trump is perfecting his tactic to stand above the law. He just goes ahead and does things even if told not to. Right now he's ignoring a court order to halt construction on his ballroom. Workers must be getting paid overtime, even, paid for by you and me. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/18/u...

Trump’s Ballroom Is Rising at Breakneck Speed: 20 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week (Gift Article)

Although the fate of the ballroom is tied up in court, the Trump administration argues that the project is too far along to be stopped now.

nytimes.com

New name for donald j trump... ...Decoy Boy (and it ain't cuz he's coy)

Democratic voters are finally beginning to see that Democratic Socialism does NOT mean "Total Socialism," nor "Communism." All it means is that a few selected aspects of socialism are experimented-with to see how they work. www.nytimes.com/live/2026/08...

Election Live Updates: Florida Chooses Donalds and Jolly as Nominees to Replace DeSantis as Governor (Gift Article)

State Representative Angie Nixon, a progressive firebrand, defeated Alex Vindman, who had far out-raised her. Byron Donalds, a Trump-backed congressman, will face David Jolly in the Florida governor’s...

nytimes.com

If Natalie Harp were ugly, any chance she'd be trump's new dance partner? My hypothesis is she's there because she feeds trump's ego and is his revenge for melania's refusal to have sex with him. He's a decrepit old fool trying to project an image of still being some kind of stud.

We are projected to spend $268 BILLION on deportations — costing the average American taxpayer about $2,358 (according to @epi.org). But somehow we “can’t afford” to make sure hungry children can eat or ensure everyone, no matter their income, can access healthcare. Priorities.

But the government doesn’t have enough money for school lunches or Medicare prescription subsidies. The United States values killing people in other countries over keeping people alive in our own.

👍Your point about the GOP strategy is especially relevant: a highly motivated base can outperform its overall share of the electorate if Democratic-leaning voters stay home. That’s particularly consequential in midterm elections, where turnout is substantially lower than in presidential elections.

www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Opinion | Trump’s Economic Record Doesn’t Come Close to His Campaign Promises (Gift Article)

The president likes to boast about the “greatest economy we’ve ever had.” His record falls far short.

nytimes.com

Google co-founder Sergey Brin has now pumped over $100M into stopping California's billionaire tax ballot initiative. So he and his fellow oligarchs can't afford a wealth tax, but they'll spend a fortune buying elections?

This deserves a meme. What would you say?

Why do about half the Posts on Bluesky come from about 5 people with gigantic numbers of Followers, but who follow only a tiny handful themselves?

Not shocked.....

🔵 Ukrainian defense forces struck a facility in Russia that produces fuel for "Uragan" and "Smerch" multiple rocket launchers. 🔵 Yuriy Pogrbiny has been appointed the new commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces' Logistics Command.

Good article on donald j trump's delusional foreign policy. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

Trump Is at Odds With His Own Administration—And With Reality

As the war with Iran drags on, the president is in disagreement with the vice president, military leaders, and long-standing American allies.

theatlantic.com

Russia is NOT a peaceful country

Christian Bale really said “Dictatorship for Dummies” and didn’t even blink. Maybe running a country should require relevant education and job experience…not a résumé featuring a felon, con man, and failed businessman. #USDemocracy #RisingBlue

I hope we all realize that, if donald j trump climbed inside a food cart & just stayed there until his term was up, we'd be happier & the world would be a safer place. Because the lack of a president is preferable to one who can't go a day without screwing something up.

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is appointing a cadre of hard-liners to his administration. One guess what that means for the future of "negotiations" with Iran, and the price of consumer goods. Thank you, donald j trump, for walking straight into this mess. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/17/w...

Iran’s Supreme Leader Signals Intention to Keep Country on a War Footing (Gift Article)

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointment of hard-line loyalists to top jobs suggests he is prepared to keep the country on a war footing and to quash domestic dissent.

nytimes.com

Who here thinks that donald j trump deserves being sent to work for the LeQuint Dickey Mining Company?

REMEMBER: They all knew.

I've never seen anything like this. The Trump admin just granted preliminary approval of a federal bank charter to the family's crypto firm World Liberty Financial. Remember: Trump raked in almost $800 million from WLF last year. No president has used their power to profit the way Trump has.

WTF? Get outta town! What nonsense be this twaddle??? thehill.com/homenews/adm...

The graphic on the right may be over the top for some. But the panel on the left truthfully--if unabashedly--describes exactly "Who is a MAGA?"

George@retiredsurgassist.bsky.social · 2d ago

I worked closely with many surgeons who were also MAGAts. That fact surprised and bothered me in equal proportions. How, I asked myself, could such highly educated professionals think tRump was qualified to be POTUS, especially after J6 yet they did. Selfishness, affinity for Fox network was common.

Why is it that donald j trump supporters always try to pose socialism as an "either-or" proposition, compared to capitalism? Democratic Socialism is about picking A FEW SELECTED ELEMENTS OF SOCIALISM -- not swallowing the entire thing hook, line, and sinker. Could it be because of taxing the rich?

Tell the truth in Putin's Russia? Lose your job. Kinda like what happens in the donald j trump administration. www.cnn.com/2026/08/17/e...

Top Russian economist replaced after warning of economic costs of Ukraine war | CNN

Andrey Klepach, one of Russia’s top economists, has been replaced as the chief economist of the country’s national development bank.

cnn.com

Many of you have never read Machiavelli's "The Prince." If not, you should, if only because it describes a manual for how royalty should rule. Machiavelli taught that it's best to be loved. But, if not, then one should be feared. Now, apply that to donald j trump... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pri...

The Prince - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Note this is only for post hospital care: www.startribune.com/report-finds...

Report finds high denial rates at UnitedHealth, two other Medicare Advantage plans

The nation’s largest for-profit Medicare Advantage insurers denied pre-approval requests for post-hospital care 51% to 80% of the time, the study says. The industry says the findings paint a flawed pi...

startribune.com

You've heard of "Build it and they will come." You've heard of "Fake it till you make it." Well, donald j trump's motto is "Lie until they believe it."

Senate Republicans launch network of fake news sites open.substack.com/pub/populari...

Senate Republicans launch network of fake news sites

One Nation, the Senate GOP's primary dark money group, is producing propaganda masquerading as journalism.

open.substack.com