Friday Talking Points -- Meritocracy? Don't Make Me Laugh.
We begin today with an apology and a solicitation for donations. Our apology is for perhaps not doing as thorough a job of reviewing the past week as we normally do, because last night instead of doing our homework we instead watched the FireAid benefit concert for the victims of the recent Los Angeles fires. If you missed it, at least check out the fireaidla.org site, where you can donate to the cause if you wish. It was quite a show, and well worth watching (note: this review contains only a partial list of the performers...):
FireAid's organizers understood the scale of that balancing act, inviting Joni Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Earth Wind & Fire, Green Day, Billie Eilish, Lady Gaga, John Fogerty, No Doubt, Rod Stewart, Olivia Rodrigo, Sting, Alanis Morissette, Lil Baby, Peso Pluma, John Mayer and others to participate in a sprawling revue divided between two arenas and streamed live on multiple platforms for nearly six hours. It all felt as sweeping as it did familiar, with the show's main surprise pushing the gathering's familiarity threshold toward its limit -- the surviving members of Nirvana gnashing and pummeling through a visceral mini-set, fronted by the likes of St. Vincent, Kim Gordon and Joan Jett.
Sadly, there was yet another tragedy this week to focus on as well, as a commercial airplane crashed into a military helicopter just shy of the runway at National Airport in Washington. And before most of the bodies had even been pulled out of the icy waters of the Potomac River, President Trump offered his words of mourning and tried to pull the country together. For a few seconds, that is. Then he reverted to who he is, in a seriously ugly way:
Before the identities of the victims had even been released, and while the National Transportation Safety Board was still in the earliest stages of its investigation into the collision, Trump blamed Democrats and suggested diversity, equity and inclusion practices were to blame for the plane crash near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport that he deemed a "tragedy of terrible proportions."
The dichotomy between the apparent advice of his own advisers and Trump's own pugilistic instincts was on full display. Not long after he said "differences between Americans fade to nothing compared to the bonds of affection and loyalty that unite us all, both as Americans and even as nations," he almost immediately dialed up those differences.
He blamed former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden for standards for air flight controllers, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for having a "good line of bullshit" -- and diversity, equity and inclusion policies that remained in effect throughout his own entire first term.
Of course, as with just about everything Trump utters, the claims he made were either completely made-up or just flat-out lies. Trump specifically spoke of one program he blamed on Democratic presidents to hire disabled people as air traffic controllers... which was actually begun during Trump's first term. Here's the truth of the matter:
Moreover, the FAA under Trump in 2019 launched a program to hire controllers using the very criteria he decried at his news conference.
"FAA Provides Aviation Careers to People with Disabilities," the agency announced on April 11, 2019. The pilot program, the announcement said, would "identify specific opportunities for people with targeted disabilities, empower them and facilitate their entry into a more diverse and inclusive workforce."
There were plenty of other things requiring fact-checking in Trump's remarks, to the surprise of just about no one. Today, even one brave Republican was contradicting Trump:
Rep. Sam Graves, the Missouri Republican in charge of overseeing the Federal Aviation Administration in the House, said Friday that diversity initiatives at the agency had nothing to do with a crash between a commercial airplane and an Army helicopter that killed 67 people earlier this week.
In an interview with Politico, Graves, who chairs the House Transportation Committee and is an experienced private pilot who is rated to fly a commercial airplane, said many questions remain about just what caused the crash. He urged allowing investigators to do their work -- but said that he doesn't believe DEI initiatives played a role, despite insistence to the contrary from President Donald Trump and some others in the GOP.
We had intended to directly highlight some of Trump's odious remarks during his press availability yesterday, but for some strange reason (as of this writing) the transcript hasn't been posted on the White House website yet. Maybe they're actually ashamed of it? Nah... probably just more incompetence....
Democrats are pushing back on Trump as well:
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) criticized President Donald Trump on Friday for baselessly blaming the D.C. plane crash on diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
. . .
"When this country needed comfort, we got chaos," Moore said while addressing the Democratic National Committee's winter meeting outside Washington, a short distance from where the crash happened. "When this country needed healing, we got hatred."
One Democrat neatly flipped the issue on the Republicans. Because after all, if we're supposed to be a "meritocracy," then how do they explain Trump's cabinet choices?
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) on Thursday called out Republicans obsessed with attacking diversity, equity and inclusion efforts by turning the attention to their hopefuls for positions in the federal government.
. . .
"I want to know what qualifies Robert Kennedy to be the chief public health officer of the United States of America? What qualifies the likes of Pete Hegseth to be the leader at the Pentagon? This is a disturbing moment in our country," he added.
This week started out with Trump attempting to banish "woke" from the federal government in a different way -- one that is precipitating a constitutional crisis. In a very ham-fisted way, the Office of Management and Budget tried to just halt all payments the federal government makes. Well, not "all" -- direct payments (Social Security checks, etc.) were supposed to continue, but everything else was supposed to go on "temporary pause" while Trump and his minions worked to weed out any dastardly D.E.I. initiatives and other left-wing influences on federal spending. This went about as well as you can expect from team Trump, which is to say "total chaos immediately ensued."
Nobody had any clue what would be covered and what wouldn't, which put such programs as Meals On Wheels (to name just one) at risk of halting all operations. The Medicaid site for processing payments went offline. The Air Force tried to yank videos from training which described the Tuskegee Airmen (since it's pretty hard to talk about them and not mention racism).
Minutes before the pause was scheduled to take effect -- only one day after a two-page memo created it -- a federal judge blocked it. So the next day, the White House seemed to reverse course, issuing another memo which rescinded the first memo. But then they insisted that their plans were still going forward, it wasn't the policy but just the memo that had been rescinded. This made no sense whatsoever, so a second judge stepped in to prevent the White House from trying some sort of legal end-run.
Trump then made an appearance where he just made stuff up, in an effort to claim the whole thing had been a great success. He claimed -- without an iota of evidence -- that they had stopped $50 million from being sent to buy "condoms, for Hamas." Nobody had any clue what he was talking about, since this program does not actually exist.
As mentioned, this is all teeing up a constitutional confrontation, over a law Congress passed in reaction to Richard Nixon which spells out how presidents must spend the money Congress apportions -- whether they approve of the spending or not. Trump is trying to create some sort of constitutional right to "impound" money he doesn't want to spend, which does not actually exist in the U.S. Constitution (which clearly and unequivocally gives Congress the so-called power of the purse).
In the meantime, the White House is also apparently trying to halt all medical research and sharing of knowledge. For good measure, Trump fired over a dozen inspectors general, so he can put some bootlicking toadies in instead. These firings broke the law, but Trump simply doesn't care about such niceties.
This flurry of incompetence and anti-science spurred conservative writer David Brooks to write a New York Times column devoted to stupidity. Here's how it begins:
This was the week in which the Chinese made incredible gains in artificial intelligence and the Americans made incredible gains in human stupidity. I'm sorry, but I look at the Trump administration's behavior over the last week and the only word that accurately describes it is: stupid.
It's actually a very comprehensive look at Trumpian stupidity all around, and well worth reading.
The continuing frenzy of White House activity finally spurred some Democrats into action. Not immediate action, mind you, but they finally did get their act together to push back on Trump's blanket funding freeze. However, statements from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer aren't all that exciting, meaning Democrats still have a ways to go in terms of upping their game to counter Trump.
Teed up for tomorrow (the use of a golf metaphor there is intentional, since Trump will be taking the weekend off) are new tariffs: 25 percent on Canada and Mexico, and 10 percent on China. Which will only serve to institute a "Trump tax" for American consumers, of course.
We also had Senate hearings this week on three of the most unqualified of Trump's nominees -- Kash Patel, Tulsi Gabbard, and Robert F. Kennedy Junior. They all went about as well as you'd expect, which is to say "disastrously." The current scuttlebutt is that Patel will almost certainly be confirmed, but that some Republicans are urging Trump to withdraw Gabbard so they don't have to vote her down themselves. Kennedy could make it through or could be derailed; his nomination still seems up in the air.
The purges, meanwhile, have already begun. Even though Kash Patel swore under oath that no political retribution would happen at the F.B.I., senior officials there have been given ultimatums to quit or be fired next week. This is already going on at the Department of Justice as well. Anyone seen as even remotely anti-Trump is being handed their walking papers.
After all, it's not like there are a bunch of inspectors general overseeing the process anymore, right?
Senator Bernie Sanders did provide a little amusement this week during the hearing of Robert F. Kennedy Junior, by displaying two anti-vaccine babies' "onesies" and grilling Kennedy over whether he supported the message on them or not. "Are you supportive of these onesies?" is a sentence we would be willing to bet has never before been uttered in a Senate confirmation hearing.
But we're going to hand our Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week this week instead to an Iowa Democrat who just pulled off a rather stunning upset. Mike Zimmer just won a special election for a state legislative seat in a district that overwhelmingly went for Trump. Here's the story:
For a moribund party, Democrats in the span of 24 hours are showing some signs of life.
On Tuesday, Iowa Democrats notched an upset victory in a state Senate district that Donald Trump won by more than 20 points, and Minnesota Democrats retook their Senate majority in the statehouse. Meanwhile, in Washington, congressional Democrats who had been on defense since Trump swept back into office denounced Trump's sweeping freeze on federal assistance -- adopting a unified message for the first time since Trump took office.
. . .
The Iowa special election -- triggered after then-state Sen. Chris Cournoyer resigned to serve as the state's lieutenant governor -- gave Democrats an unexpected boost. Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said in a statement that it proved the party "can win in rural Iowa," while the Democratic National Committee called it an "earthquake."
Zimmer reportedly "ran on his own background as a teacher," and "kept it local, not about Trump." Which proved to be a winning formula. So for giving Democrats across the country a little optimism in dark times, we have to say Mike Zimmer was indeed the Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week this week.
[State Senator-Elect Mike Zimmer has no official contact page yet, as he has not been sworn into office, so you'll have to wait until that happens if you would like to let him know you appreciate his efforts.]
This is really a footnote to an older story, so we'll be quick. Robert "Gold Bar Bob" Menendez was sentenced in federal court this week to 11 years in prison for accepting bribes and selling his own influence to a foreign power while chairing a national security committee in the Senate, making him a shoo-in for the Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week once again.
Apparently the American system of justice still works to root out some political corruption -- that's the best takeaway of the whole sordid mess, really.
Oh, and a further footnote, for those of you wondering who would win the bidding war for Kyrsten Sinema, now that she's retired from the Senate, the answer is: cryptocurrency! We had "pharmaceutical companies" on our own Bingo card, we have to admit, but it simply wasn't to be -- the crypto bros apparently had more money to stuff her pockets with.
[Bob Menendez is now a private citizen (soon to be a federal prisoner), and it is our policy not to provide contact information for such folks, sorry.]
Volume 781 (1/31/25)
A mixed bag of talking points this week. And we couldn't even squeeze in one more, so we leave it for readers to make their own talking point: people who live in Greenland were just polled and a whopping 85 percent of them have no interest in becoming part of the United States. Which isn't really too surprising, really.
In any case, here are this week's offerings. As always, use responsibly!
Trump tax approaching
Democrats need to hammer this idea constantly.
"Donald Trump swore up and down that somehow he'd bring the prices down for everything Americans buy. It's been two weeks, though, and what has he actually done? Are eggs back to a dollar a dozen again? And average American families can now expect to see grocery prices go even higher, now that Trump is about to slap huge tariffs on Canada and Mexico. This new 'Trump tax' will not -- as Trump doesn't seem to understand -- be paid for by foreign governments. In fact, the Trump tax will be paid for by you and me and every other American who buys things. Every American voter should ask themselves while at the checkout line: 'Why is Trump making things more expensive, when he promised the opposite?'"
Trump halted Medicaid
Only for a day, but it's still fair game.
"This week Trump caused the Medicaid payment site to go dark. Millions upon millions of Americans rely on Medicaid, including a fair number of people who voted for Donald Trump. But he didn't care -- he just picked up an axe and started slashing away, without ever giving a single thought to who would be affected by it. Trump is dangerously incompetent, and Medicaid going dark is just the most obvious proof of this."
Have some respect and decency!
Trump is always at his worst in a crisis, as we were reminded this week.
"Donald Trump could have said some comforting words to the families of the victims of this week's air disaster, but instead he insisted on pointing the finger of blame everywhere he could think of. This is not leadership. I mean, does Donald Trump even understand words like 'decency' or 'respect'? He could have waited to inject politics into a tragedy for no reason at least until the dead had been given proper burials -- but he didn't. He didn't care about the suffering of the families and friends left behind, because that is who he is. It's disgraceful and disrespectful and Americans should be shocked and disgusted by it all."
Meritocracy? Oh, please....
We have to give credit to Senator Raphael Warnock for this one (credit where credit is due...).
"Trump keeps talking about how he wants America to be a 'meritocracy,' where only the best people get hired. But have you taken a look at his cabinet choices? Meritocracy? Don't make me laugh. What qualifies Robert F. Kennedy Junior to be in charge of health care for America? What qualifies Tulsi Gabbard to be in charge of the intelligence services? What qualifies any of these clowns for the jobs Trump has appointed them to? The only qualification Trump cares about is loyalty to Trump. So please... don't even try to use the word meritocracy, because that is nothing more than a sad joke in the Trump administration."
War on science
This is happening in a number of ways, but it really needs a catchy label.
"Donald Trump has apparently declared war on science. He is halting medical studies, restricting doctors from publicly sharing data, and ending all grants to science groups. He pulled out of the World Health Organization and will not let government doctors participate in any conferences or meetings on deadly diseases. He must really hate people who are smarter than him, or something. Or maybe it's because everyone didn't tell him what a genius he was back when he was suggesting injecting bleach to cure COVID. He's putting a total nutjob in charge of the federal health services, who has no clue how Medicare and Medicaid actually work. What could possibly go wrong with any of this? Trump's war on science is truly the height of stupidity."
Death penalty for drug dealers, except the ones he pardons
This is pretty disgraceful, but that's about par for Trump's course.
"Remember when Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he wanted to bring back the federal death penalty for drug dealers who caused deaths? Well, the first thing Trump did was to completely reverse course and instead issue a full pardon for a man serving a life sentence in prison for causing multiple deaths, by selling heroin and cocaine and other illegal drugs online. A mother of one of the people who died reacted to Trump's pardon with shock: 'He talks about immigrants coming here to the States, bringing drugs to the U.S., but yet he pardons this individual that was sentenced for life in prison back in 2015. I really don’t understand.' And yet Republicans all seem just fine with this pardon. So much for all that 'law and order' nonsense, eh?"
Trump invades California!
Another one for the "too stupid to be even remotely believable" file...
"Donald Trump bragged this week that he sent the U.S. military to invade California. No, really! He posted on social media: 'The United States Military just entered the Great State of California and, under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER.' Um... no. Just: no. The California Department of Water Resources had to explain: 'The military did not enter California. The federal government restarted federal water pumps after they were offline for maintenance for three days. State water supplies in Southern California remain plentiful.' So no matter how much Trump may fantasize about sending the Marines to invade California, nothing of the sort actually happened."
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Cross-posted at: Democratic Underground
Which will only serve to institute a "Trump tax" for American consumers, of course.
No. It's a large federal tax. Trump is raising taxes. At the same time he is likely planning a massive tax cut that most benefits the upper echelons of the wealthy. It's shakedown time.
The upcoming debt ceiling debates might be a good time to remind Republicans of what their core issue used to be...
As much as I appreciate the work you put into the 'Talking Points' column every weekend, this one seemed mailed in. Not that it was - but it seemed like it was. Why? Because the anti-Trump, anti-stupidity, anti-criminality, anti-evil talking points were so obvious and so omnipresent and so .. just everywhere. This column is an almost incoherent response to a bunch of stupid and incompetent ideologues 'flooding the zone' with s..., well with 'stuff'. There's almost no way to comment on all of it sensibly, much less counter it.
So I did appreciate your story about that Democratic Iowa Sen.-elect Zimmer winning in a recently Republican district. Most Impressive, indeed - and most inspirational. Maybe there is going to be a way out, after all.
Kick,
False equivalency. Mass shootings are not "accidents" wherein we have "no facts actually yet known about the causes." Mass shootings are intentional murder wherein anyone with even a scintilla of gray matter already knows quite a lot regarding the causes of the multiple murders.
It's a distinction, not a difference...
At it's heart, both incidents result in politicizing a tragedy...
And politicizing a tragedy is the Democrat "Go To", not the GOP's...
This FACT is well-documented.
There is no FALSE equivalency...
It's a direct equivalency...
Caddy,
LOVE Tom Clancy... Although I feel he peaked with EXECUTIVE ORDERS...
THE DRAGON AND THE BEAR was pretty good, but not as good as the whole Jack Ryan saga...
I tried to get into the Jack Ryan Jr books, but they just didn't have the Clancy feel. Probably because they were written by another author of Tom Clancy's untimely death..
It's a distinction, not a difference...
At it's heart, both incidents result in politicizing a tragedy...
And politicizing a tragedy is the Democrat "Go To", not the GOP's...
This FACT is well-documented.
There is no FALSE equivalency...
It's a direct equivalency...
It *WAS* a Democrat who coined the phrase, "Never let a crisis go to waste"
A crisis usually involves a tragedy, so...... :^/
It's been a really tiring (and trying) weekend at work made even more exasperating by I am only a third of the way thru..
I really don't feel like pointing out ya'all's Trump/America hate-athon and ya'all's indulging in yer PTDS on steroids...
Mebbe I'll snap out of it for tomorrow...
Maybe not..
We'll see...
Off to work I go...
Re TP#1: Instead of "Trump tax approaching", Democrats must remind folks that "Billionaires don't pay tariffs". A tariff is a REGRESSIVE tax, so the Trump administration will be funding its billionaire tax cut on the backs of Walmart shoppers.
Re TP#1: "With friends like US, who needs enemies?"
The supposed justification for tariffs on China was to protect American security. Mexico and Canada are our closest ALLIES. When Trump starts slapping tariffs on our friends, they will turn away from the United States. And when we next need help, they won't "have our back".
Re TP#4: "Meritocracy? Oh, please...."
I would wager that many Americans have no idea what the word even means.
This cartoon shows how to speak to the average American.
"I want YOU ... to exhibit the same ethics and conduct as Pete Hegseth, Sec. of Defense"
https://www.politico.com/gallery/2025/01/31/the-nations-cartoonists-on-the-week-in-politics-00201705?slide=4
JMCT
2
I try to avoid commenting on hot "flash-in-the-pan" topics for two reasons:
(1) everyone else is commenting on them, therefore someone else is bound to say what I'm feeling about them; and (2) I'd rather devote my time to shining a spotlight on the issues which I feel people are ignoring, rather than add to an overcrowded field of light being shined on the "scandal-du-jour."
Rusty,
Are there any facts that prove Pete Hegseth is ANYTHING but an upstanding and patriotic American??
No??
The most insidious form of hate is bigoted hate... :^/
I'm just saying...
Are there any facts that prove Pete Hegseth is ANYTHING but an upstanding and patriotic American??
yes.
but in all seriousness, I have no questions whatsoever about hegseth's patriotism. my only concern is whether or not he'll be able to do the job without tripping over his scaramucci, and that question is a bit more murky.
but in all seriousness, I have no questions whatsoever about hegseth's patriotism. my only concern is whether or not he'll be able to do the job without tripping over his scaramucci, and that question is a bit more murky.
Which is kinda funny because you had NO CONCERNS that Basement Biden wouldn't be able to do HIS job..
Despite a PLETHORA of real and actual facts that PROVED Basement Biden was not up to the task..
Compare and contrast THAT with the fact that there is ZERO indications that Pete Hegseth is not up to the task of being a SecDef..
I mean, let's face the objective reality here, JL..
You only have a problem with PRESIDENT Trump's pick BECAUSE it's actually PRESIDENT Trump who is doing the picking..
Give me ONE single and actual fact that proves Pete Hegseth is not up to the task of being a SecDef.
Put another way..
Did you have any problems or concerns 4 years ago when it was Basement Biden who was doing the picking??
I don't believe you did..
You kinda see where I am going with this...??? :D
Looks like Democrats are going with the plan to base their entire "recovery" on Trump/America Hate and PTDS...
I guess it's because THAT plan has worked SO WELL for them in the past for Democrats, eh?? :eyeroll:
Hope Democrats enjoy the political NNL for the next couple decades or so.. :^/
Looks like PRESIDENT Trump is going to win again.. :D
Paramount Global In Discussions With Donald Trump To Settle Lawsuit Over Kamala Harris’ ‘60 Minutes’ Interview — Update
Paramount Global has been in detailed discussions with Donald Trump‘s team about settling his lawsuit against CBS over the way a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris was edited last year, we can confirm.
Any settlement would be a highly conciliatory gesture to Trump. He was not even part of the 60 Minutes piece, but he sued the network for $10 billion under Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which is generally aimed at false advertising.
https://deadline.com/2025/01/trump-paramount-cbs-60-minutes-settlement-1236273890/
First ABC and now CBS...
If anyone doubts that PRESIDENT Trump is on a roll, this proves how completely and utterly WRONG they are.. :D
And James Carville is at it again, bringing FACTS and OBJECTIVE REALITY to the Democrat Party that's lost in the wilderness.. :D
"We ran a presidential election, if we were playing a Super Bowl, we started our 7th string quarterback. That's what happened, okay?
You can't address a problem unless you're honest about a problem.
Now, if you would've put the staggering talent that exists in today's Democratic Party -- you heard what I said? The staggering talent that exists in today's Democratic Party. If people would have seen that, they'd have gone 'I didn't know they had people like that, that can actually complete a sentence, okay? That actually know how to frame a message, that actually have a sense of accomplishment of doing something.'
More than in any other election in my lifetime, I’ve been consistently asked by people of all stripes and creeds: ‘Can Kamala Harris win this thing? Are we going to be OK?’ This sentiment is heard over and over from sweaty Democratic operatives who all too often love to run to the press with their woes."
-James Carville
Democrats will never win another major election until they actually FIX the problems they had with the 2024 election..
And the VERY first step in fixing the problem is correctly identifying the problem..
Democrats have gone double moron with their 2024 election autopsy..
Democrats think that it's just their messaging that caused the loss.. Democrats think that they just didn't hate on PRESIDENT Trump enough..
:eyeroll:
Give me ONE single and actual fact that proves Pete Hegseth is not up to the task of being a SecDef.
he was regularly hung over on-set at Fox and Friends, and said so to his colleagues. for a tv show that sort of thing can be navigated without much consequence. giving orders that mean life and death to two million service members, perhaps not. if you think Biden's age was an impairment, why the double standard on your side?
JL
italyrusty,
The supposed justification for tariffs on China was to protect American security. Mexico and Canada are our closest ALLIES. When Trump starts slapping tariffs on our friends, they will turn away from the United States. And when we next need help, they won't "have our back".
Two things...
First, our prime minister said yesterday that while we will be responding in kind to these crazy tariffs, we also know and still believe that the relationship between Canada and the US as friends, partners, allies and indeed family is the strongest there is between any two countries on the planet. So, I think that when the US needs our help, we will be there. Will that remain the case forever? Unknown.
Secondly, if the US continues on the track of isolating itself from its friends and allies and partners throughout the world - from the developed to emerging economies - it will find that it is no longer the gold standard in terms of its currency or its geopolitical influence. Countries throughout the world are already branching off from the US standard and creating their own financial payment systems not centered on the dollar.
Far from making America great, again, under a second Trump administration, the US seems to be on an accelerated decline, no matter how you slice it.
What Trump is doing is making China great, again!
JL,
I asked for FACTS... Not baseless and unsubstantiated accusations..
Do you realize that everyone here treats accusations as fact.. but ONLY accusations against GOP'ers...
Using your example, Basement Biden is a rapist and corrupt con-artist and criminal..
Even if it was factually accurate that SecDef Hegseth WAS drunk when hosting a news/entertainment show... Even if that WAS factually accurate....
So???? It would have ZERO bearing on SecDef Hegseth's abilities as a SecDef....
if there were no substance to the numerous, specific allegations that indicate hegseth was a regular and problematic drinker, why would he get up in front of the Senate and promise to stop?
presuming he is able to keep that promise, perhaps it would be no problem at all, but that's not usually how alcoholism works.
Liz
20
What Trump is doing is making China great, again!
All this chaos Trump is flooding the zone with makes perfect sense.
If Trump is following Vladimir’s instructions. All of the details add up to actually making Russia great again.
Caddy,
You DO realize that the Russia Collusion BS has been PROVEN to be a hoax, right??
That it has been PROVEN beyond ANY doubt that it was just a Democrat delusion completely made up to try and bring down PRESIDENT Trump.
To put it another way, it would be as if someone came in here and started going on and on about the Hillary Clinton PizzaGate BS....
That's how ridiculous the Russia Collusion BS is in the here and now...
JL,
if there were no substance to the numerous, specific allegations that indicate hegseth was a regular and problematic drinker, why would he get up in front of the Senate and promise to stop?
Dood.. Now yer really reaching..
Making a pledge to stop an action is, in NO WAY, admission that the action has occurred before..
presuming he is able to keep that promise, perhaps it would be no problem at all, but that's not usually how alcoholism works.
And we're back to accepting accusations as facts... :eyeroll:
Any FACTS that prove beyond any doubt that Pete Hegseth is an alcoholic???
The Democrat Party is doomed to roam the political wilderness for a long time to come.
“The policies that we support and the message that we have is not wrong,” Mr. Martin said in an interview after his victory. “It is a messaging problem and a brand problem. Those voters are not connecting our policies with their lives.”
This is **EXACTLY** the problem the Democrat Party has..
Democrats HONESTLY believe that the American people ACTUALLY LIKE the policies of the Democrat Party.. Democrats believe that it's simply a messaging problem...
Headboard Harris and the Democrats spent over TWO BILLION DOLLARS on messaging..
There is absolutely NO DOUBT that Democrats got the message out..
The problem... the ENTIRE reason Democrats lost is because the American people DON'T LIKE THE MESSAGE...
The American people DON'T LIKE the policies..
Until Democrats can figure that out... They will never win another election of any consequence...
In 2014, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) made significant changes to its hiring practices for air traffic controllers, sparking considerable debate. The shift prioritized increasing workforce diversity over traditional metrics of competency and merit, which has led to ongoing concerns about safety and efficiency in one of the most critical sectors of national infrastructure.
Before 2014, the FAA primarily recruited candidates from two sources: graduates of Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI) programs and military veterans with relevant experience. CTI programs were rigorous, specialized academic tracks designed to prepare students specifically for the demands of air traffic control. These candidates underwent extensive technical training and were evaluated through stringent assessments to ensure they met the high standards required for the role. Military veterans brought real-world experience, often under high-stress conditions, making them exceptionally qualified for the complexities of air traffic management.
However, in 2014, the FAA revamped its hiring process, ostensibly to foster greater diversity. The agency introduced the Biographical Assessment (BA), a questionnaire aimed at evaluating candidates based on personal attributes rather than solely on technical proficiency or aviation experience. Additionally, the FAA opened applications to the general public, allowing individuals without any specialized background in air traffic control to compete equally with those who had invested years in relevant education and training.
The consequences of this shift were immediate and concerning. Many highly qualified CTI graduates found themselves rejected, not because of a lack of skill or preparation, but because their scores on the BA did not meet arbitrary benchmarks. This new system seemed to undervalue the rigorous academic and practical experiences that previously served as cornerstones for FAA recruitment. Instead, it rewarded subjective qualities that had little correlation with the technical demands of managing the nation’s airspace.
It's inarguable that this approach compromises the core principle of meritocracy. Air traffic control is not a field where diversity quotas should outweigh competency. The job requires split-second decision-making, the ability to manage high-stress situations, and an in-depth understanding of aviation systems—skills that are cultivated through specialized training and real-world experience, not generalized personal traits.
Diversity should NEVER be a bigger priority over competence and merit. And it should NEVER... NEVER EVER.. come at the expense of safety and performance, especially in roles where lives are at stake. The FAA's mission is to ensure the safety and efficiency of the national airspace system. Diluting hiring standards undermines that mission and erodes public trust in the agency’s ability to maintain rigorous operational standards.
Since the implementation of these changes, there have been numerous reports and lawsuits highlighting the adverse effects.
Former CTI students and other qualified candidates have alleged discrimination, arguing that the new process unfairly disadvantaged those who followed the traditional, competency-based path. Congressional inquiries have also scrutinized the FAA’s practices, questioning whether the agency's focus on diversity has compromised its commitment to safety.
Diversity SOLELY for diversity's sake is ridiculous should NEVER override the fundamental need for competency in critical roles such as air traffic control. The FAA’s hiring practices should reflect a balanced approach that values both diversity and merit. However, when lives are on the line, merit must take precedence. The safety of millions of travelers depends on it.
People live, and in the current cases, DIE... when DEI hires are given priority over merit and competency...
"These are the facts of the case. And they are undisputed."
-Captain Smilin' Jack Ross, A FEW GOOD MEN
https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/02/1920/1080/cartoon020325.png?ve=1&tl=1
Yep, yep, yep...
How tariffs work.
Ya'all want to know the definition of irony??
Hysterical Left Wingers claiming they will fight to prevent ICE from entering schools...
Yet, refuse to arm yourselves to prevent SCHOOL SHOOTERs from entering schools..
THAT is Democrat "logic"... :eyeroll:
http://mfccfl.us/Logic.jpg
HOW TARIFFS WORK
Mexico agrees to deploy troops to US border in exchange for tariff pause
The facts CLEARLY prove that tariffs work awesomely!! :D
former governor chris christie went on with jon stewart and they had a very good discussion about what part diversity should and should not play in the hiring process.
https://youtu.be/mQwJuayXJ18?si=iCscB51wsKUmmxFs&t=1275
Jon Stewart is channeling his inner William Shatner...
"There's something.... on the wing.... some.... thing"
Does he always talk like that??
JL,
Can you summarize it for me??
Stewart is just too ditzy to listen to..
I feel like Billy Madison...
Ta... Ta... TODAY JUNIOR!!!
Christie said that DEI is helpful if used correctly (to expand the applicant pool, NOT to make the ultimate hiring decisions), which he claimed he did as governor. but he said it's also been used incorrectly (as a hiring quota system) which gives opponents fuel for their perceptions that it's just a new and different form of unfairness.
stewart's view was that it was being used as a convenient scapegoat for problems that it had nothing to do with, like the california wildfires.
stewart's view was that it was being used as a convenient scapegoat for problems that it had nothing to do with, like the california wildfires.
I would say ANY system that doesn't use competence and merit as it's SOLE criteria is flawed and should never be used..
The society that ignores race in it's practices is a just society..
Ironically enough, it's the society that Democrats CLAIM they want.. The irony comes in when Democrats refuse to look at anything BUT race...
Basement Biden epitomizes this when he stated that he will select a black person as his VP...
While it may be argued that DEI wasn't the reason for the LA fires, it's completely INARGUABLE that Democrat policies (in this case, Democrat environmental policies) that was a BIG cause of the LA fires.. Refusing to clear out old growth and failure to manage water supplies being the culprits..
DEI is simply ridiculous when it comes to hiring practices..
In the case of the FAA, they had THOUSANDS of quality candidates. But Odumbo and Democrats decided the group was "too white" as a group and got rid of them all...
Any and ALL politics aside, that is simply MORONIC...
Mexico and Canada blink: Tariff war averted...
"Other countries have tried to outmuscle Donald Trump and so far they're about 0 and 20," said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller.
So....
Anyone wanna debate PRESIDENT Trump's Tariff Strategy???
One would think ya'all would have learned your lesson about underestimating PRESIDENT Trump...
But, apparently, the lesson must be learned over and over and over and over again... :D
'S ok... I am sure PRESIDENT Trump doesn't mind takin' ya'all to school..
Over and over and over and over.... :D
Michale
3
It's a distinction, not a difference...
Obviously incorrect on its face because the definition of "distinction" is actually "a difference." There is obviously an undeniable difference when someone rushes to blame a particular group for an accident before facts are known and the multitude of mass shooting murders that occur frequently in the United States on a right regular basis. John M's sentiment was dead-on accurate.
At it's heart, both incidents result in politicizing a tragedy...
So you missed his very valid point entirely regarding (quoting John M.) "politicizing a fatal accident the moment it happens, with no facts actually yet known about the causes." He is 100% correct.
And politicizing a tragedy is the Democrat "Go To", not the GOP's...
Said the only commenter on this forum who actually did rush to immediately politicize the accident and blame it on DEI... in regurgitating fashion following the lead of the GOP politicizing the accident.
This FACT is well-documented.
The GOP politicization of the air accident is well documented; they wasted no time whatsoever blaming DEI and all manner of bullshit, you regurgitated the same BS right alongside the right-wingnuts.
There is no FALSE equivalency...
You missed his point entirely that accidents -- repeat accidents -- are now being politicized before anyone has even determined the cause of the accident; however, in your defense, you were likely too busy to notice his point about accidents being politicized because you were too busy blaming the accident on the same bullshit as the other GOP talking heads falling all over themselves to blame the accident on all manner of stupid stuff without any facts whatsoever in evidence.
It's a direct equivalency...
You totally and entirely missed his point about "accidents" and suggested he was incorrect by falsely equating what he meant with something he totally didn't. You then blamed Democrats for doing something you and the GOP actually were falling all over yourselves to do... archived herein for all posterity.
You also apparently cannot see how you are being distracted repeatedly with "someone to look down on" and your reaction on cue to the expanded GOP definition. LBJ was dead-on accurate about that.
Michale
It *WAS* a Democrat who coined the phrase, "Never let a crisis go to waste"
If you understood the meaning of "coined the phrase" you'd probably not likely blame a Democrat for it.
A crisis usually involves a tragedy, so...... :^/
It's a tragedy how your education is in crisis. You can also twist yourself into a pretzel trying to justify your false equivalency of John M's statement wherein you missed his point entirely.
When Cain asked Hegseth if he drank heavily after returning from combat, Hegseth said: "Oh yeah."
In Hegseth's 2016 book In the Arena he describes crafting a "pious caricature" of himself, involving abstaining from vices including alcohol.
Numerous sworn statements from eyewitnesses and from Pete Hegseth himself including his own words "self-medication."
Denying the admitted alcohol problem at this point is obviously laughable on its face and revisionist history.