Trump's Most Dangerous Bleat?
Plus CBS prepares to cave; Trump threatens ABC (again)
Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis reminds us that amid all the sturm und drang, malice, and vitriol of our politics, there are real people; fragile and mortal human beings who share our common fate. Whatever our politics, we can only hope for the best for Joe and his family.
But as we start what will inevitably be another deplorable week, there is also some good news. It comes from — of all places — Romania.
In a setback for Europe’s surging nationalist forces, Nicusor Dan, a centrist mayor and former mathematics professor, on Sunday won the presidential election in Romania, defeating a hard-right candidate who is aligned with President Trump and has opposed military aid to Ukraine.
With more than 98 percent of ballots counted, preliminary official results gave 54 percent of the vote in the presidential runoff to Mr. Dan, 55, the mayor of Romania’s capital, Bucharest. His opponent, George Simion, a nationalist and fervent admirer of Mr. Trump who had been widely seen as the front-runner, drew only 46 percent.
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And, the new pope seems anxious to send a message of his own:
Meanwhile, back home, pour one out for Elon Musk. Politico reports:
“He’s finished, done, gone. He polls terrible. People hate him,” said a GOP operative who was granted anonymity to speak frankly. “He’d go to Wisconsin thinking he can buy people’s votes, wear the cheese hat, act like a 9-year-old. ... It doesn’t work. It’s offensive to people.”
Happy Monday.
Maybe we should take him seriously. And literally.
The contest for Trump’s “Most Dangerous” [fill in the blank] is admittedly stiff. But I suggest we not lose sight of the way he is edging toward delegitimizing and defying the Supreme Court — and, ultimately, the idea of the rule of law.
Over the weekend, you might have missed this particular story from The Independent:
Perhaps attention should be paid when the president of the United States attacks the nation’s highest court this way — and threatens to release “terrorists” near the homes of Supreme Court justices.
President Donald Trump endorsed the idea that the United States Supreme Court had placed an “illegal injunction” on him by temporarily blocking his administration’s ability to deport Venezuelans, accused of being gang members, without due process, while litigation on the matter plays out in lower courts.
On Truth Social on Saturday, Trump reposted two posts made by attorney Mike Davis, a close Trump ally and the founder of the Article III project, calling the court’s recent decision “illegal” and claiming it was “heading down a perilous path” by not allowing Trump to continue a constitutionally questionable action.
"The Supreme Court still has an illegal injunction on the President of the United States, preventing him from commanding military operations to expel these foreign terrorists," Davis wrote. "The President should house these terrorists near the Chevy Chase Country Club, with daytime release."
Chevy Chase Club is "an elite country club that counts Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. among its members," the Washington Post reports.
Trump "re-Truthed" that remark on Saturday.
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Who is this Mike Davis? This guy: “Trump AG hopeful says he wants to drag Democrats’ ‘political dead bodies through the streets and burn them’” | The Independent
This is the guy the president of the United states reposted this weekend. Think about that.
Hey, ABC, nice network you got there…
You will recall that ABC sought safety by caving into Trump even before he took office and agreeing to settle a bogus libel suit. How’s that working out for them?
Trump threatens ABC News over Qatar jet coverage
President Trump is threatening ABC News over its coverage of a luxury jet he is set to receive from Qatar, a decision that is drawing criticism from both congressional leaders and national security experts.
“Why doesn’t Chairman Bob Iger do something about ABC Fake News,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Saturday, name checking the Disney CEO, who presides over the broadcast news network.
The president referenced a multimillion-dollar settlement the network paid him late last year over comments made by George Stephanopoulos in which the “This Week” anchor falsely said Trump had been convicted of sexual assault. The company retracted and apologized for the remarks.
“Now I see they are at it again, and I again give these SleazeBags fair warning,” Trump wrote in his weekend post. “The wonderful country of Qatar, after agreeing to invest more than 1.4 Trillion Dollars in the United States of America, deserves much better than Misleading (Fake!) News. Everyone, including their lawyers, has been told that ABC must not say that Qatar is giving ME a FREE Boeing 747 Airplane, because they are not.”
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Exit take: Paramount/CBS is also apparently about to bend the knee: “CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon Resigns: 'The Company and I Do Not Agree on the Path Forward'.”
So, Paramount will gets its merger, but the apparent decision to settle Trump’s bogus libel suit has already cost the network (1) the executive producer of ‘60 Minutes’, who resigned, (2) its CEO, who quit today, (3) its legacy as a serious news organization, which Paramount CEO Shari Redstone apparently thought was simply collateral damage.
Flashback:
BONUS: Wanna-be autocrat says what?
President Donald Trump has called for a “major investigation” into Bruce Springsteen night after the rock legend delivered a scathing critique of the president during his UK tour.
In a Truth Social post late Sunday night, Trump accused Springsteen of having been paid by former Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris for a campaign performance and endorsement – without offering any evidence.
Exit take: Since Trump has fully weaponized the Department of Justice, we can’t shrug this off as simply “trolling", can we?
Monday dogs
Auggie in the evening.
Eli and the angel who watches over all of us.
"Whatever our politics, we can only hope for the best for Joe and his family."
Thank you for spelling this out, Charlie. One would think one wouldn't have to, but those were the before-times, now weren't they? Common humanity is one of many things that bind us together in this community you've created for us, so yet again, thank you!
Yet Jim Comey’s photo of seashells is “threatening”? You guys, this is why I’m working with a EU immigration attorney and am leaving.