Rick Tulsky
@ricktulsky.bsky.social
Author, Injustice Town, available now. John Grisham calls it "outrageous and unbelievable." The New Yorker calls it "comprehensive and sobering." I call it: Sad reality. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Injustice-Town/Rick-Tulsky/9798897100422
This is hard to get my head around: The people whom Vance identified committing 'fraud' were not people earning too much money to receive subsidies. They were people earning too little. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/22/h...
Trump Officials Eject 750,000 From Obamacare Markets, Claiming Fraud (Gift Article)
Vice President JD Vance said the measure would save the government $2.2 billion.
nytimes.com
I think there is a straight line to be drawn between disinterest in "Freedom Fest" and the need to tear down the Kennedy Center because of 'structural danger" once suddenly the people who would perform there were not the performers that people wanted to hear? newrepublic.com/post/215697/...
MAGA Festival With Kid Rock Canceled After No One Wanted to Go
The “Freedom Fest” is no longer happening after dismal ticket sales.
newrepublic.com
Heck, why investigate this when there is 'vote fraud by foreign citizens," or "people filing improperly for health insurance benefits" to explore? www.propublica.org/article/fbi-...
The FBI Anti-Corruption Squad Was Circling Susan Collins — Until Trump Got in the Way
After the FBI caught a defense contractor’s CEO making illegal campaign contributions, it sought to launch a sweeping political bribery probe involving Collins and others. Then the second Trump admini...
propublica.org
The new plan seems to be "Let's claim "fraud," and we can help destroy Obamacare even further." Heck, why should people who can't afford it get health care, anyway? www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Trump officials plan to cut hundreds of thousands from ACA, claiming fraud
Vance targeted ACA enrollment as part of a broader administration crackdown on suspected fraud.
washingtonpost.com
The Utah Supreme Court wouldn't give the Republican legislature the gerrymandering it wanted. So.....pack the courts.
Utah Legislature passes bill to expand Utah Supreme Court, add 5 more lower court judges • Utah News Dispatch
A bill to expand the Utah Supreme Court from five justices to seven has won final approval from the Utah Legislature.
utahnewsdispatch.com
The most transparent Pentagon ever. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
More U.S. troops have died amid Iran war than Pentagon has disclosed publicly
Officials who spoke with The Post expressed frustration that the additional loss of life in the Middle East is not reflected in the Defense Department’s casualty database.
washingtonpost.com
Inconceivable. www.chicagotribune.com/2026/09/14/p...
‘Princess Bride’ is becoming a Broadway musical, premiering in Chicago
A new Broadway musical version of “The Princess Bride” will premiere in Chicago next summer, lead producer Jeffrey Seller (“Hamilton”) told the Tribune on Sunday.
chicagotribune.com
“Vote for Republicans to make America healthy,” says fast food burger chain. Umm, I’m not sure Steak N Shake is my go-to for advice on health or politics. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
GOP Sen. Jon Husted wins an unusual endorsement — from Steak ’n Shake
The Midwestern fast food chain praised the Ohio Republican as a champion of the Trump administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” movement.
washingtonpost.com
Pete Hegseth's policies ("more testosterone will destroy Iran!") can't win popular support on their own, so it appears the Pentagon has given civilian posts to conservative veterans with social media followings to amplify his B.S. wapo.st/4iExvH4
Pentagon secretly installs military influencers in civilian roles
Conservative veterans with large social media followings have been hired by the Defense Department and are amplifying Pete Hegseth’s culture-war fights.
wapo.st
Hypocrisy alert Seeing @hcrichardson.bsky.social's piece (citing the Atlantic) on GOP lawmakers' plotting to restrict naturalized citizens from running for office, I have to ask: Does anybody remember when Orrin Hatch wanted to change the Constitution so Schwartzenegger could be president?
Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Once a country that boasted, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free," we're now denying due process to abused kids... www.chicagotribune.com/2026/08/26/c...
Immigration judges in Chicago deporting abused, neglected children in violation of their due process: attorneys
An immigration judge entered removal proceedings against some of the children, despite their attempts to seek a long-held legal protection to remain in safety in the United States due to abuse or negl...
chicagotribune.com
So we have until Trump tramples on the right to vote before anyone can stop him? www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
supremecourt.gov
Guess who is back...."Even though three federal district judges had overturned El Rukn convictions due to Hogan’s alleged misconduct, the administrative judge overruled his firing, saying the Justice Department failed to prove any wrongdoing on his part. Hogan’s story became one of redemption."
Prosecutor with colorful past back at center of controversy in US attorney’s office
Federal prosecutor William Hogan, who’d largely faded from public view, is once again the subject of controversy at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse.
chicagotribune.com
BREAKING: WASHINGTON (AP) - Editor of Stars and Stripes says he is being fired for insubordination after saying any censorship is a 'red line.'
What ever happened to Mr. Art of the Deal? www.nytimes.com/2026/08/21/w...
Canada-U.S. Trade War Escalates As Talks Collapse (Gift Article)
Intense negotiations to stave off new levies by the Trump administration ended in an impasse as Mark Carney suspended talks. U.S. tariffs on Canada, and retaliatory tariffs on the U.S., will come into...
nytimes.com
Here's how Darlene Graham recovered from her embarrasing admission of being "not that informed" on national security: "I think people in South Carolina are more worried about boys in girls’ sports” than about Taiwan and the threat from China. That seems even worse than her original error.
Darline Graham’s Debate Misstep Tests South Carolina’s Appetite for a Political Newcomer (Gift Article)
The South Carolina senator has argued that her lack of political experience is a strength as she runs to succeed her late brother, Lindsey Graham. But a debate misstep has rattled some of her supporte...
nytimes.com
The NYT reports on the fact that the government watchdogs have turned into lapdogs, while NPR has a terrific piece about how complaints filed by immigrants over mistreatment in the for-profit warehouses go nowhere. Thank God we have strong Congressional oversight to protect us, right? Right?
Trump Fired the Watchdogs. Their Replacements Have a Different Mission.
President Trump is installing his allies in the offices of inspector general, which are meant to provide independent government oversight.
nytimes.com
My God how is this an appropriate message from the White House Communications director? x.com/StevenCheung...
Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) on X
Jon Jackoff has to be the biggest cuck loser in politics. Instead of denigrating hard working people serving their country, Jon should look deep into his soul and ask himself why he's a miserable pers...
x.com
Tip to everyone reading this: Stop. Your time is probably better spent reading Kin by Tayari Jones. It's a book that I had to read so slowly, simply to savor the brilliance of so many passages. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/635411...
Kin: Oprah's Book Club by Tayari Jones: 9780525659181 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR SO FAR • OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK • A magnificent new novel from the bestselling, award-winning author of An American...
penguinrandomhouse.com
I'm not defending the act of painting "Clean Hands Dirty $$" on the WWII memorial. But I am struck by the contrast to those who defaced the Capitol and assaulted police, in some cases, not only being pardoned but in line to get cash rewards. apnews.com/article/wwii...
Suspect arrested in World War II Memorial vandalism in Washington, Pirro says
A suspect has been arrested and will be charged in connection with the vandalism of the World War II Memorial on the National Mall. Melissa L.
apnews.com
KC area people (and everyone)! Lamonte McIntyre spent 23 years in prison, wrongly convicted of a double murder. Imagine what it is like upon finally being cleared and released. Many people would never succeed. But Lamonte and another exoneree, Darryl Burton, created Miracle of Innocence (more)
And while we're on the subject of covert abuses, note the NYT question this week, about who are those "gringos" targeting the boats of Ecuadorian fisherman... www.nytimes.com/2026/08/12/w...
Ecuadorean Fishing Boats Hit by Mystery Attackers
Ecuadorean crews plying the waters of the Pacific have been targeted by a mysterious outfit equipped with drones. Some sailors appear to have lost their lives.
nytimes.com
Horrific: "[U.S.] officials used an array of invasive tactics during the first half of this year to gather information on many groups and individuals who were never accused of crimes, crossing the line that has traditionally stood between investigating criminal activity and political dissent."
U.S. Investigated Left-Leaning Groups During Minnesota Immigration Crackdown (Gift Article)
The government conducted expansive surveillance, infiltrated group chats and obtained financial records of organizations never accused of crimes.
nytimes.com
Just wondering: How many hungry people would this feed? www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/u...
Homeland Security Paid $464 Million for Airplanes. Then It Parked Them.
The agency used a no-bid contract to buy 10 used jets, saying they were urgently needed for deportation flights. But the fleet has largely sat idle for months.
nytimes.com
Shame on the schools that caved. And yay for Harvard. It's much the same as the lawfirms that stood up, versus those that caved. How do we respond to the bullying? www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/u...
Judge Dismisses Federal Government’s Antisemitism Case Against Harvard
The government argued the university had not done enough to combat antisemitism during campus protests. A judge called the incidents “isolated and episodic.”
nytimes.com
Can it be more blasphemous than for a man who does not believe in Allah to say "Praise be to Allah"? Why is this okay? I don't understand why this doesn't provoke more protest from religious people of all faiths.
Carl Quintanilla@carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 2mo ago
