Americans who follow the news even slightly, are aware of the daily, major assaults from this administration on the Constitution and our liberties. We’re aware of RFK, Jr.’s insane attacks on medical science and the likely negative effects on our health, the assaults on ships from foreign countries in defiance of international law, the economic damage being caused by Trump’s insane (and illegal) tariffs and his war on immigrants, and the administration’s vicious and escalating attacks on journalism and free speech.
What most Americans tend to miss are Trump’s entirely illegal refusals to honor spending decisions made by Congress, despite the fact that the Constitution vests those decisions solely in the legislative branch, not in the executive. The sudden cut-offs of thousands of promised grants will hobble all sorts of research for many years to come–including research into cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimers–and the negative consequences will go far beyond medical science research.
A former academic colleague recently shared a notice that the Trump administration is withholding payment of the final year of a four-year grant–a grant to a program at Indiana University that has been continuously supported by the federal government since 1959. That ongoing support was based upon a determination that the program was an important part of the United States’ defense effort, as described in the post-Sputnik National Security in Education Act of 1958, and the subsequent David L. Boren National Security Education Act (NSEA) passed in 1991.
IU’s program supported students studying several of the foreign languages that enable American diplomats to communicate with and recognize threats from individuals and governments of foreign countries. The grants were intended to “address the U.S. shortfall in experts with critical language and international area knowledge needed for national security,” and were intended to enable students to “study languages and regions vital to national security.”
The remnants of the Department of Education informed IU that the final year of the grant would not be forthcoming, because “the international and foreign language education grant programs are not a priority of the administration,” and that the programs are “inconsistent with administration priorities and do not advance American interests or values.”
As a result of the funding cut-off, a number of graduate students will be unable to continue their graduate studies. It is yet another facet of this administration’s unremitting attack on education at all levels.
How do arbitrary and capricious–and patently illegal–actions like this harm American interests? Let us count the ways…
Rather obviously, the lack of individuals able to understand foreign communications will make it more difficult to conduct international affairs and to recognize threats to U.S. interests. Those interests may not be a “priority” of this administration, but they’ve been a very high priority of previous administrations–and of the legislators who continued to authorize and fund the programs.
It’s unlikely that most Americans will ever hear of the discontinuation of this particular program, or the negative results that will flow from the significant number of other abruptly terminated education programs and research projects. What we will experience, however, is a steady diminution in national health and in economic well-being, and a substantially reduced ability to protect American interests internationally.
Of course, as the missive from the Department of Education candidly admitted, the protection of America’s interests are not a priority of this administration. That has been obvious for some time. The clear priority of Trump and his collection of clowns, misfits and grifters is the exercise of power and the ability to line their pockets–the corruption of this administration puts Teapot Dome to shame.
The even clearer priority of Trump’s MAGA followers is reversing the legal and social gains of women and minorities–rooting out efforts to level the playing field for non-Whites, non-Christians and non-males. They neither know nor care that those priorities weaken America.
We need to turn out eleven million protestors for the second “No Kings” Day on October 18th.
IU’s President who is so close to major Trumpster Mike Braun should get Braun to make a call to the White House to reverse this decision. What are friends for?
As Rick Wilson so accurately penned a few years ago: “Everything Trump touches dies.”
Yesterday in his oral deluge of lack of knowledge Trump stated he believes NOW that Ukraine can win the war against Russia, because they are fighting for their rights. President TACO will not act on his words to restore our full aid to Ukraine because he is steadily removing all rights of Americans which is democracy, the same right he said Ukraine has the right to. That sentence may be garbled grammatically but you know what I’m saying.
It appears to me that there is nothing in the Constitution of the United States of America to force elected officials to perform the duties and responsibilities they were elected and are paid to do, where is our protection protecting us from the current Fascism? The SCOTUS full immunity of Trump has us in a quandary; they can, and do override some of the lower courts decisions against Trump, do we have access to the knowledge of how to override the entire government? We can hope that SCOTUS will deny Trump one of his foolish Executive Orders and he will fire his Catholic/Federalist majority in SCOTUS as he fires everyone else he has no legal right to fire or demand they be fired. My lack of full knowledge of government, laws and the higher education system in this country is obvious here but…what I watched yesterday as he insulted everyone for their ignorance but God and his own personal disciples in MAGA, I see that knowledge is of no more value today in this country than Rule of Law or the Constitution. I am smarter than Donald Trump but that is nothing to brag about.
“Of course, as the missive from the Department of Education candidly admitted, the protection of America’s interests are not a priority of this administration.”
It is also obvious that protection of American’s lives are a lower priority than that of our interests.
America never looked weaker than yesterday with Trump “addressing” the United Nations. And he removed any doubts about his mental fitness to be president. He makes (reads) this same speech every time the world is watching. Our allies and enemies have all reached the same conclusion about him and us as voters.
Thank you, Shelia, another excellent column. I’m Sharing it on all Media platforms today!
We must outshout the far right and oppose the voice of Stephen Miller and the far right. Trump is just their puppet…
Much like Trump’s latest “pronouncement” on the use of Tylenol, insanity, sheer insanity.
Another consequence of the Trump language study cut is that immigration courts are required to offer translators and are already pressed to find translators for dialects in other countries. Trump may be helping immigration courts by repurposing AGs’ to create new judges but he is ham-stringing the process by a lack of approved translators.
All I needed was a taste of Trump’s speech to the UN assembly to confirm how much trouble we are all in. Lil Donny has the vocabulary and grammar of a 5th grader. He explained our polluted air to the UN assembly:
“But you know, we have a border, strong, and we have a shape, and the shape doesn’t just go straight up. That shape is amorphous when it comes to the atmosphere.”
He’s definitely hiding his brilliance!
He knew what Epstein and Maxwell were doing for Israel, but he didn’t care. Jeffrey and Ghislaine provided him with lots of teenage girls to rape. They even set up Melania for him, which he decided to rape on Jeffrey’s airplane, but Donald was able to get her Visa changed so she could bring over her parents from Eastern Europe. He didn’t think about consequences because he never thought he’d be POTUS.
What floors me is that a King invited a convicted felon and pedophile to their palace with a wife who modeled nude on a Visa. So much for pomp and decorum. That was the ultimate global embarrassment!
The point is, anyone with a vocabulary and grammar above that of a 5th grader is a threat to Donnie. Just look at those people he’s surrounded himself with in Washington. The diplomat’s role under Donnie is to facilitate business deals with foreign leaders that benefit Donnie financially. They don’t need an education. All they have to do is pledge their fealty to Donnie and feed his gigantic narcissistic ego. Simple.
As in 2016, when he “won” election: THIS is what we are sending out to represent us to the rest of the world? Acetawho, Acetawhat? Babblesh*t!
Mr. President cut and grift.
Todd; remember King Charles’ brother Prince Andrew was also listed in the Epstein Files; he has been removed from all Royal duties and ordered to vacate the castle property he has been living in. Maybe they had some shared information to discuss; their wives were of the same immoral level who had things in common to talk about.
Realistically, our former comfortable and safe lives can be directly attributed to the combination of public and private education systems, including the so-called “prestige universities.” Every school played a unique role. It was the envy of other countries that could not build a system as high-performance for their citizens.
It doesn’t, however, serve Trump, so he says that we cannot afford it. Apparently, we can only afford to carry our oligarchy for this generation.
I don’t doubt the validity of this statement, but I would be interested in a more detailed account: “The clear priority of Trump [et al] … is … the ability to line their pockets–the corruption of this administration puts Teapot Dome to shame.”
Morton, there are several journalists and writers on Substack keeping track of the hundreds of millions Trump and his family have made off his presidency. That is solely the money he has made, but the money he has made for the oligarchic donors easily exceeds billions of dollars. When I find links, I’ll share them.
And JoAnn, don’t forget about Prince Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, who has also been drawn into the scandal recently due to an email she sent to Jeffrey, in which she called him a “supreme friend.” I guess she borrowed money from him as well. The Royals are all hype and pomp!
We watched the brave return of Jimmy Kimmel last night. He was emotional at times but didn’t cow tow to the Maga suppression of speech campaign. He thanked all the friends and Americans who stood up and boycotted for him. His best joke was when he pulled out a list of instructions that he said Disney insisted he read. It was how to resign up for the Disney channel on TV.
So many assaults in so many ways and so much destruction on every level of this government as Trump rises like some demonic Phoenix. The permanent physical destruction externally of our historic White House is never mentioned; “our side” is apparently not allowed inside to view what is going on internally other than moving President Obama’s official presidential portrait to where it cannot be seen. TWO HUNDRED year old trees destroyed to make way for Trump’s gold ballroom he obviously plans on remaining in office to enjoy and by the end of this term he will have alienated all of our foreign allies and we can only hope he hasn’t brought about nuclear attacks on us via his threats against our current enemies. Will he and Putin, and maybe Kim Jong Un make up their differences and sit together in what used to be the beautiful White House Rose Garden but now cemented over and will they sit at the spare Mar-A-Lago patio tables with yellow and white umbrellas shading them from the sun?
Any and everything American is being systematically destroyed in the name of politics; conditions today stopped being political on January 20, 2025 at his private inauguration. Inhumanity has taken the place of politics and is using the Scorched Earth tactic to remove democracy, Rule of Law and the working Constitution from our government and from our memories. If he is not stopped, and stopped soon, not even our global enemies will find reminders of America anywhere in history. There will be no education to provide history with our story; the lethal assault on education will probably remove even the term “education” from our language and buildings today housing education will be ruins to wonder what they were once used for. We are heading for oblivion by an illiterate, mentally ill fool who is arguing publicly with TV comedians and demanding journalists be fired for disagreeing with his lies. He needs to be removed, by any means possible, and removed immediately.
His garbage dump yesterday at the United Nations General Assembly should have been the last straw even for his own Republicans should be embarrassed for being associated with him. Yes; this is long and long-winded but at 88 years of age I can do nothing but rant and rage at the fact that neither party shows promise of resolving the Hell he created and he thinks our allies are the ones who are going to Hell. We are the majority but we are meaningless when they have all of the money and the power. Are there any classes in higher education that prepared anyone for this possibility?
Strategy for survival for the next 3 years:
1. Read Sheila daily.
2. Stay energized for resisting the insanity coming out of DC.
3. Dig in at the local level with friends, family, local government and service nonprofits and progressive faith communities.
4. Keep laughing with Kimmel & Colbert.
Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize!
And he’s gonna keep bombing Venezuelan boats until he gets it!
I personally know that OJ and his DOGE / MAGA cohorts have been killing Americans since at least Feb. 17, 2025. That was the day my beloved was told that she could not be enrolled in a cancer study because all NIH funding had been frozen and they had no idea if, or when, funding would be released. She said good-bye to her family and friends on the 18th, went into a coma, and passed on the 19th. Sheila knew the lady, at least casually. I wish that I was more like Erica Kirk and less like the OJ because I will admit that I still hold OJ personally responsible for her untimely death. Was she his first victim? I don’t know the answer to that, but he remains a raging fire in our society. Joanne and others on this feed are correct that he needs to be removed from office, and the sooner the better. Sadly, I am not sure that the Constitutional Succession has anybody better in it at this time!
This administration’s corruption is truly staggering, making Teapot Dome look like child’s play. It’s terrifying to see how Trump and his MAGA followers are actively working to reverse hard-won legal and social gains for women and minorities. They seem completely blind to the fact that their actions are weakening America from within. The call for eleven million protestors on October 18th is a crucial step, but it’s clear that more needs to be done. The comments here highlight the urgency of the situation – from concerns about Trump’s mental fitness to the devastating impact on education and healthcare funding. This isn’t just politics; it’s a fundamental attack on democracy and our way of life. We must resist with all we have, at every level, from local communities to national action. The future of America hangs in the balance, and we can’t afford to lose sight of that.speed stars unlock