NOTES FROM THE POLITICAL STAGE

What do the Mexican cartel and the Insurrection Act of 1807 have to do with each other? Seemingly nothing. Leave it up to the buffoonery within the Trump Administration to find a way to link the two in the most outrageous way possible.

The tragic attacks by the Islamic terrorist group, Al Qaeda, on September 11, 2001 felt unimaginable to most Americans. Not since Pearl Harbor, in which 2,403 U.S. personnel and 68 civilians perished, had our country experienced such a deadly attack on its own soil. Once the smoke and dust cleared at the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and rural Shanksville, Pennsylvania, nearly 3,000 Americans were dead.

In George Orwell's dystopian novel, 1984, the government rewrites books and alters the past to maintain control over its citizens. By continuously changing historical records, The Party ensures that it is always seen as infallible and all powerful. This manipulation of history eliminates all evidence of dissent or failure and creates a reality in which The Party is never wrong. 

Yesterday, Jeffery Goldberg of The Atlantic reported that “The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans.” Inexplicably, the journalist was included in a Department of Defense group text entitled “Houthi PC small group.” Considering the stunning news that Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, and other top officials at the Department of Defense had included the journalist in the classified text chain, I could go on and on about this unprecedented and potentially catastrophic security lapse.

Donald Trump is currently following through with his campaign promise to deport those here in the United States illegally. According to data, in February, his first full month in office, President Trump deported around 11,000 migrants. It’s not so much the deportations themselves that are so troubling. It’s the way in which Trump’s carrying out the deportations, and who he’s deporting, that’s most alarming.

While holding an Oval Office press conference with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, President Trump and Vice President Vance launched into a stunning tirade, accusing the Ukrainian president of being ungrateful. The meeting came to a head when Trump told Zelensky to “make a deal or we’re out.”

Today Joseph Robinette Biden ends a 55-year career in American politics that started at the county level and ended in the Oval Office. Today also marks the return of Donald Trump to the White House after a four-year hiatus that began with an insurrection and ended with him earning the moniker “Felon.”

It’s been a while. Life‘s kept me busy and I haven’t had time to write. But with the most important election of our lifetime less than two weeks away, I can’t help but wonder:

Despite everything we know about Donald Trump, why would someone STILL vote for him? I’m struggling to understand.

I’m struggling to understand how anyone can vote for a person who cares so little about our country and its citizenry, while caring only for himself and what he might gain from the presidency.

It seems we Americans have an inherent need to be outraged. Add to that a splash of self-righteousness and you have the makings of a wicked cocktail. This past Friday, that cocktail managed to inebriate millions of Americans, surely leaving them with a hangover that will linger well into Monday.

Up until very recently, most Americans did not know who The Heritage Foundation was, and were similarly, unaware of their signature initiative, Project 2025. Fortunately, Americans are waking up to the horrifying implications of the project’s goals and just this month, Google searches of “Project 2025” have overtaken those of Taylor Swift and the NFL. This must certainly outrage conservatives who waged an outright war on Taylor Swift this past NFL season. 

“Same day voting and paper ballots only!”

This has been a common Republican refrain since the 2020 presidential election. The claims that the election was stolen from Donald Trump, the result of massive voter fraud, have been thoroughly disproven. Yet, Republicans are doubling down, with continued calls for a return to the antiquated form of voting that takes place only in person and only using paper ballots. Is it because Republican’s genuinely believe mail-in ballots and voting machines are significantly prone to fraud, or is there a more nefarious motivation behind their demands for same day voting and traditional paper ballots? 

Since President Joe Biden took office, U.S. inflation has been a familiar refrain and a reliable talking point for his opponents. As the country and world emerged from a once in a lifetime pandemic, prices began to skyrocket as the supply chain was unable to keep up with demand. This spike in inflation was not unique to the United States. Countries around the world saw marked inflation. In fact, Turkey suffered a staggering rate of 54.8%, the highest in the world.