I used to think that Putin had something big on the Dummy, but then I realized that he has no shame at all so it must be something else. Could it possibly be that Putin just flatters him? Could it be that simple? Regardless, if he pulls us out of NATO then this country is truly screwed.
I believe it is mostly psychological on Trump's part. He has a pre-existing hole in his ego that Putin, the Soviet brain-washing expert can fill. Trump is quite clearly what my grandparents used to call a "motherless child" or an "emotional cripple". It is sad to see another human in such psychological distress, but you can never, ever let someone as damaged as Trump anywhere near power.
What is truly disturbing is Trump relates to his followers in the exact same way. His most cult-like followers are using his attention to them as a salve for their unmet emotional needs. This danger should have been recognized and neutralized in 2015. Trump should have resoundingly lost the Republican primaries and never been heard from again. Or, he could have been impeached, or....
Anyway, we are being sucked into a dangerous vortex comprised of psychological and political forces. The longer stay in this political quicksand, the more powerful the pull into the authoritarian abyss is.
I will have to say it again. Of course Trump is a psychologically challenged individual who should never have been elected President. However, the Democrats have to bear some of the blame since because of their WOKE AGENDA, they did not give the American Public a viable alternative to Trump. Many people just did not vote, resulting in Trump acutally receiving a MINORITY of the eligible voters vote. This is similar to how Hitler got elected Chanceller of Germany, and we all know how that went. IT IS NOT ONLY THAT ELECTION MATTER. HOW WE ACTUALLY VOTE FOR ANY GIVEN CADIDATE ALSO MATTERS. WHY ARE WE FORGETTING THAT!!!!!
Yes. I think that is the elephant in the room. A viable, competent Democratic Party should have been able to make a ton of hay out of the terrible candidate run by the Republican Party. Instead of pumping up our candidate on the merits, the 'strategy' I saw over and over was to simply let Trump's flaws speak for themselves. Democrats thought they could lay back and let the voters just connect the dots for themselves without us giving them something positive to vote for.
And the truly enraging part is THEY ARE STILL DOING IT! Instead of barnstorming the country and the media that Republican voters actually consume with information undermining Trump and Republicans, they are telling us to just watch as voters turn on Trump without being prompted to do so.
And, meanwhile, just as he has always done, Trump is controlling the narrative and shaping public opinion to favor himself. I expect Republicans to do what Republicans do, but I am mighty disappointed in what Democrats are doing now.
And they have the nerve to keep asking us for money so they can pursue this "Do Nothing" strategy.
Yes the fact that Democrats did not speak up against Trump is a factor in their downfall. HOWEVER SO IS THEIR WOKE AGENDA. Again they have to concentrate on the basics, food, shelter, healthcare and education and not whin about transgender women being allowed to use women's restroom which I personally understand women's concerns since I am a woman.
Honestly Trans women who are really male, or not or whatever. GIVE ME A BREAK CHILDREN ARE DYING FROM A MEASLES OUTBREAK IN TEXAS, EVEN THOUGH A VACCINE FOR MEASLES WAS INVENTED YEARS AGO. THE PARENTS ARE NOT GIVING THEIR CHILDREN VACCINES WHICH IS CAUSES DEATH AND SERIOIUS INJURY.
Well we need to wonder how much of the Doge cuts is because Putin ordered the cuts to happen and they needed the money right away. Well there was a rule from 20 years ago called the Patriot Act and it was supposed to stop the very thing we are facing today aiding and abetting a terrorist like Putin.
We saw a lot of low information voters last fall and I'm seeing too much now. Too many people are just not paying attention. Too many are content to "wait and see." We don't have that luxury.
As far as Trump's motivation, it's becoming evident Putin has a lot of power over him. Have you ever seen Trump pull his dominant handshake on Putin? No. He would never do that to his boss.
Why don't we hear more about Impeachment? Why aren't the Lincoln Republicans and Democrats pulling together to persuade more Republicans to disavow Trump. His pro Russia/anti Ukraine/ anti Nato stance can't be popular with most of their constituents so what's the downside? Why the blind loyalty? Is there no integrity left? I feel like we are living in 1939 Nazi Germany or a 3rd World dictatorship where Racism & corruption are running rampant.
It seems that we have already abandoned NATO based on this administration’s words and actions. If a NATO member were attacked by Russia why should we be confident that the United States would honor its commitment to defend the attacked country against Putin?
I didn’t read all of Project 2025 (but know the basics - enough to be very concerned) so I am not aware if this part of it, but what’s the purpose of Trump and Musk totally dismantling the government? I know they want a white supremacist autocracy but there will be nothing left for Trump to rule over. Yes he wants his loyalists and suck ups so there’s no pushback or oversight, but is the intention to pretty much start from scratch, with a very few exceptions?
When I look at the goals of The Heritage Foundation, I don’t see weakening our security being remotely tied to them. Was partnering with Putin their intention all along? Could things be taking a bit of a turn with their unstable Trump puppet since an equally unstable Musk entered the picture?
I read somewhere that the people behind project 2025 like Peter Thiel and Russ Vought are letting Trump have some of his way or pet projects like buying Greenland and making Canada the 51st state. So Trump probably veered off and wanted to attack security as well. He hates America and wants retribution.
Thank you for writing about NATO. I was not a good student, but the importance of NATO was drilled into me and I never forgot the lesson. It is not hard to understand how much weaker this country becomes if America is separated from her allies.
Many of us feel there is nothing we can do, singly. Each of us is not an army: each of us is not a bank: each of us is not a country. But, for ‘each of us’ we can do something. And it could be a BIG and effective something for Ukraine.
As members of the DAR there is a way that we, as individuals and as a group can, affect the war in Ukraine.
We need only to look back at our Revolutionary War and how we fought for our freedom as a dominating country went to war against us.
Ukrainians need HOPE. And we, women can give that to them—as ‘DAR Partners’ in Ukraine. Ukrainians, especially women, can begin to write the history of their terrifying, bloody war. If the DAR connects with them they will feel hopeful. And they will learn how chapters can keep history alive. And maybe, it would affect their war in some small positive ways. We can help.
There are so MANY reasons to reach out to them. And Ukraine has very advanced communications systems. For those DAR women, who would like to be involved—it would not be difficult to ‘meet’ a Ukrainian counterpart via phone or computer.
They need help. They need hope.
Let’s figure out a way to set this up. Women save us time and time again. Let’s partner with Ukraine and their devastated women and send them hope. DAR is a model that could change the Ukraine dynamic.
Congress may bail. But we can offer to share what we know and how we can relate. And we can offer HOPE.
I don't put much stock in arguments claiming US provocation justifies Russian aggression. That said "the halt to offensive cyber operations" seems positive. Steps to deescalate are for the better. (But perhaps it's not wise to just be defensive with cybersecurity?). I understand this is probably trivial given how horrible the administration is and it's other more consequential decisions.
I used to think that Putin had something big on the Dummy, but then I realized that he has no shame at all so it must be something else. Could it possibly be that Putin just flatters him? Could it be that simple? Regardless, if he pulls us out of NATO then this country is truly screwed.
I believe it is mostly psychological on Trump's part. He has a pre-existing hole in his ego that Putin, the Soviet brain-washing expert can fill. Trump is quite clearly what my grandparents used to call a "motherless child" or an "emotional cripple". It is sad to see another human in such psychological distress, but you can never, ever let someone as damaged as Trump anywhere near power.
What is truly disturbing is Trump relates to his followers in the exact same way. His most cult-like followers are using his attention to them as a salve for their unmet emotional needs. This danger should have been recognized and neutralized in 2015. Trump should have resoundingly lost the Republican primaries and never been heard from again. Or, he could have been impeached, or....
Anyway, we are being sucked into a dangerous vortex comprised of psychological and political forces. The longer stay in this political quicksand, the more powerful the pull into the authoritarian abyss is.
The condensed version: We've elected the monkeys to run the zoo.
Trump is one sick puppy! And utterly evil to boot!
I will have to say it again. Of course Trump is a psychologically challenged individual who should never have been elected President. However, the Democrats have to bear some of the blame since because of their WOKE AGENDA, they did not give the American Public a viable alternative to Trump. Many people just did not vote, resulting in Trump acutally receiving a MINORITY of the eligible voters vote. This is similar to how Hitler got elected Chanceller of Germany, and we all know how that went. IT IS NOT ONLY THAT ELECTION MATTER. HOW WE ACTUALLY VOTE FOR ANY GIVEN CADIDATE ALSO MATTERS. WHY ARE WE FORGETTING THAT!!!!!
Yes. I think that is the elephant in the room. A viable, competent Democratic Party should have been able to make a ton of hay out of the terrible candidate run by the Republican Party. Instead of pumping up our candidate on the merits, the 'strategy' I saw over and over was to simply let Trump's flaws speak for themselves. Democrats thought they could lay back and let the voters just connect the dots for themselves without us giving them something positive to vote for.
And the truly enraging part is THEY ARE STILL DOING IT! Instead of barnstorming the country and the media that Republican voters actually consume with information undermining Trump and Republicans, they are telling us to just watch as voters turn on Trump without being prompted to do so.
And, meanwhile, just as he has always done, Trump is controlling the narrative and shaping public opinion to favor himself. I expect Republicans to do what Republicans do, but I am mighty disappointed in what Democrats are doing now.
And they have the nerve to keep asking us for money so they can pursue this "Do Nothing" strategy.
Yes the fact that Democrats did not speak up against Trump is a factor in their downfall. HOWEVER SO IS THEIR WOKE AGENDA. Again they have to concentrate on the basics, food, shelter, healthcare and education and not whin about transgender women being allowed to use women's restroom which I personally understand women's concerns since I am a woman.
Honestly Trans women who are really male, or not or whatever. GIVE ME A BREAK CHILDREN ARE DYING FROM A MEASLES OUTBREAK IN TEXAS, EVEN THOUGH A VACCINE FOR MEASLES WAS INVENTED YEARS AGO. THE PARENTS ARE NOT GIVING THEIR CHILDREN VACCINES WHICH IS CAUSES DEATH AND SERIOIUS INJURY.
I thought the same thing maybe a pee tape but he has no shame. Maybe Putin told him they can rule the world together
Russia told him to run in the 1980’s. Then he became indebted to the Russian mob when he was broke.
Well we need to wonder how much of the Doge cuts is because Putin ordered the cuts to happen and they needed the money right away. Well there was a rule from 20 years ago called the Patriot Act and it was supposed to stop the very thing we are facing today aiding and abetting a terrorist like Putin.
Thank you, Olivia, for telling the truth. You are a true patriot.
We saw a lot of low information voters last fall and I'm seeing too much now. Too many people are just not paying attention. Too many are content to "wait and see." We don't have that luxury.
As far as Trump's motivation, it's becoming evident Putin has a lot of power over him. Have you ever seen Trump pull his dominant handshake on Putin? No. He would never do that to his boss.
Why don't we hear more about Impeachment? Why aren't the Lincoln Republicans and Democrats pulling together to persuade more Republicans to disavow Trump. His pro Russia/anti Ukraine/ anti Nato stance can't be popular with most of their constituents so what's the downside? Why the blind loyalty? Is there no integrity left? I feel like we are living in 1939 Nazi Germany or a 3rd World dictatorship where Racism & corruption are running rampant.
It seems that we have already abandoned NATO based on this administration’s words and actions. If a NATO member were attacked by Russia why should we be confident that the United States would honor its commitment to defend the attacked country against Putin?
Furthermore threatening the sovereign territory of two NATO members (Canada and Denmark) runs counter to the notion of an alliance.
I didn’t read all of Project 2025 (but know the basics - enough to be very concerned) so I am not aware if this part of it, but what’s the purpose of Trump and Musk totally dismantling the government? I know they want a white supremacist autocracy but there will be nothing left for Trump to rule over. Yes he wants his loyalists and suck ups so there’s no pushback or oversight, but is the intention to pretty much start from scratch, with a very few exceptions?
When I look at the goals of The Heritage Foundation, I don’t see weakening our security being remotely tied to them. Was partnering with Putin their intention all along? Could things be taking a bit of a turn with their unstable Trump puppet since an equally unstable Musk entered the picture?
I read somewhere that the people behind project 2025 like Peter Thiel and Russ Vought are letting Trump have some of his way or pet projects like buying Greenland and making Canada the 51st state. So Trump probably veered off and wanted to attack security as well. He hates America and wants retribution.
Thank you for writing about NATO. I was not a good student, but the importance of NATO was drilled into me and I never forgot the lesson. It is not hard to understand how much weaker this country becomes if America is separated from her allies.
I believe the pumpkin must be stopped from leaving NATO, regardless of the price. That organization is ours - America’s - not his!
Correct me if I’m wrong but doesn’t it take a two thirds majority of the senate to do this?
Putin has been bankrolling trump since the 90s. Trump needs him, likes him, and is probably afraid of him.
Never ending nightmare
I am very concerned about the Ukraine situation.
Many of us feel there is nothing we can do, singly. Each of us is not an army: each of us is not a bank: each of us is not a country. But, for ‘each of us’ we can do something. And it could be a BIG and effective something for Ukraine.
As members of the DAR there is a way that we, as individuals and as a group can, affect the war in Ukraine.
We need only to look back at our Revolutionary War and how we fought for our freedom as a dominating country went to war against us.
Ukrainians need HOPE. And we, women can give that to them—as ‘DAR Partners’ in Ukraine. Ukrainians, especially women, can begin to write the history of their terrifying, bloody war. If the DAR connects with them they will feel hopeful. And they will learn how chapters can keep history alive. And maybe, it would affect their war in some small positive ways. We can help.
There are so MANY reasons to reach out to them. And Ukraine has very advanced communications systems. For those DAR women, who would like to be involved—it would not be difficult to ‘meet’ a Ukrainian counterpart via phone or computer.
They need help. They need hope.
Let’s figure out a way to set this up. Women save us time and time again. Let’s partner with Ukraine and their devastated women and send them hope. DAR is a model that could change the Ukraine dynamic.
Congress may bail. But we can offer to share what we know and how we can relate. And we can offer HOPE.
Robin
I don't put much stock in arguments claiming US provocation justifies Russian aggression. That said "the halt to offensive cyber operations" seems positive. Steps to deescalate are for the better. (But perhaps it's not wise to just be defensive with cybersecurity?). I understand this is probably trivial given how horrible the administration is and it's other more consequential decisions.