but naming Kari Lake to run the Voice of America means that the agency that has been a model of trusted journalism in the places where it was needed most is under the control of a woman who wouldn't know (or at least admit) the truth if it slapped her in the face. I wrote about the dangers of politicizing the VOA back in 2020 and now it has more than come to fruition. This is the agency that Hitler referred to as "those Cincinnati liars" because he had to discredit the truth-tellers, a hallmark of autocrats. Now that the agency has been politicized, there will be no need to discredit them because that work has become an inside job. The truth requires telling the good, the bad and the ugly, but under an administration that is so intent on whitewashing our history and its own missteps, the unvarnished truth will be the last thing one can expect from the VOA. We are doing our adversaries the greatest of favors.
- The cuts to Medicaid and SNAP that aid the poor in the recently passed Big Beautiful Bill are a travesty, but that they are done to give further tax cuts to those who need them least makes the bill obscene. That we still must go at least another $2.4 trillion in debt on top of that in the process promises to make this bill a disaster of epic proportions. The arguments that aid encourages bad choices that lead to poverty or that tax cuts just let people keep more of their own money are ones for another day, but they do not justify this monstrosity.
- As if Emil Bove wasn't bad enough (see below), adding Jared Wise, a former FBI agent charged with encouraging rioters to kill police officers on January 6, to the Justice Department task force established by Donald Trump to seek retribution against his political enemies raises so many concerns that simply describing it is evidence of just how awful and off the rails this administration is. Jared Wise deserves to be a target of the Justice Department, not one of its officers. That it was announced the day the Senate voted to finance trillions in tax cuts for those who need them not at all by taking away health care from those who need it most and piling trillions more in debt on our children leaves me thinking that God did, indeed, save Trump from an assassin's bullet to punish the United States (see even further below).
- The nomination of Emil Bove to serve on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Please read the quote from Hannah Arendt below. This is the worst nomination yet because it is not a mere case of the president surrounding himself with sycophants who will go away when he's gone, but instead it is a lifelong appointment to a court that will be reviewing the rulings of other judges. Bove is a man who is reported to have told Justice Department personnel to say "fuck you" to the courts. In other words, disregard the rule of law. And now this president wants that man to make the law. A better way to put it is that Donald Trump wants to make that man the law (if it takes several re-readings of what I just wrote for it to understand the nuance, I think it's worth it). As Immanuel Kant said, man is free if he need obey no man, but the law. This turns that on its head by making a man with zero regard for the law responsible for defining the law, meaning it is whatever suits him in that moment. That is the antithesis of how our legal system and every just legal system in the world works. It is banana republic stuff. [Note: Bove was confirmed July 29, 2025, just hours after additional evidence came to light supporting and expanding upon the whistleblower accusations.]
- I've written before how Donald Trump’s unwillingness or inability to admit he's wrong could have devastating consequences, as could his adversaries' ability to manipulate him thanks to his thin skin, as Kamala Harris showed during their lone 2024 debate when mere mention of bored rally crowds drove him down a rabbit hole where immigrants were eating cats and dogs. The bombing of Iran could be where both came into play as he proclaimed his Director of National Intelligence wrong in her assessment regarding that Iran was not developing nuclear weapons, while seemingly getting trapped into following Benjamin Netanyahu's lead in attacking Iran.
- I will not make a prediction, but dropping a bomb on Iran because Israel started a fight with them would seem to be the tail wagging the dog. Iran was off our radar militarily until Israel attacked them. We did not have to join in, but we did, raising the question who is really the power player here.
- Yesterday, just as the president authorized sending U.S. Marines into the city of Los Angeles to quell rather mild anti-ICE protests, he spurred active-duty soldiers into booing American citizens and politicians who oppose the president. I should not have to say anything more to explain why this is so troubling. That I feel the need to say more is just more evidence why it is so troubling. I hope to find time to expand on this before it becomes just another day in the life. (June 11, 2025)
[I've been too busy to expand my thoughts above in-depth, but suffice it to say that watching a president who began his political journey by painting Mexican immigrants as rapists and drug dealers during what I thought (hoped?) would assuredly be a disqualifying candidacy announcement speech, who went on to incorporate classic dehumanization language to describe immigrants in general as snakes, vermin and an infestation, then began turning that same language against his domestic opponents, going so far as to suggest execution of his former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - to watch him encouraging members of the armed forces to boo their fellow Americans as the enemy is beyond the pale. I would challenge anyone alive to picture, let alone find, another president of our lifetime doing such a thing. He is, quite simply, priming the military to treat the American public as the enemy. In doing so, he is proving correct every one of us who have opposed him so vehemently from the start.]
- I may have to start a separate JFK thread, but yesterday he dismissed all seventeen members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). A 6:37 AM report suggested people visit the ACIP profile page to view the high level of qualifications among its now fired members, which was still available at that time. When I went to view it ten minutes later, it was unavailable. This administration is going to needlessly kill people. (June 10, 2025)
- I listed the nomination of RFK, Jr. as Secretary of HHS below and here is both an example of why I did that and an addition to the laundry list itself - suggesting he might ban government scientists from publishing in independent scientific journals like the Lancet, JAMA and the New England Journal of Medicine, three of the most respected medical journals on the planet, suggesting instead a government-run publication. One can't help but see this as the politicization of science that will lead to junk science and corruption.
- This is one prediction that will be wrong until it's not - the GOP's tax cuts that the president fought for in person on Capitol Hill yesterday (5/20/25) will eventually undermine our credit rating, our economy and our position as the financial capital and financial leader of the world. Not once in the 44 years since Ronald Reagan's first tax bill has a tax cut not resulted in higher deficits, yet somehow the GOP keeps claiming they won't and we, the people, keep buying it. At some point, the chickens will come home to roost.
Beyond the fiscal irresponsibility of this tax cut, we need to ask our legislators to justify the need for these cuts. I've argued elsewhere that there are times, as was the case in the early 80's, where the scarcity of investment capital and the need for investment was so great that cutting taxes was justified. We are so far from such a scenario today, with U.S. businesses sitting on nearly $7 trillion in cash and billionaires sending friends and celebrities to space in their hobby rockets, that the old argument is beyond pointless. In fact, today's AI-driven economics argue for a near reversal of the GOP's tax policy. As AI eliminates more and more jobs, including those that have long been the entry-level gateway to white collar professions (basic coding, legal document review, data entry and bookkeeping, to name just a few), we need to be seriously addressing how we will manage a large, underemployed cohort of educated, intelligent folks and their lesser skilled counterparts forced into less than fulfilling jobs at best and unemployment at worst. Instead, we continue to reward those who develop the technologies that are creating this crisis. It is shortsighted and dangerous.
- Nominating Casey Means to be Surgeon General. The fireworks that have erupted within the anti-vax, anti-science movement over this nomination is so convoluted that conspiracy theorist extraordinaire Laura Loomer comes across as the voice of reason.
- This mistake is on us, but allowing the president to accept a luxury 747 from Qater's foreign government as though it's just another Tuesday shows just how normalized unethical behavior has become. It is hard to imagine a more blatant violation of the Constitution's emoluments clause, which prohibits gifts from foreign entities without specific authorization by Congress That the president said only stupid people would turn down such a gift demonstrates how lacking he is in both ethics and in understanding what stupid really means since such gifts are never free.
- The deportation of Kelmar Garcia to a prison camp in El Salvador without due process is bad enough (if anyone is denied the right to due process, none of us has a right to due process), but the president's admission that he would be fine with shipping U.S. citizens to El Salvador prisons should be a clarion call to anyone who professes loyalty to the Constitution. And if this president disobeys court orders regarding this, or any case, that would be yet one more impeachable offense. [Footnote: the glib glee that our president and the president of El Salvador took in laughing off the Supreme Court order to facilitate Garcia's return betrays an underlying cruelty that has been evident since Donald Trump stated that if hate were needed to serve justice in the Central Park Five case, so be it. New York journalist Pete Hamill captured it best at the time:
“Snarling and heartless and fraudulently tough, insisting on the virtues of stupidity, it was the epitome of blind negation. Hate was just another luxury and Trump stood naked.”
The man is what he is and always has been - heartless, soulless and thoughtless. Convince me otherwise.
- Tariffs. Nothing can better demonstrate the breadth of this man's shortcomings, from intellect to business smarts to effective human and foreign relations. His insistence that tariffs are paid by the originating country is just the tip to the iceberg (I've written checks to pay his tariffs), but anyone who's read behind the scenes tales of his distaste for trade (I have) can tell you he has no understanding how economics works. Thus, tariffs on products impossible to produce here that only serve to raise the cost.
- Punishing law firms out of favor with the White House by revoking security clearances. One firm, Skadden, Arps agreed to perform $100 million in pro Bono (free) work on causes dear to the administration to avoid such a penalty, which is difficult to distinguish from extortion. Targeted law firms are not those who've broken the law, violated security requirements or behaved unethically. Instead, they have all employed lawyers who worked cases opposite Donald Trump or on cases contrary to his aims. This threatens to chill representation for anyone who is targeted by the Trump Justice Department (see Kash Patel and Dan Bongino for an idea of how this could imperil fundamental American legal rights and protections).
- Attacking universities while withdrawing billions in research dollars that have been one of the great sources of global U.S. economic power (March 18, 2025). [this NY Times article confirms what I've noticed on French websites and discussion sites - that Europe is ready to roll out the welcome mat for researchers who no longer feel welcome or appreciated int he U.S. I cannot think of a more foolish, shortsighted, well, I can't call it a strategy, so I'll just go with stupid mistake - and I think that is being overly kind).
- Eliminating references to Ira Hayes (a Pima Indian who was one of the six famous flag-raisers on Iwo Jima) and the Navajo Code Talkers from Defense Department web pages. References celebrating those who served from groups who were at times treated as less than full citizens have served to build pride and loyalty among those groups, thus tightening the bonds of citizenship.
- Yesterday, February 28, 2025, was the low point not just of the Trump administration, but of my experience as an American. Except for those irretrievably attracted to Donald Trump or the blindly partisan, what happened in the Oval Office with Vladimir Zelensky was awful, a turning of the back on American principles and the moral standard we've set since the end of WWII. My fear is that there are worse days to come. I'll extend the offer I made to a local township trustee - I'll sit down in the location of your choosing to review this exchange so you can point out where Zelensky was the one being rude.
- Removing or altering more than 8,000 government websites covering topics from vaccine research to Census Bureau datasets. As a data junkie who seeks source material rather than what third party sources who might have an agenda choose to share, this bothers me to no end.
- Canceling a planned meeting of scientists who were to discuss flu strains expected this winter (2025), thus putting research for next year's flu strain at risk
- Naming Lynn Deklava, a lobbyist at the American Chemistry Council, an industry group that spends millions of dollars lobbying against chemical regulation, as head of the EPA group responsible for chemical regulations (February 26, 2025). As I've argued elsewhere, there needs to be a healthy balance between business and government to check the greed and desire for power inherent in human nature. This undermines that completely.
- Selling $5 million gold cards to wealthy foreigners as a path to citizenship (February 25, 2025) We don't need people who are going to move here to join a country club, we need people willing to work their asses off to get here and get their hands dirty to build a future for their family. That's what has always made America great.
- Firing JAG officers without cause. ( see this also February 21, 2024)
- Firing of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and two other generals for suspicion of being DEI hires (February 21, 2025).
- Nominating Fox host Don Bongino to be Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who posted this on Twitter/X less than a year ago
- Nominating Pete Hegseth, who proclaimed his willingness to rebel against the United States in his book The War on Warriors, as Secretary of Defense (November 13, 2024)
- Nominating Kash Patel, whose primary qualification would appear to be a children's book he wrote where a wizard named Kash thwarts a plot against King Donald, as Director of the FBI. I kid you not. (December 2, 2024)
- Nominating Tulsi Gabbard, who has expressed sympathy for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, among other troubling security issues, as Director of National Intelligence (November 1, 2024) [Note: Tulsi became one of the few in the president's inner circle willing to present information that contradicts the president's viewpoint, which is rare and valuable in a world of loyal yes men and women, though George Will did refer to her as the astonishingly unsuitable amateur.]
- Nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services (November 14, 2024) Note RFK Jr.'s unscientific take on the March 2025 measles outbreak.
- Nominating wholly unqualified Oprah Winfrey guest Mehmet Oz to serve as administrator for Medicare and Medicaid Services (November 19, 2024)
- Nominating the World Wrestling Federation's Linda McMahon for Secretary of Education (December 5, 2024) [Note: McMahon would go on to refer to AI (artificial intelligence) as A1 (as in the steak sauce), ironically suggesting intelligence itself is absent in the one heading the department responsible for education.
- [At this point it might be instructive to insert a passage from Hannah Arendt's 1951 magnum opus, "The Origins of Totalitarianism" before suggesting one re-read the list above.
The irony about this for the scumbag commie libs, is that the cold civil war they’re pushing for will end really badly for them.
Libs are the biggest pussies I’ve ever seen and they use others to do their dirty work. Their mommas are still doing their laundry for them as they…
— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) May 30, 2024
"Totalitarianism in power invariably replaces all first rate talent, regardless of their sympathies, with those crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty."
Re-reading the list above, starting with Dan Bongino, might now be in order.]
- Siding with Russia to vote against a UN resolution condemning Russia's war against Ukraine (February 24, 2025)
- Conceding to Russian demands with nothing in return to end the war in Ukraine (February - February 24, 2025)
- Allowing Elon Musk's unvetted team unfettered access to our payment systems and other sensitive data stores, opening the door to a threat far worse than anything Hilary Clinton's email server could have posed.
- Shutting down the US Agency for International Development, opening the door for China and Russia to fill the void in building influence. (February 6, 2025)
- Removing online climate data farmers use to plan sowing and harvesting because the data contradicts the administration's preferred climate narrative. [Note: I've long said one of life's greatest disappointments is learning data doesn't support one's arguments, and that one of life's greatest mistakes is refusing to reconsider one's opinion in light of the data. This is even worse, reminiscent of former Soviet Union tactics, where anything (or anyone) contradicting the party line was "disappeared.] (January 30, 2025)
- Demanding that Ukraine turn half its mineral resources over to us as tribute for the support we provided in their war against the Russian aggressors. [the deal as finalized is not as ominous as originally presented, yet the appearance of "blackmailing" Ukraine in return for our help is troubling, and I fear, unwise strategically.]
- Objecting to NATO's use of the word "aggressor" to describe Russia's actions in Ukraine (in international law, when the army of one country crosses the border of another, that is an act of war and an act of aggression)
- Sending Vice President Vance to Munich, a city closer to Kiev, where Russian bombs are falling, than Washington DC is to Atlanta in order to scold them that Russia is less a threat than their own refusal to give a platform to a party whose rising star is a young man who confessed to pasting swastikas on a church.
- Claiming in his inaugural speech that God saved him from an assassin's bullet to save America (if God was willing to do that, why didn't he save Abraham Lincoln, a far more pious man in a far for grievous period, from an assassins bullet? Might it be that both were done as God's punishment of America, as Lincoln discussed in his own Second Inaugural? January 20, 2025)
Evaluations of Policy & Personnel Moves
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Shutting down DHS bribery investigation (Tom Homan)
If true, this undermines rule of law by allowing corruption to go unpunished. The concern is warranted and has serious consequences for institutional trust. -
$100,000 fee on H1B visas
This could deter skilled immigrants and accelerate brain drain. The concern is warranted; long-term competitiveness in tech and science could be at stake. -
Pardons eliminating $800M restitution
Prioritizing allies over victims corrodes justice and encourages corruption. The concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious consequences for fairness in governance. -
COVID vaccine restrictions for 65+
Limiting access to vaccines for seniors is likely to increase mortality. The concern is highly warranted with severe public health consequences. -
Alienating India in favor of China/Russia
Losing India as a counterweight to China/Russia weakens U.S. strategic balance in Asia. The concern is very serious, with long-term geopolitical consequences. -
Appointing a Silicon Valley exec (Thiel crony) to CDC
Lack of public health expertise risks politicization of science. The concern is warranted with high stakes for crisis response. -
Benny Johnson media seat
Symbolic but troubling, as it legitimizes conspiracy-driven journalism. Consequences are modest but indicative of eroding press credibility. -
Kari Lake moves to fire VOA journalists
Politicizing VOA damages U.S. soft power abroad. The concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious long-term harm. -
Forcing Intel stake & Nvidia/AMD sales tax
These policies resemble economic coercion, undermining free markets. The concern is warranted with high economic and investor-confidence risks. -
Firing Fed board member Lisa Cook
Politicizing the Fed threatens financial stability and independence. The concern is warranted with potentially severe economic consequences. -
Doug Wilson/Christ Church influence
Endorsing anti-women, anti-democratic ideas corrodes civil rights discourse. The concern is warranted, though primarily ideological unless policy follows. -
Deploying troops to Democratic cities
Normalizing military in domestic politics undermines civilian authority. The concern is very serious with authoritarian implications. -
Appointing lawyer comparing Jan. 6 prosecutions to Holocaust
This trivializes atrocities and delegitimizes the rule of law. The concern is warranted with corrosive effects on justice and civic trust. -
Europe bypassing U.S. diplomatically
Losing U.S. credibility leads to reduced global influence. The concern is highly warranted with serious long-term strategic costs. -
FAA nominee unqualified (per Sully)
Reducing pilot standards risks aviation safety. The concern is warranted with potentially catastrophic consequences. -
Canceling $500M mRNA research contracts
Halting biotech research undermines U.S. innovation. The concern is warranted with serious long-term competitiveness and health risks. -
Revoking Jen Easterly’s West Point appointment
Replacing experienced nonpartisans with conspiracy figures weakens institutions. Concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious civic implications. -
FDA panel minimizing depression in pregnancy
This reflects dangerous pseudoscience. The concern is warranted with serious consequences for women’s health. -
Firing BLS commissioner after bad jobs report
Politicizing data undermines trust in economic reporting. The concern is warranted with severe implications for policy and markets. -
Paramount “bias monitor” reporting to Trump
Creates an Orwellian propaganda tool. The concern is warranted with serious free speech implications. -
Tariffs 3.0
Destabilizes markets and alienates allies. Concern is warranted with serious economic and geopolitical risks. -
Kari Lake controlling VOA
Compromises credibility of U.S. global broadcasting. Concern is warranted with long-term soft power consequences. -
Medicaid & SNAP cuts for tax breaks
Shifts resources from poor to wealthy, worsening inequality. Concern is warranted with serious social and fiscal risks. -
Adding Jared Wise to DOJ task force
Appointing someone tied to Jan. 6 violence to enforce “justice” is extreme. Concern is highly warranted with severe rule-of-law implications. -
Emil Bove judicial nomination
Lifetime appointment of someone dismissive of courts undermines legal integrity. Concern is highly warranted with long-term systemic risk. -
Bombing Iran despite intelligence
Following foreign pressure against U.S. intelligence raises war risk. Concern is warranted with severe foreign policy consequences. -
Sending Marines into LA for mild protests
Expands militarization of domestic politics. Concern is warranted with authoritarian implications. -
Firing CDC vaccine advisory board
Destroys scientific guidance capacity. Concern is highly warranted with severe public health risks. -
Restricting scientific publishing to government journals
Politicizes science and risks censorship. Concern is warranted with serious long-term innovation damage. -
GOP tax cuts expanding deficit
Repeats failed policies, risking fiscal instability. Concern is warranted with long-term serious economic consequences. -
Casey Means as Surgeon General
An anti-vax nominee risks public health credibility. Concern is warranted with severe health implications. -
Accepting 747 from Qatar
Direct violation of emoluments principles. Concern is warranted with serious corruption implications. -
Deporting Garcia without due process
Sets precedent undermining constitutional protections. Concern is warranted with severe rule-of-law consequences. -
Tariff policies
Misunderstanding of trade economics leads to consumer harm. Concern is warranted with serious but predictable economic costs. -
Punishing disfavored law firms
Weaponizing security clearance is authoritarian. Concern is warranted with serious constitutional implications. -
Withdrawing research funding from universities
Drives brain drain abroad. Concern is warranted with severe long-term competitiveness risks. -
Removing references to Native American heroes
Erodes inclusivity and historical recognition. Concern is warranted though largely symbolic. -
Turning back on Zelensky
Abandoning Ukraine undermines U.S. credibility and alliances. Concern is warranted with very serious geopolitical consequences. -
Removing 8,000 government websites
Destroys transparency and data continuity. Concern is warranted with serious research and policy impacts. -
Canceling flu research meeting
Weakens pandemic preparedness. Concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious public health risk. -
Lobbyist heading EPA chemical regulation
Classic regulatory capture undermines health protections. Concern is warranted with serious public safety risks. -
Selling “gold card” citizenship
Corrupts immigration system. Concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious civic trust consequences. -
Firing JAG officers without cause
Undermines military legal system. Concern is warranted with serious institutional harm. -
Firing Joint Chiefs for “DEI suspicion”
Politicizes military leadership dangerously. Concern is warranted with severe implications. -
Dan Bongino nominated for FBI deputy director
Open hostility toward citizens is disqualifying. Concern is warranted with severe institutional risk. -
Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary
Advocating rebellion is incompatible with the role. Concern is warranted with severe national security risks. -
Kash Patel as FBI Director
Unqualified and partisan, undermines credibility. Concern is warranted with serious law enforcement risk. -
Tulsi Gabbard as DNI
Mixed bag: more independence than others, but troubling sympathies. Concern is partially warranted with moderate risk. -
RFK Jr. as HHS Secretary
Anti-science leadership undermines health policy. Concern is highly warranted with severe risks. -
Mehmet Oz at Medicare/Medicaid
Unqualified, undermines credibility. Concern is warranted with serious public health risks. -
Linda McMahon at Education
Unqualified, risks policy incoherence. Concern is warranted with moderate consequences. -
Siding with Russia at UN
Abandons democratic allies, emboldens autocracy. Concern is highly warranted with severe consequences. -
Conceding to Russia in Ukraine with no return
Strategic failure that weakens U.S. credibility. Concern is warranted with severe geopolitical risks. -
Granting Musk access to sensitive data
Security nightmare. Concern is warranted with potentially catastrophic risks. -
Shutting down USAID
Cedes influence to adversaries abroad. Concern is warranted with severe long-term consequences. -
Removing climate data
Suppresses truth and harms agriculture. Concern is warranted with serious economic and scientific risks. -
Demanding Ukraine’s mineral resources
Smacks of exploitation, undermines alliances. Concern is warranted with serious credibility damage. -
Objecting to NATO calling Russia an “aggressor”
Undermines international law. Concern is warranted with severe implications. -
Sending VP Vance to scold allies
Diplomatic blunder, alienates partners. Concern is warranted with moderate-to-serious long-term damage. -
Claiming God saved him from assassination
Mostly rhetorical but troublingly messianic. Concern is somewhat warranted with symbolic but dangerous cult-of-personality risks.
Classifying Risks:
(Could destabilize democracy, national security, or cause mass harm)
-
Militarization of domestic politics (deploying troops to cities, Marines in LA, encouraging soldiers to boo citizens) → Sets precedent for authoritarian rule.
-
Appointments of unqualified/ideological figures in security posts (Pete Hegseth at Defense, Kash Patel at FBI, Tulsi Gabbard at DNI, Dan Bongino at FBI deputy director) → Undermines national security and rule of law.
-
Weaponization of DOJ (appointing Jared Wise, Emil Bove) → Direct threat to judicial independence and equal protection.
Stephen Colbert cancellation + Paramount deal → Direct use of state power to suppress dissent - a severe authoritarian risk
-
Undermining elections (executive orders to rewrite state voting rules) → Constitutional violation with existential democratic risk.
-
Bombing Iran against intelligence advice / foreign entanglement → High risk of major war.
-
Aligning with Russia / concessions in Ukraine → Weakens NATO, emboldens autocracy, destabilizes Europe.
-
Shutting down USAID → Long-term global power vacuum, ceded to China/Russia.
-
Allowing Musk’s unvetted team access to sensitive data → Cybersecurity nightmare with catastrophic potential.
-
Large-scale suppression of science & data (removing CDC vaccine board, canceling mRNA contracts, limiting vaccines for elderly, firing BLS commissioner, restricting journals, removing climate data, removing 8,000 websites) → Direct risks to public health, economic accuracy, and climate adaptation.
-
Claiming divine mandate after assassination attempt → Dangerous cult-of-personality narrative, potential justification for extralegal actions.
🟧 Institutional / Long-Term Risks
(Serious erosion of norms, institutions, and alliances)
-
Politicizing the Fed (firing Lisa Cook) → Threat to financial stability.
-
Tariffs (1.0, 2.0, 3.0) → Economic self-sabotage, alienation of allies.
-
Medicaid/SNAP cuts for tax breaks → Increases inequality and deficits, undermines creditworthiness.
-
Punishing law firms via security clearance threats → Chills legal defense, undermines justice.
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Attacks on universities & research funding cuts → Accelerates brain drain, weakens innovation.
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Paramount “bias monitor” reporting to Trump → Creeping censorship, “Ministry of Truth.”
-
Kari Lake politicizing Voice of America → Loss of credibility in international broadcasting.
-
Politicized FAA nominee → Safety risks in aviation.
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Unqualified nominees (Oz at Medicare, McMahon at Education, Casey Means as Surgeon General) → Weakens governance capacity.
-
Doug Wilson / Christ Church ideology → Normalizes anti-democratic, misogynistic values.
-
Emoluments violations (747 from Qatar) → Direct corruption undermining foreign policy independence.
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Demanding Ukraine’s mineral resources → Exploitative precedent that undermines alliances.
-
Objecting to NATO calling Russia “aggressor” → Erodes international law credibility.
-
Europe building shadow diplomacy → Loss of U.S. influence, long-term isolation.
🟨 Symbolic / Secondary Risks
(Damaging optics, rhetoric, or “canaries in the coal mine”)
-
Benny Johnson media seat → Symbolic legitimization of conspiracy media.
-
Removing Native American war heroes from Defense websites → Cultural erasure, harms inclusivity.
-
Scolding allies in Munich (VP Vance) → Tone-deaf diplomacy, modest but real damage.
-
Claiming tariffs are paid by other countries → Reflects ignorance, but economic harm is more from implementation than rhetoric.
-
Attacks on antidepressant use in pregnancy (FDA panel) → Regressive rhetoric, risks policy backsliding.
-
Zelensky Oval Office incident → Symbolic abandonment of moral leadership.
-
Selling “gold card” citizenship → Corrupt optics, commodifies citizenship.
⚖️ Takeaway
Existential risks = where democracy, security, or public health could collapse quickly (militarization, authoritarian legal moves, reckless foreign policy, scientific suppression).
-
Institutional risks = slower-acting, corrode U.S. credibility, alliances, and economic health over time.
-
Symbolic risks = troubling signals, often precursors of deeper erosion, but less immediately dangerous.
I said:
ChatGPT said:
Great catch — you’re right to push back on calling that merely symbolic. Let’s unpack it:
Why I Initially Labeled It “Symbolic”
-
Late-night talk shows are often used as barometers of cultural criticism. Canceling one program could be written off as a media/market decision.
-
At first glance, it looks like optics — Trump critics losing a platform — rather than a direct institutional threat.
Why It’s More Than Symbolic
-
The context in your document is crucial: the Colbert cancellation was tied to the Paramount–Skydance merger deal, which included the appointment of a government-approved “bias monitor” reporting directly to the president
A Laundry List of Mistakes
.
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That’s not just “network politics” — it’s government entangling itself in private media, with coercive influence over what voices get to stay on air.
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In historical terms, that aligns much more with state-managed speech than with normal media economics.
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If critics of the government can lose platforms through backroom deals tied to regulatory approval, then you’ve crossed the line from symbolic suppression into structural coercion of dissent.
Reclassification
-
Not purely symbolic: This sits in the Institutional Risk tier, edging toward Existential if the practice were scaled up or normalized.
-
Why? Because once precedent is set that government can pressure media corporations into silencing critical voices, free speech and press independence are fundamentally compromised.
👉 In short: the Colbert cancellation, by itself, might look symbolic — but combined with the “bias monitor” and merger strings attached, it’s a case study in government coercion of media. That makes it a serious authoritarian warning sign.
Do you want me to go back and revise the severity triage chart so this one is shifted upward into the higher-risk category?
You said:
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action, frankly, on Kimmel,” Carr remarked. “Or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
Meanwhile, Donald Trump said the following “I have read someplace that the networks were 97 percent against me, I get 97 percent negative, and yet I won and easily,” Mr. Trump said as he returned to Washington following a state visit to Britain, adding: “I would think maybe their license should be taken away.”
He also called upon NBC to fire Jimmy Fallon and Seth Myers, posting the following on social media: "That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!!"
Does that impact your evaluation of the situation?
ChatGPT said:
Yes — it definitely impacts the evaluation, and in a big way. Let’s walk through it step by step:
1. Pattern of State Pressure on Speech
-
The Kimmel suspension, following direct FCC pressure (“easy way or the hard way”), shows government regulators explicitly signaling that failure to punish critics will invite regulatory retaliation.
-
Trump’s open calls for networks to fire comedians add to the coercive environment. Even if networks technically make the final call, the government’s hand is evident.
-
This turns what might otherwise be considered “political bluster” into actual state intimidation of the press.
2. Why It’s Not Just Symbolic
-
The First Amendment protects even obnoxious or tasteless speech; the government leaning on private networks to silence voices is a direct constitutional threat.
-
What you described isn’t just rhetorical saber-rattling — it’s the fusion of regulatory power (FCC licensing) with executive threats. That’s how authoritarian states chill dissent: by making “business decisions” appear safer than defying the state.
3. Historical & Comparative Context
-
In authoritarian trajectories, entertainment and satire are often early targets, because they influence mass culture while flying under the radar of “serious” journalism.
-
Examples:
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Mussolini went after newspapers and radio comics first.
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Putin’s Russia systematically squeezed out satirical TV shows long before silencing mainstream opposition journalists.
-
-
The U.S. context is unique, but the pattern is recognizable: government intimidation of cultural critics under the guise of regulatory authority.
4. Impact on My Evaluation
-
Stephen Colbert’s cancellation already looked troubling because of the merger “bias monitor” piece.
-
Adding Kimmel’s suspension after FCC threats, and Trump’s direct calls for firing Fallon/Myers, makes this far more than symbolic.
-
Together, they amount to a government-orchestrated chilling of free expression, using both formal (FCC) and informal (presidential pressure) levers.
👉 Reclassification: These actions should be placed in the Existential / Severe Risks tier, alongside militarization of politics and weaponization of DOJ. Free press is a cornerstone of democracy; once comedians and critics can be silenced through regulatory threats, the entire spectrum of dissent is at risk.
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Grok's Take:
