On February 13th, Robert Hubbell’s daily letter included a (partial) list of what Trump/Musk had done in the first days of the administration.
Pardoned 1,500 insurrectionists who assisted Trump in his first attempted coup.
Converted the DOJ into his political hit squad by opening investigations into members of the DOJ, FBI, Congress, and state prosecutors’ offices who attempted to hold Trump to account for his crimes.
Fired a dozen inspectors general, whose job it is to identify fraud and corruption and to serve as a check on abuses of power by the president.
Fired dozens of prosecutors and FBI agents who worked on criminal cases relating to Trump
Fired dozens of prosecutors who worked on criminal cases against January 6 insurrectionists
Opened investigations into thousands of FBI agents who worked on cases against January 6 insurrectionists
Disbanded the FBI the group of agents designed to prevent foreign election interference in the US
Disbanded the DOJ group of prosecutors targeting Russian oligarchs’ criminal activity affecting the US
Fired the chairs and members of the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, and the Federal Election Commission and refused to replace them, effectively shutting down those independent boards in violation of statute
Shut down and defunded the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Shut down and defunded USAID by placing virtually the entire staff of the agency on leave
Impounded billions of dollars of grants appropriated by Congress to USAID, National Institutes of Health, Department of Education, and the EPA, all in violation of Article I of the Constitution, which grants Congress the power to make appropriations
Allowed a group of hackers to seize control of large swaths of the federal government’s computer network by attaching unauthorized servers, changing and creating new computer code outside of federal security protocols, creating “backdoors” in secure systems, installing unsanctioned “AI” software to scrape federal data (including personal identification information), and installing “spyware” to monitor email of federal employees
Disobeyed multiple court orders to release frozen federal funds (an ongoing violation; see the NYTimes on Wednesday)
Granted a corrupt pardon to the Mayor of New York in exchange for his promise to cooperate in Trump’s immigration crackdown
The occasional trolls who visit this site to register their approval of these illegal and unconstitutional measures discount their illegality, confirming disdain for what is a significant protection of individual liberty–the insistence that the ends cannot justify the means. The entire Bill of Rights is founded on that premise, which is central to the rule of law.
It requires a total lack of civic literacy and historic understanding to look at that list and approve of those actions–to fail to see that they are fundamentally contrary to sound policy, to the rule of law, and to America’s global interests and stature.
Members of Congress should be the first line of defense against this coup. Most of these arbitrary actions can only be properly and constitutionally taken by Congress, and the actions comprising the Trump/Musk coup send an unmistakable message that our co-Presidents find Congress irrelevant and expendable. One might expect even MAGA Senators and Representatives to object to their political castration, but–as James Baldwin once noted–in order for evil to flourish, “it is not necessary that people be wicked but only that they be spineless.”
Unfortunately, MAGA Senators and Representatives only come in two flavors: Christian Nationalist (in Indiana, think Jim Banks) and spineless (in Indiana, think Todd Young). The Christian Nationalists are profoundly, if ignorantly, anti-American; the spineless are interested only in retaining their positions–positions that their meek obedience has divested of any significance other than the right to retain a title and receive a paycheck.
America’s government has three branches (someone needs to explain them to Tommy Tuberville), so in the absence of a live and breathing Congress, it is falling to the courts to restrain our would-be co-Kings. However, it looks all too likely that our would-be monarchs will ignore the courts–echoing Jackson’s infamous statement that “the courts have issued their decision, now let them enforce it.”
If that happens, it will be left up to We the People to counter this coup, and we can’t wait until the midterm elections, by which time our overlords may have put even more vote suppression laws on the books. We must participate in protests, in general strikes, in civic resistance of all kinds. Jessica Craven has posted about several:—a nationwide protest on February 17, a one-day general strike on February 28, and a “total shutdown” on March 15.
Studies have determined that participation in non-violent protest by only 3.5% of a population forces political change. We the People can do this.
Professor-your words are inspirational. Please readers listen and participate.
All the “actions” by this “administration” are exactly what criminal enterprises do to secure their ability to continue breaking the law at the expense of society. With the willy-nilly firing and furloughing of other departments like the IRS and those associated with caring for our nuclear weapons, how will things function? Oh. Right. That’s the point. Government “efficiency” really means: “Let us do anything we want, take all the money and pretend we’re kings of the world.”
So, yes. Protest. Boycott. Strike. Take your money out of the stock market. Cut back your consumption ALL YEAR to just what you need. In a consumer-based society like ours, when the consumers stop consuming, the silk suits stop getting rich and that causes panic. Panicked people make stupid mistakes (As if we would be able to tell the difference.) and maybe, just maybe we’ll have another election that corrects these horrific mistakes in judgement, civic sloth and civic ignorance.
I’m with Sheila and Dennis on turning off the spigot so that corporate/banking America can see what they’ve wrought.
Populism is a pernicious viral disease of the commons. It is very contagious.
The populism infection in the formerly united States of North America began a lifetime ago with a politician named Joe McCarthy. He had a politically successful career as a lawyer and a congressman because of timing (post-FDR), and like all diseases, his success was at the expense of victims. He wasn’t the first populism host; there have been many throughout history, but he was an incarnation here and within recent memory.
Trump is the source of the infection that now grips about one-fourth of the uS population. After several mutations, the full name became MTV (Musk, Trump, Vance).
Populism tends to transmit from people, called cons, to others, who are called entitled.
On February 13th, Robert Hubbell’s daily letter included a (partial) list of what Trump/Musk had done in the administration’s first days.
Pardoned 1,500 insurrectionists who assisted Trump in his first attempted coup.
Converted the DOJ into his political hit squad by opening investigations into members of the DOJ, FBI, Congress, and state prosecutors’ offices who attempted to hold Trump to account for his crimes.
Fired a dozen inspectors general, whose job it is to identify fraud and corruption and to serve as a check on abuses of power by the president.
Fired dozens of prosecutors and FBI agents who worked on criminal cases relating to Trump
Fired dozens of prosecutors who worked on criminal cases against January 6 insurrectionists
Opened investigations into thousands of FBI agents who worked on cases against January 6 insurrectionists
Disbanded the FBI the group of agents designed to prevent foreign election interference in the US
Disbanded the DOJ group of prosecutors targeting Russian oligarchs’ criminal activity affecting the US
Fired the chairs and members of the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, and the Federal Election Commission and refused to replace them, effectively shutting down those independent boards in violation of statute
Shut down and defunded the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Shut down and defunded USAID by placing virtually the entire staff of the agency on leave
Impounded billions of dollars of grants appropriated by Congress to USAID, National Institutes of Health, Department of Education, and the EPA, all in violation of Article I of the Constitution, which grants Congress the power to make appropriations
Allowed a group of hackers to seize control of large swaths of the federal government’s computer network by attaching unauthorized servers, changing and creating new computer code outside of federal security protocols, creating “backdoors” in secure systems, installing unsanctioned “AI” software to scrape federal data (including personal identification information), and installing “spyware” to monitor email of federal employees
Disobeyed multiple court orders to release frozen federal funds (an ongoing violation; see the NYTimes on Wednesday)
Granted a corrupt pardon to the Mayor of New York in exchange for his promise to cooperate in Trump’s immigration crackdown
It is hard to be optimistic about freedom’s chances for survival.
I’m all in on these non-violent protests. And may I suggest that on these days we all fly the American flag… take it back as it were. Fly more than one… a dozen even, and make a show of it.
I am sure that some fraud, corruption and financial mismanagement occurs in an organization as large as the US government, and a careful investigative oversight – beyond even all of the fired Inspector Generals – would always be welcome. Unfortunately that isn’t what is transpiring here; rather it is the purging of anyone ho took part – even remotely – in the investigation, indictment and conviction of djt, along with anything that doesn’t agree with his plan, i.e., DEI, et al. We all need to be screaming bloody murder, including the press (where the hell are they?). Our country is being eviscerated.
Gil wants to know where the press is and why it isn’t screaming. Well, quite a few press outlets, like Reuters and Politico, are ducking for cover because they have received large federal government contracts. Reuters received millions from USAID to undertake a “social engineering project.”
Why is our Fourth Estate taking money from the entity they should hold accountable?
And, as of this morning, why has the American Bar Association received tens of millions of dollars for branches worldwide? The obvious answer is that the Washington uniparty consists primarily of lawyers, so siphoning off taxpayer dollars to fund their professional organization is logical but definitely not ethical or prudent.
For all those clamoring against populism the last two days, please explain why members of both parties were spending billions of taxpayer dollars on pet projects besides using taxpayer dollars to support government coups around the world. Where were the Inspector General’s?
Both parties and their media outlets are embarrassed and trying to figure out how to handle such a mess. Lindsey Graham’s explanation (post-revelation) is that USAID is infected by its own corruption. Sorry, Lindsey, but you’ve been in Washington for how long, and you’ve never mentioned it before.
Could you try another tactic to justify stealing from the taxpayers?
The rumor is that Elon wants to set up an open source program for Treasury spending so anybody can see who is getting what taxpayer money. Amateur sleuths are tearing up the nonprofit world right now on X. USAID, NED, and Zuck’s foundation are getting dissected and shared. Even Elon Musk got caught with a proposed $400 million State Dept contract for bulletproof Teslas. LOL. The contract was quickly canceled once it became public. What a little sunlight will do when shined on the darkness is amazing.
Go populism!
One of your best, Sheila. Just wish more people would read it AND understand that our country is being eviscerated by self-centered, cruel, uninformed people, uncaring people, who only respond to power and money. Where is the America we believed in? Russia and China must be so happy to see this demise. We, the people, need to be WE, THE PEOPLE, and protect our country and the good that is in it, and not succumb to the power hungry people who care about no one but themselves. We need to pull together! If we do, we can continue to be a country that is respected and cared about.
I shared this on Facebook, and I invite others to do the same.
Yes, Gail, the good guys REALLY need to stand up now, and those who think they might qualify need to look in the mirror and convince themselves to join in on what they KNOW IN THEIR HEART is the right thing to do, Yes djt is capable of knocking you out of your lofty position if you are a congressman or senator, but if enough of you finally stand up to his sleazy bullying tactics, he’d be overwhelmed. Let’s see djt be overwhelmed by the backbones of us all. Joe McCarthy thought he could continue on forever with impunity but he was stopped in his tracks, finally. Have you no decency, djt? The answer is no, and he must be stopped before his actions destroy the country we all love and cherish.
Trump’s actions are a clear sign of a march toward dictatorship. No respect for the law or the three-way split of our government. Little do the MAGA folks realize what is coming from inflation (Trumpflation), reduced support due to lack of government funding and personnel. The transfer of funds from Federal Grants to now taxes at the local level. No more funds for your local schools, instead schools all over the nation will be raising property taxes. The money that Trump saves from closing down the Department of Education will be used for his billionaire tax cuts. Then the states transferring money from public schools to private will further push this long-term Republican shutdown of public schools. Dr.Keennedy, MD (His medical degree came from Trump U) will reduce medical research as they have already stopped a lot of Cancer research. He won’t stop vaccines but he will direct Medicare to no longer pay for them. A way to reduce Social Security and Medicare as older folks who can’t afford these vaccines die. I can go on and on but the MAGA crowd does not understand and most readers of this website do.
Is there a protest planned for Indianapolis this Monday?I haven’t heard of one from H4D.
Since it’s relatively important to be correct, the corrupt mayor didn’t get a pardon. What he got was more or less a possible sword of Damocles to hang over his head. The DOJ has asked to dismiss the case without prejudice. That means Mayor Adams might find himself facing those same charges again, if he doesn’t meet the goals of Orange Jesus (OJ) in his battle against brown and black immigrants. I would personally be thrilled if the judge decided to dismiss with prejudice, not because I think the mayor is innocent but because it would frustrate the Administration and eliminate the quid pro quo.
Mr. Hubble’s list, though long, is not complete. MTV has also directed the firing of ALL probationary employees in government agencies. That alone is a blow that could be crippling. All of the new, young minds will be gone. It will take time to recover from that.
Those who accepted the offered “buyout” might get stuck in Limbo, since it wasn’t funded and the offer came from DOGE. It’s unclear that DOGE has the authority to make the offer.
This is an aside, so not relevant, but I keep hearing people ask what is DOGE? Doge was the title of the rulers of Venice. If you’ve ever been there, you might have taken the tour of the Doge’s Palace. From the palace, you cross the Bridge of Sighs to the prison, where the Doge’s enemies were kept. Few of those incarcerated there ever saw the light of day again. The palace has listening stations set into the walls so the Doge could hear what people said. It was important to do that in order to keep the prison full. The parallels are stark.
I heard about a gathering at noon Monday, 2/17, downtown in Indy.
Shine light on the darkness, like Todd says. Transparency is often disturbing, however we are given the view of what might be headed our way.
What takes the place of law, of rules, of traditions in a large diverse social community?
Sharon,
Barb is correct about Monday’s protests. They are part of the #50501 movement, which loosely organized the events earlier this month.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/50501-plans-not-presidents-day-170513525.html
Another easy action we can do is use 5calls to flood the phone lines at the Capitol switchboard and the local offices of our officials. And pay them a visit at their local branches.
@James and @Dennis … I look and read the framework of argument sharply presented by Shiela. Compare notes with other credible sources. Then compose a position statement to send Senators Tillis (R) and Budd (R) as well as Congressman Edwards (R) who represents the Western North Carolina District where I live. Shiela is the most credible source I follow to frame the current issues and makes it far easier to research other sources. I do not waste my time posting on FB. I focus on elected officials. Then when I receive responses from elected officials, I select some to share with heavily funded blue lobbyists. They appreciate seeing what target adversaries on key Congressional Committees on The Hill are saying to constituents to mount counter intervention strategies. Congressman Jodey Arrington represents my childhood home district in West Texas. He and Congressman Edwards serve on the Budget and Finance Committee which Arrington Chairs. I focused last week on how recklessly gutting USAID will hurt food crop farmers in West Texas and North Carolina with specific numbers. Believe me. The farmers know who buys their harvest to reduce the amount of food waste left in the fields. 30%!