It’s not about ethics We all know Trump is a ‘bad’ man—as in immoral, perhaps even amoral. If you’re in any doubt whatsoever on this rather elementary observation, you might refresh yourself on what the most revered religious figures and philosophers through history have said: lying is bad, stealing is bad, bedding down with your neighbor’s wife is bad, even looking upon her with lustful eyes is bad (Jesus, Mt. 5:28)… But poverty is fine (Lk. 6:20), giving away what you possess is fantastic (Mt. 19:21), and worldly riches are bogus (Mt. 6:19). So, yes, Trump is a bad man. But he probably glories in his misdeeds. Certainly, the Donald is neither the first nor the last thief to get … Continue reading →

Joe Biden: “IT IS OVER” I hope you all witnessed the scene a few days ago as Joe Biden’s gavel descended on the Senate proceedings, bringing a desperate (and uncertain) element of closure to this bizarre 2016 election, and placing a metaphorical fig leaf of legitimacy over the incoming Trump administration’s privates—a shaky fig leaf put there by the Democrats, of all people. In fact, Joe’s gavel descended multiple times as four members of the House of Representatives, all Democrats, voiced their objections to the official tally of the Electoral College in a last gasp, one final attempt to reverse the official election tally that Congress had convened to certify. One objector, Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz), claimed that ten of Florida’s … Continue reading →

Note: This post contains a summary of election irregularities/illegalities that I’ve been reporting on over the last month on this website. As Steven Rosenfeld of AlterNet reports in the important article excerpted below, those irregularities were far more than sufficient to nullify Trump’s victory and hand the presidency to the rightful winner, Hillary Clinton. Rosenfeld’s article appeared on January 3 and can be read in full here. Emphasis (in italics and bold) has been added.—René Salm An intense women-led lobbying effort on Capital Hill spent Tuesday seeking two representatives and one senator to challenge Friday’s certification of 2016’s Electoral College vote, saying the nation needs to hear how Donald Trump’s margin of victory was built on racist tactics targeting black … Continue reading →

Twenty-four days until Trumpmageddon. Twenty-four days—and counting. Not everybody, though, says that Trump’s presidency is a done deal. Not everybody even says that the election is over. Michael Moore “isn’t ruling out the possibility that [Trump] won’t be sworn in at all.” If he is indeed sworn in, Moore is urging “national protest” and is planning on “non-violently disrupting” the inauguration. I don’t think I’d be able to bring myself to watch. How could I watch Trump put his hand on the Bible and swear to defend the Constitution? That’s not even a bad joke. Remember, Trump is the man whom the Huffington Post routinely describes thusly: “Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, … Continue reading →

In an interview today with MSNBC’s Chris Hayes, Oregon Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley goes on record to raise the alarm regarding Donald Trump’s latest cabinet appointments, attitude toward nuclear weapons, and also regarding the president-elect’s character—which Sen. Merkley characterizes as “the maturity of a five-year old wrapped by a massive ego.” I offer this frightening nine-minute interview verbatim below, beginning at minute four. [4:20] CHRIS HAYES [MSNBC, speaking to the viewer]: There’s also a petition by the Ploughshares Fund, an anti-nuclear group calling for President Obama to take America’s nuclear arsenal off of hair-trigger alert, to prevent Trump from being able to launch a nuclear missile within minutes. That initiative may have gained new urgency today after Trump shared some … Continue reading →