And, he probably dreads being in the same room with Zelensky. Which is why he looks forward to negotiating an end to the war with just Putin. Trump is such a simple-minded guy - he doesn't have the first clue about how to negotiate an end to this war that includes BIG concessions on the part of Russia.

I'm guessing both Putin and Netanyahu are having a hard time wiping the smiles 'n smirks off their faces. SAD.

but at least when it comes to deal making on the international stage, perhaps there's some ww2 reference that fits.

Skyrocketing healthcare budget for illegal immigrants haunts blue state taxpayers

A GOP California lawmaker told Fox News Digital 'Sacramento is doubling down on reckless spending'

A California budget official revealed this week that taxpayers in the Democrat-run state are paying billions of dollars more on healthcare for illegal immigrants than previously known.

Guadalupe Manriquez, the California Department of Finance program budget manager, told the state Assembly Budget Committee Monday the state is "spending $9.5 billion total funds" to "cover undocumented individuals in Medi-Cal" in the current year.

Manriquez explained that this is a "revised number based on the governor’s budget-updated estimates," adding the earlier figure was from the earlier "budget act."

Hay Caddy!? How does it make you feel that you are paying BILLIONS more in health insurance JUST so illegal immigrant criminals can have free health care!!

Do you ENJOY paying for ILLEGAL CRIMINALS health care???

I know that *I* wouldn't be too happy about that!!

OK OK... Here is ANOTHER vacay pick... But it's the last one... I am jumping into the jacuzzi with my lovely wife of 43 years!! :D

http://mfccfl.us/boone9.jpg

Had a lovely ice storm roll thru.... It was fun.. Lost power for 2 days... :D

California Democrat says party needs to 'bring actual weapons' in the 'fight for democracy' against Elon Musk

Rep. Robert Garcia called Elon Musk a 'dick' during a House subcommittee hearing on Wednesday

California Rep. Robert Garcia said the Democratic Party now needs to "bring actual weapons" in the "fight for democracy."

Garcia went viral on Wednesday after mocking Tesla CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk during the first House DOGE subcommittee hearing.

Garcia, who is a member of the subcommittee, displayed a large picture of Musk, referring to it as a "dick pic."

This is your woke progressive Democrats today..

Advocating a civil war...

How low and violent woke progressive Democrats have sunk, eh??

Aren't ya'all so proud of your pathetic woke progressive Democrats?? :eyeroll:

What's that?? Ya'all miss the vacay pics!!??

Oh.. Silly me... Here ya go.. :D

http://mfccfl.us/boone8.jpg

:D

the great tragedy of it is how small-scale a dent it is in the federal budget, relative to how massive a hit it is to our country's global reputation, not to mention the thousands of children who will starve and/or get sick and perhaps even die as a direct result.

Exactly... the "soft power" that's earned from such a small outlay isn't a hard concept to grasp:

I promise you it's going to be a lot harder to recruit someone to anti-Americanism, anti-American terrorism if the United States of America is the reason they're alive today.

~ Senator Marco Rubio, floor of the Senate, 2017

Rubio obviously had to know at least some of the ramifications that would occur from his January 24th memo from the State Department calling for an unprecedented 90-day freeze on all foreign aid. Chaos.

Health clinics around the world were immediately closed. Life-saving drugs were immediately withheld from the sick. I could go on.

Who fills the giant gaping hole that is left? Allied nations? More likely rival nations... and unnecessarily handed to them on a silver platter with little regard to the immediate and long-term consequences.

There is a waiver/exemption for "life-saving" work, but who defines "life-saving"? Elon? Rubio? What about the lives of Americans who were thrown into immediate chaos... the federal employees, the companies who work with USAID and their employees, the faith-based charities that work with USAID and their employees, the farmers who work with USAID and their families. Again, I could go on.

taking action more quickly and broadly than necessary, without caring about the people who are hurt in the process, is the definition of cruelty.

Exactly. Inhumanity.

was there a good chunk of fat to trim there? definitely.

The people elect representatives who hold the power of the purse to make these decisions. No one elected Elon.

with a little patience and expertise, every agency budget could be carefully pored over to find savings, and congress should welcome that process with open arms. in theory it's a GREAT idea.

It should definitely be happening all the time regarding all manner of issues under the purview of the people's representatives with the undeniable constitutional authority to do so.

but in his manic fit of revenge fantasy, mELakON is repeatedly taking a sledgehammer to a hangnail. there's only so many times one can do that before one has no toes left intact.

KIRK: He drew the wrong conclusion from history. The problem with the Nazis wasn't simply that their leaders were evil, psychotic men. They were, but the main problem, I think, was the leader principle.

MCCOY: What he's saying, Spock, is that a man who holds that much power, even with the best intentions, just can't resist the urge to play God.

SPOCK: Thank you, Doctor. I was able to gather the meaning.

MCCOY: It also proves another Earth saying. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Darn clever, these Earthmen, wouldn't you say?

SPOCK: Yes. Earthmen like Ramses, Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon, Hitler, Lee Kuan. Your whole Earth history is made up of men seeking absolute power.

*

The jackboot undeniably fits.

In a recent press conference, newly appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi addressed the media regarding significant legal actions taken against the state of New York. The focus of her announcement was on federal charges directed at key state officials, including Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James, as well as the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles, Mark Schroeder.

Bondi expressed her strong disapproval of New York's policies, which she claims favor undocumented immigrants over American citizens. She emphasized that such practices would no longer be tolerated, signaling a shift in the Department of Justice's approach under her leadership. This announcement follows previous legal actions against other jurisdictions, such as Chicago and Illinois, which have implemented laws designed to protect undocumented individuals from federal immigration enforcement.

During the briefing, Bondi highlighted the tragic story of Tammy Nobles, a mother who lost her daughter, Kayla Hamilton, to a violent crime committed by an undocumented individual. Nobles recounted the brutal circumstances surrounding her daughter's death, which she attributed to failures in the immigration system. Bondi echoed Nobles' sentiments, asserting that the current administration's policies have led to preventable tragedies for families across the nation.

Nobles has taken it upon herself to raise awareness about the dangers posed by undocumented immigrants, sharing her daughter's story to advocate for change. She expressed gratitude to former President Donald Trump for providing her with a platform to voice her concerns. Both Nobles and Bondi criticized the Department of Homeland Security for not adequately performing its duties, which they believe has contributed to the ongoing border crisis and the resulting violence.

Bondi warned other states that do not comply with federal immigration laws that they could face similar legal repercussions as New York. She specifically pointed out New York's "green light" law, which allegedly allows undocumented immigrants to avoid identification checks and prevents state agencies from sharing information with federal authorities. Bondi argued that this law is unconstitutional and a direct violation of federal regulations.

Bondi's statements reflect a broader strategy to enforce immigration laws more strictly and hold states accountable for their policies. The Attorney General's office aims to protect American citizens and address the perceived failures of local governments in managing immigration-related issues.

Aren't ya'all glad that your woke progressive Democrats set the precedent to use law enforcement and the courts as a political process??

Woke progressive Democrats.... The epitome of short-sighted thinking... :eyeroll:

EPA administrator Zeldin demands return of $20B in taxpayer money wasted by Biden administration

Zeldin said the EPA has plans to recover the "gold bars" that were found "parked at an outside financial institution," which he does not mention by name.

THESE are the scumbags that you people and woke progressive Democrats are protecting!!????

WHY!!!???

I'll tell ya'all why..

Because all ya'all care about is your woke progressive ideology...

No matter HOW much suffering and death and destruction it causes...

The ONLY thing important is the woke progressive ideology..

:eyeroll:

These areas have increasingly become Republican strongholds, but with Elon Musk running roughshod over government programs,

You are SEVERLY misinformed... Those farmers are 1000% BEHIND Elon Musk, DOGE and PRESIDENT Trump..

Getting THOSE groups over to the woke progressive Democrat side is as laughable as getting FLORIDA over to the woke progressive Democrat side... :eyeroll:

I'm just sayin'...

and call their representatives and push back on what Musk is doing.

Again, this begs the question..

WHY are you protecting all of the waste and fraud and abuse??

You are protecting the people who are taking YOUR money!!

You are protecting the people who are COMMITING the fraud, the waste and the abuse!!!

For christ's sake, why!!????

Nobody elected Elon Musk to anything, but he's now in charge of slashing programs that benefit American farmers.

Not factually accurate.. Elon is slashing nothing of the sort... Further, Fauci wasn't elected to anything and yet Biden put HIM in charge and he totally destroyed the US economy and killed MILLIONS of Americans..

You are really hung up on this "NOT ELECTED" part and it's complete and utter bullshit.. An ELECTED POTUS gets to assign people to get jobs done.. Just because yer Biden put in incompetent people that got Americans killed..

Not being elected to something doesn't mean they are not effective at a job..

And, as is obvious by ya'all's hysterical reactions, Musk and DOGE are doing an AWESOMELY effective job!! :D

And he hasn't even gotten around to the Department of Agriculture yet.

So, you finally admit that what DOGE has done hasn't affected farmers at all..

I accept your concession..

"Thank you for your cooperation."
-Black Widow, AVENGERS

So, we have now established that all of this hysterical HELP THE FARMERS!!! is just another bullshit woke progressive Demon-rat Talking Point ploy..

Do ya'all HONESTLY believe that the American Farmers are going to fall for this complete and utter woke progressive bullshit??

Do ya'all HONESTLY believe that, after all the lies and bullshit and crap from woke progressive Demon-rat Party, that ANY patriotic American is going to buy this bullshit??

Do ya'all REALLY believe that!??

Patriotic Americans are seeing live and in color how much GOOD PRESIDENT Trump, DOGE and Musk are doing in the here and now...

NO ONE with more than 2 brain cells to rub together is going to buy into this woke progressive Demon-rat bullshit.. Least of all American farmers..

Woke progressive Demon-rats have scroo'ed over too many Americans for far too long for them to buy into the woke progressive crap now... :eyeroll:

Tulsi Gabbard is now the US DNI!!! :D

Woke progressive Democrats prove once again how completely and utterly impotent they are!! :D

How do ya'all feel about being on the LOSING side over and over and over and over and over again?? :D

I would argue the reverse -

Of course you would argue the reverse..

But, as per usual, you would be wrong..

Your POF analogy is flawed on so many different levels.

PRESIDENT Trump is no John Gill by ANY wild hysterical stretch of the imagination..

Elon is extravagant totally overt, public and COMPLETELY transparent in EVERYTHING he does...

Melakon was covert and totally and completely behind the scenes and in the shadows..

Your analogy is completely and utterly WRONG at EVERY level..

Whereas the Gill/Melakon = Biden/Odumbo is a PERFECT POF analogy..

Biden is a vegetable and makes a PERFECT John Gill and Odumbo did ALL of the machinations so covertly and so obliquely that no one even GUESSED he is the puppetmaster.. Which makes Odumbo the PERFECT Melakon..

Gill/Melakon = Trump/Musk is laughable as a POF analogy and shows a basic ignorance of what Star Trek really is..

Gill/Melakon = Biden/Odumbo is a PERFECT POF analogy and shows a deep DEEP understanding of everything Trek..

Now, you can continue using your utterly flawed analogy just to be annoying, but everyone who really REALLY knows Trek knows that it is an utterly FALSE analogy and not worth the photons it's transmitted on..

Not the person working more than one poorly-paid job in a red state town--or even the teachers and health workers who may need SNAP to make ends meet because they are so poorly paid.

the great tragedy of it is how small-scale a dent it is in the federal budget, relative to how massive a hit it is to our country's global reputation, not to mention the thousands of children who will starve and/or get sick and perhaps even die as a direct result. taking action more quickly and broadly than necessary, without caring about the people who are hurt in the process, is the definition of cruelty.

cruelty: callous indifference to or pleasure in causing pain and suffering.
~OED

was there a good chunk of fat to trim there? definitely. with a little patience and expertise, every agency budget could be carefully pored over to find savings, and congress should welcome that process with open arms. in theory it's a GREAT idea.

but in his manic fit of revenge fantasy, mELakON is repeatedly taking a sledgehammer to a hangnail. there's only so many times one can do that before one has no toes left intact.

JL

What I believe the vast majority of Americans don't seem to understand is that regarding USAID, Trump and Musk are going gangbusters after a program that is less than 1% of the federal budget.

Obviously, the United States Constitution has no mechanism that allows any POTUS to unilaterally delete funding legislated by Congress. If it did, a President could just sign into law whatever bill he wished and then announce via Executive Order the immediate suspension of whatever parts of the legislation the President wished to "delete"... which amounts to a de facto line-item veto, deemed unconstitutional via SCOTUS.

The Constitution contains a provision that requires a POTUS to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed," but that clearly doesn't translate that the Executive Branch is free to unilaterally kill what has been legislated by Congress who holds the "power of the purse."

But this message doesn't just address farmers, it addresses those who live in areas where farm income drives the local service economy - where other people's incomes and lives depend on how the farmers are doing.

And I especially like the points about how the farm economy and its federal supports are anything but "waste, fraud, and abuse." Ditto the idea that perfectly good food is going to rot away thanks to Musk's decrees; and that the people who were dependent on that food is poor foreigners whom America was feeding as part of this country's traditionally beneficent foreign policy.

Will this take off? Will the Democrats find that cocky Democrat from a farm state to lead this protest? I have no idea. But it certainly seems to be worth trying - especially since this might be a way to break through the cognitive dissonance of the farm states having the higher percentage of loyal Trump voters.

Thanks for this.