Patterico's Pontifications

2/7/2025

Weekend Open Thread

Filed under: General — Dana @ 7:41 am



[guest post by Dana]

Let’s go!

First news item

What, we still can’t say Merry Christmas??!!:

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he wants to root out “anti-Christian bias” in the U.S., announcing that he was forming a task force led by Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate the “targeting” of Christians.

Speaking at a pair of events in Washington surrounding the the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump said the task force would be directed to “immediately halt all forms of anti-Christian targeting and discrimination within the federal government, including at the DOJ, which was absolutely terrible, the IRS, the FBI — terrible — and other agencies.”

Trump said Bondi would also work to “fully prosecute anti-Christian violence and vandalism in our society and to move heaven and earth to defend the rights of Christians and religious believers nationwide.”

Second news item

Tucker Carlson outs himself, yet again, as a Putin cheerleader:

“The first trait of a dictator is that he is not elected,” Carlson exclaimed while mocking Morgan’s support of the Ukraine leader. “Zelensky is not elected. He has also banned a religious denomination, killed his political opponents, and banned a language group. To me, these all seem like traits of a dictatorship. The governments of the USA and the UK support this dictator.”

To which President Zelensky responded:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tore into Tucker Carlson for calling him a “dictator” who has banned free elections, telling Piers Morgan on Tuesday that the former Fox News star should “stop licking” Vladimir Putin’s “a**” and “stop working” for the Russian leader.

P.S. Tucker Carlson was seen entering the White House today. . .

Third news item

USAID personnel cuts:

USAID will cut nearly all staff, reducing its workforce from over 10,000 employees to 290.

Trump and Musk have criticized USAID for being wasteful and supporting liberal causes.

USAID spent $32.5 billion in 2024, focusing on health and humanitarian aid.

Federal workers are suing to stop the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development, which faces cuts to nearly all of its over 10,000 staff by Friday.

The cuts would reduce employment numbers to 294, Randy Chester, vice president of the American Foreign Service Association at USAID, said in a press conference on Thursday announcing a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and members of his administration that seeks injunctive relief to halt the cuts.

Sadly and frustratingly, “the stop-work order on U.S.A.I.D.-funded research has left thousands of people with experimental drugs and devices in their bodies, with no access to monitoring or care.”

P.S. And for godsake, Republicans, get your USAID stories straight if you’re going to try and sell this to the American people because we’re all just rolling our eyes at the lunatic claims: USAID spent $15 million for condoms for the Taliban!! USAID spent $50 million for condoms in Gaza!! Or maybe it was $100 million like President Trump allegedly said!!

Fourth news item

Trump nominee invested in Chinese company accused of using slave labor, won’t divest:

Trump nominee Kash Patel disclosed he’s receiving $1 million-$5 million in shares of a Cayman Islands holding company directly tied to a Chinese corporation the Senate & a pro-Trump nonprofit accuse of “slave labor.” Patel says he won’t divest.

Patel’s disclosure says that his shares in the company—Elite Depot Ltd—would begin vesting Feb. 1, two days after his Senate confirmation hearing, will continue to vest through November, and that he won’t back out.

But Patel appears to have lied about or misrepresented the company on his disclosure, claiming under penalty of perjury it was a “fashion management company.” But it filed as an “equity holding company” in the Cayman Islands. Equity in what, you ask?

Fifth news item

If not for the courts:

A federal judge on Thursday paused the Trump administration’s “buyout” offer for federal employees hours before it was set to expire.

Multiple judges have now ordered freezes on President Trump’s plan to end birthright citizenship.
Lawsuits involving Elon Musk’s takeover of federal agencies are just getting started, but they’re already resulting in some limits on the DOGE team.

The big picture: The courts are one of the only real threats to slow or stop substantial parts of Trump’s agenda — and they’re doing it.

Sixth news item

Raise your hand if you’re surprised:

At least 12 people pardoned by President Donald Trump in his first and second terms—including two last week—have since been apprehended by the police.

. . .

Trump pardoned 238 people in his first term and has already pardoned more than 1,500 Capitol rioters following his reelection, as well as seven people involved in blockading a Michigan abortion clinic in 2020.

At least 10 people pardoned between 2016 to 2021, and two people pardoned last week, were charged again on new crimes after their presidential release from prison. A third Capitol rioter remains on the run from police due to a prior warrant.

Seventh news item

So essentially helping Putin:

Since Moscow began to systematically demolish Ukraine’s energy system with missiles and drones around October 2022, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has played a critical role in supporting Kyiv to rebuild its grid. It has committed at least $800 million to procure and deliver transformers, power cables, gas generators, and other hardware, nearly matching the $1 billion raised by Europe’s Ukrainian energy support fund. That work is now in jeopardy after US President Donald Trump abruptly froze aid payments, put thousands of USAID employees globally on leave, and is considering shutting the agency altogether.

As temperatures drop and massive attacks triggering blackouts persist, emergency energy-equipment deliveries are stuck in Poland, Western officials told Semafor — and hundreds of expats tasked with putting it to use are leaving Ukraine because they can’t function without USAID funding and oversight.

Eighth news item

Another anti-Putin Russian “accidentally” falls out window to his death:

A Russian singer who called Vladimir Putin an “idiot” and allegedly donated to the Ukrainian military has died after falling from the window of his 10th-floor apartment, according to reports.

Vadim Stroykin fell to his death during police searches over his alleged links to Ukraine, Russian media outlets said on Thursday.

He was facing up to 20 years in prison if charged and convicted of supporting a terrorist organisation for his alleged backing of the Ukrainian army, they said.

Mr Stroykin is said to have stepped into his kitchen for a glass of water before being found dead on the ground outside.

—Dana

2/6/2025

Have Americans Accepted That Anyone Should Be Above the Law?

Filed under: General — Dana @ 5:04 pm



[guest post by Dana]

Interesting observations regarding last year’s Supreme Court immunity ruling:

In her first public remarks since President Trump took office about two weeks ago, Sotomayor said she worried that the Supreme Court has departed too far from public sentiment, when asked about dwindling public confidence in the court.

“If we as a court go so much further ahead of people, our legitimacy is going to be questioned,” Sotomayor told an audience in Kentucky Wednesday evening.

“I think the immunity case is one of those situations,” she continued. “I don’t think that Americans have accepted that anyone should be above the law in America. Our equality as people was the foundation of our society and of our constitution. I think my court would probably gather more public support if it went a little more slowly in undoing precedent,” she said.

“Our constitution itself has provisions not exempting the president from criminal activity after an impeachment,” Sotomayor said. “So, I had a hard time with the immunity case. And if we continue going in directions that the public is going to find hard to understand, we’re placing the court at risk.”

Sotomayor said Wednesday she worried that frequent court reversals of long-established legal precedent “creates instability” and contributes to the public questioning “of whether we’re doing things because of legal analysis or because of partisan views.”

—Dana

Russia Thrilled With President Trump

Filed under: General — Dana @ 3:54 pm



[guest post by Dana]

This, which is now being reported, will make Russia very happy:

The champagne corks are popping in penthouses from Moscow to Caracas tonight. Oligarchs maybe can finally get their yachts back, and kleptocrats worldwide are updating their Zillow searches for Miami beachfront property.

Why? Our sources say that just after 7:30 p.m. in Washington, D.C., yesterday, Trump’s newly appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi sent out an email announcing the immediate closure of the Department of Justice’s Kleptocracy Initiative and its associated task force – the very unit responsible for making life difficult for the world’s most creative accountants and their politically-connected clients.

Below the radar, however, is an even more alarming development. Sources say one of the key objectives behind this sudden move is to gain control of what’s believed to be a multi-billion dollar forfeiture fund under DOJ control. This fund, historically used to return stolen assets to victim countries, will now reportedly be redirected to what Bondi’s memo cryptically describes as “other” law enforcement purposes.

Multiple sources familiar with the matter say this is code for funding new detention facilities in Guantanamo Bay and Texas. Nothing says “America First” quite like using money recovered from foreign corruption to build domestic detention centers.

Anne Applebaum responds to the news:

And there it is: doors are open for kleptocracy in America.

Russia will be very, very please with President Trump. And isn’t that what it’s all about.

—Dana

2/5/2025

There’s a Hole in the Budget, Dear Liza

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 8:23 am



There’s a hole in the budget
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
There’s a hole in the budget
Dear Liza
A hole

Well fix it
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Well fix it
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Fix it

With what shall I fix it
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
With what shall I fix it
Dear Liza
With what

With Elon
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
With Elon
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
With him

He’s on ketamine
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
He’s on ketamine
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
A lot

So fire him
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
So fire him
Dear Donald
“Dear Elon: you’re fired!”

He bribed me
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
He bribed me
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
So much

Do tariffs
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Do tariffs
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Raise them

But the markets
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
The markets
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
They tank

Create an American Sovereign Wealth fund
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Create an American Sovereign Wealth fund
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
It’s done

With what shall I fund it
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
With what shall I fund it
Dear Liza
With what

With money
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
With money
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
With that

But where shall I get it
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
But where shall I get it
Dear Liza
From where

From the budget
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
The budget
Dear Donald
Dear Donald
The budget

*chords play repeatedly as Donald thinks*
*the audience titters*
*chords continue*
*finally…*

There’s a hole in the budget
Dear Liza
Dear Liza
There’s a hole in the budget
Dear Liza
But what the hell I’ll do it anyway

President Trump Says the Most Outrageous Thing, Part 412

Filed under: General — Dana @ 7:27 am



[guest post by Dana]

President Trump on Gaza:

“They’re gonna have peace,” Trump said of the Palestinians he wants to displace from Palestine. “They’re not going to be shot at and killed and destroyed like this civilization of wonderful people has had to endure. The only reason the Palestinians wanna go back to Gaza is they have no alternative. It’s right now a demolition site. This is just a demolition site. Virtually every building is down. They’re living under fallen concrete that’s very dangerous and very precarious.”

The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too. We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings. Level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area. Do a real job. Do something different. Just can’t go back. If you go back, it’s gonna end up the same way it has for 100 years.

Moreover, the President echoed Jared Kushner’s comments made last year that Gaza could be a luxury resort:

“We’re going to take over that piece that we’re going to develop it. We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal. And I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East, this could be something that could be so — this could be so magnificent.”

Just the President popping off with another hare-brained scheme that his supporters are going to try and convince us that he is playing 4-dimensional chess and we just don’t understand? Or just more political theater?

At the second link above you can read how neighboring nations, political leaders, Palestinians and Israelis are reacting to the President’s developer’s pie-in-the-sky dreams.

And just for fun:

—Dana

1/31/2025

Weekend Open Thread

Filed under: General — Dana @ 9:45 am



[guest post by Dana]

Let’s go!

First news item

HHS nominee doesn’t refute claims that vaccines cause autism:

Chairman Bill Cassidy, R-La., a physician, pressed Kennedy repeatedly to refute his prior claims that vaccines cause autism.

“Convince me that you will become the public health advocate, but not just churn old information so that there’s never a conclusion,” Cassidy pleaded.

But Kennedy, an attorney who has made millions fighting vaccine companies, refused to do so, instead saying he would apologize to people he may have misled on the issue of vaccines and autism “if the data is there.”

“The data has been there a long time,” Cassidy retorted.

Second news item

About the air traffic controllers on that fateful night:

An air traffic control supervisor in the tower at Reagan Airport let a controller leave their shift early, a source familiar with the investigation confirmed to NBC News.

This detail. . . means that a single controller was atypically handling both plane and helicopter traffic in the area. Ideally, one controller is dedicated to helicopters while another controller handles planes, NBC News reported yesterday.

Third news item

Marco Rubio disappoints as he echoes Trump on war in Ukraine:

Both Russia and Ukraine “are going to have to give something up” in negotiations to end the war, Rubio said, adding that “both sides are paying a heavy price for this” and “both sides have incentive for this conflict to end.” Rubio said the war is “not going to end with the maximalist goals of either side, and there’s going to have to be a lot of hard work done. And I think only the United States, under the leadership of President Trump, can make that possible.”

This is more of that rewarding Russia and punishing Ukraine for a war that Russia started. Providing monetary aid and requested weaponry to Ukraine can help them defeat Russia and reclaim occupied territories, as well as put Putin on notice that Europe and America, freedom loving nations, will not tolerate his illegal invasions of sovereign nations. It would also tell the world that allied nations will continue to stand for freedom and democracy. Ukraine must be victorious and Russia must know that they have lost the war. Anything less will just provide an irresistible open door for Putin and his thugs to try the same thing again. Shame on Rubio.

Fourth news item

Too little, too late, Democrats:

As the Democratic National Committee prepares to elect a new chair, its departing leader says Democrats should have stuck with Joe Biden in the 2024 race.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Jaime Harrison reflected on why his party lost to Donald Trump and what might have happened had then-Vice President Kamala Harris had more time to campaign after Biden ended his reelection bid following a disastrous debate performance.

He also offered advice to his eventual successor, who will be chosen Saturday. The next DNC chair, Harrison said, needs to insist that the party not be a “rubber stamp” to its presidential candidate.

Fifth news item

Governor says no state jobs for J6 rioters:

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is blocking those who took part in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol from working in state jobs, ignoring Trump’s attempt to offer them a clean slate last week in a sweeping set of pardons and commutations.

Late Thursday, Pritzker directed the state’s Department of Central Management Services, the state’s primary hiring authority, to restrict hiring those who took part in the attack on the Capitol, saying their “infamous and disgraceful conduct … is antithetical to the mission of the State.”

Sixth news item

Tariffs set to begin this weekend:

President Trump on Thursday said he plans to follow through on Saturday on his threat to impose 25 percent tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada.

“We’ll be announcing the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for a number of reasons,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He cited the influx of migrants at the southern border, the flow of fentanyl into the United States and the trade deficit the U.S. has with its neighbors.

The President also said they still have to decide whether to include oil in the tariffs.

Have a good weekend.

—Dana

1/30/2025

Trump Talks American Airline/ Black Hawk Crash Last Night

Filed under: General — Dana @ 10:20 am



[guest post by Dana]

What we know for sure:

An American Airlines regional jet went down in the Potomac River near Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport after colliding with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, with no survivors expected amid the extremely cold and windy conditions.

Sixty-four people were on board the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas.

The collision happened around 9 p.m. when the PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet was on approach to the airport.

There is speculation, of course, but we are cautioned to wait for an investigation:

I’m a hawk pilot. I’ve flown the NCR airspace. I’ve got about as much knowledge as you can have save for being one of the VIP fliers out there. Here’s me, not commenting, waiting for a proper investigation to be done. Take a hint. The world doesn’t need your uninformed aviation hot take.

Clearly some individuals didn’t want to wait for an investigation to be concluded (let alone barely begun), and have even decided that DEI policies were to blame for the crash:

—Dana

1/29/2025

Trump: Guantánamo Bay to House Criminal Aliens

Filed under: General — Dana @ 1:25 pm



[guest post by Dana]

President Trump signs one more executive order:

President Trump said he is signing an executive order on Wednesday to prepare a massive facility at Guantánamo Bay to be used to house deported migrants.

The order will direct the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security to prepare a 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantánamo Bay. . .

“We have 30,000 beds in Guantánamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people,” Trump said during an event to sign the Laken Riley Act into law, stiffening the nation’s immigration laws.

“Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back, so we’re going to send them out to Guantánamo,” Trump added. “This will double our capacity immediately. And tough, it’s a tough place to get out of.”

Unfortunately, this administration really doesn’t seem to differentiate between actual criminal aliens who commit violent crimes and alien families who have settled here, pay taxes, own homes, and simply live their lives. The fear is that they will treat both groups the same, thus the latter group could possibly be sent to Guantánamo Bay along with violent criminals.

1/28/2025

About Trump’s Aid Freeze

Filed under: General — Dana @ 3:25 pm



[guest post by Dana]

Just now:

Judge pauses parts of Trump aid freeze: A federal judge has temporarily blocked part of the Trump administration’s plans to freeze all federal aid. The White House budget office had ordered the pause on federal grants and loans Monday. The memo, which had been slated to take effect at 5 p.m. ET today, could have potentially impacted trillions in government spending and halted public programs that affect millions of Americans.

[It’s tough keeping up with all of the decisions Trump is making, as well as the fallout of them! By the time one has worked up thoughts about them, the situation has changed. . .]

—Dana

White House Spokesperson on the Issue of Birthright Citizenship

Filed under: General — Dana @ 2:18 pm



[guest post by Dana]

Today at the White House press conference, new press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to questions about the Trump administration and birthright citizenship:

Q: . . .22 state attorney generals have said that this is unconstitutional. A federal judge has just agreed with their argument. What’s the administration’s argument for doing away with birthright citizenship?

A: The folks that you mention have a right to have that legal opinion, but it is in disagreement with the legal opinion of this administration. This administration believes that birthright citizenship is unconstitutional and that is why President Trump signed that order. Illegal immigrants who come to this country and have a child are not subject to the laws of this jurisdiction. That’s the opinion of this administration. We have already ruled, uh, appealed the lawsuit that was filed against this administration and we are prepared to fight this all the way to the Supreme Court, if we have to, because President Trump believes that this is a necessary step to secure our nation’s borders and protect our homeland.

Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

—Dana

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