DCUM Weblog

I am going to keep hammering on the fact that cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump is cognitively impaired. I know that former President Joe Biden struggled with his own cognitive challenges, and there has since been considerable focus on an alleged cover-up of his issues. But whatever happened or did not happen with Biden in no way justifies ignoring Trump's clear mental deterioration. Simply put, Trump's cognitive impairment is leading to policies that reflect that impairment. I am not talking about simple policy disagreements such as different positions regarding tax brackets. Rather, I am referring to policies that are based on the irrational thinking of a man whose brain no longer functions as it should. Not surprisingly, such policies have poor outcomes. Today, I will focus on Trump's energy policy, specifically with regard to renewable energy, and how that policy is largely grounded in Trump's bizarre hatred of windmills.

One of the biggest challenges I have faced when writing about current Republican politics is how to tell the truth about what Republicans are doing without sounding crazy. Cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump routinely makes insane statements which are generally ignored by the media and brushed off as jokes by his supporters. Even Trump opponents will adamantly argue that discussing such statements is falling for Trump's attempt to distract from more important issues. So, the level of crazy that is routine for this administration may not be widely known. Prior to last November's election, the DCUM Political Discussion forum was full of posts by an individual who was fixated on Project 2025. Frankly, the poster generally sounded in need of mental health assistance. Now, I am forced to acknowledge that poster had the most accurate predictions of anyone. The dilemma that I face is how to provide necessary commentary on what is factually true without ending up like that poster and sounding like a raving lunatic. The simple truth is that accurate reporting on today's Republican politics sounds insane and makes the messenger appear crazy. Today I am going to step directly into this predicament and address increasing signs that Republicans see women as second-class citizens.

As I suggested would be the case yesterday, today I am going to discuss the actions of cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump with regard to the District of Columbia. I have been unsure about whether I should stick to a simple play-by-play about what Trump is doing or provide my own commentary about his actions. Ultimately, I decided to do a bit of both, while still attempting to keep this post at a reasonable length. The bottom line from my perspective is that it is far too early to understand the importance of Trump's actions. Yesterday's moves by Trump could turn out to be a brief flash in the pan or they might end up being extremely consequential. In the parlance of election results, it is too early to call.

By way of background, while I am not a D.C.-native, I have lived in the District for nearly 40 years and long considered it home. So, I am not writing as an outsider, but rather as someone who will probably be personally affected by Trump's actions. This, of course, informs my perspective.

I had a long list of topics about which I wanted to write today, including the actions of cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump involving the District of Columbia. I will probably address that tomorrow when we have more details following his planned press conference today. But, in the meantime, I am again compelled to use my very small platform to address what is happening in Gaza, specifically, the Israeli murder of five Al Jazeera journalists and a sixth freelance journalist. It would be naive to believe that Israel will suffer even the slightest repercussions for its wanton killing of journalists, and certainly my meager words of protest will have no impact, but, nevertheless, I think it is important to draw attention to this latest outrage.

The names of those killed yesterday will soon be forgotten by most of the world. But I want to give them one last moment of recognition. The primary target of the Israeli attack appears to have been Anas Al-Sharif, one of the leading reporters still remaining in Gaza. A second reporter, Mohammed Qreiqeh, was also killed. The victims included three Al Jazeera cameramen, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa. Mohammad al-Khaldi, a freelance reporter, was the final victim. The facts of the murders are not really in dispute. Israel struck a tent at the Al Shifa medical complex in Gaza City in which journalists were sheltering. Far from denying the attack, Israel proudly took credit for it.

Today we will ponder the question, "How much trouble can a Congressman get into and still remain a Congressman?" Spoiler alert: If you are a Republican and represent the 7th District of Florida, the answer appears to be "unlimited." At least that seems to be the case with Representative Cory Mills, who may or may not have 99 problems, but women make up quite a few of them. Or, more accurately, Mills is the problem where a number of women are concerned.

If you were casting for the evil character in a political drama, you could hardly do better than Cory Mills. Mills served four years in the Army, including a stint in Iraq during which he received a Bronze Star. However, there have been allegations of stolen valor made against Mills and soldiers involved in the events that led to his award deny Mills' account of what happened. After leaving the military, Mills became an international arms dealer. One of his weapons deals was a $228 million arms sale to the government of Iraq. However, his company, PACM, soon ran into financial problems and has been plagued with large debts that the company has been unable to service. Mills' company has also supplied less-lethal munitions to domestic law enforcement agencies, and Mills has bragged that he supplied tear gas that was used against Black Lives Matter protesters.

The battle between the administration of cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump and Harvard University is shaping up to be more fit for a dramatic novel than an example of the proper implementation of government policies. Events also raise the age-old question involving the Trump administration about whether officials are acting due to malice or incompetence. Of course, with this administration, the answer could easily be "both." Regardless, in the dispute between the Trump administration and Harvard regarding antisemitism, Trump officials appear to have engaged in repeated episodes of shooting themselves in the foot, which have undermined potential settlements with Harvard and pushed the university towards fighting the administration in court.

Soon after taking office for his second term, Trump issued a series of executive actions, some of which dealt with combating antisemitism on college campuses. For the record, anyone who believes that this administration is authentically committed to fighting antisemitism must be seriously deluded. As I have previously documented, Trump has appointed a number of notorious antisemites to positions within his government. Trump himself recently engaged in the antisemitic trope of referring to unscrupulous bankers as "Shylocks." Nevertheless, the specter of challenging antisemitism has provided the Trump administration with a convenient cudgel with which to beat universities into submission. Based on allegations of antisemitism on college campuses, Trump has frozen billions of dollars worth of federal grants that had been committed to colleges and universities. Then, the administration has attempted to negotiate onerous terms with schools in order to reinstate the funding. Trump has so far concluded settlements with Columbia University, Brown University, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Just about everyone now agrees that former President Joe Biden suffered disqualifying cognitive decline as President. Cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump has actually demanded an investigation into an alleged coverup of Biden's mental and physical health. However, there is ample evidence that Trump himself is suffering an equally-serious loss of cognitive abilities. However, the situation with Trump may be far more dangerous for our country than it was with Biden. The argument that Trump and his MAGA supporters make about the Biden Administration is that unelected staff members ruled in place of a cognitively-disabled Biden, thereby exercising unconstitutional powers. In the case of Trump, staff members are continuing to follow his instructions despite clear indications that he lacks the mental ability for the position. During the Biden administration, regardless of who was calling the shots — and, to be clear, I believe it was Biden — we had stable leadership and responsible decision-making. Now we are being led by a mad king, and his entourage is either unable or unwilling to acknowledge reality. As a result, we are going through inconsistent, unstable, and often senseless decision-making that changes daily depending on the President's whims. 

Yesterday I wrote about shifting attitudes towards Israel among Democrats. A similar change of opinion is occurring among Republicans. In both parties, the shift in support has been most noticeable among the young and the grassroots. However, whereas elected Democratic officials are themselves starting to reflect the changing landscape, Republican officials are mostly continuing to stand strongly by Israel. A key factor among Republicans is the role played by cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump. For the most part, Trump has been providing complete support to Israel — even going to war twice on the country's behalf. Republicans, who tend to unquestionably adopt Trump's positions, have therefore had little reason to deviate from their pro-Israel stances. However, two factors are causing dissension among some Republicans: the isolationist trend among many party members and the role of Christianity.

It has long been believed that support for Israel was near universal among elected officials in the United States, especially in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Every once in a while, a brave — or depending on your perspective, stupid — soul would step out of line, and Israel's supporters would quickly make an example of the individual by soundly defeating him. Back in 1984, Senator Charles Percy, the powerful chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was defeated when the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) turned against him due to his support for selling AWACs aircraft to Saudi Arabia. Last year, AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups were able to defeat Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush in their respective primary elections. Former Vice President Kamala Harris was so reluctant to allow even the slightest light between her position and that of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that she arguably crippled her presidential election opportunity. It is therefore remarkable that yesterday a majority of Democratic Senators voted in favor of blocking arms sales to Israel. The tide is clearly turning with regard to Israel's support among Democrats.

One irony to which liberals may not be sensitive is that it is hard out there for most MAGA officials. Try as they might, few politicians can replicate the qualities of cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump. They are faced with a MAGA base that values insanity, forcing MAGA politicians to constantly attempt to one-up each other in craziness in order to get attention. In a world in which Republicans are accusing Democrats of controlling the weather and intentionally creating storms in Republican areas, claiming that Haitian migrants are eating pets, and arguing that Ghislaine Maxwell is actually a victim of the Jeffrey Epstein affair, it is almost impossible to stand out as uniquely crazy. But one politician who has managed this task is also one of the newest kids on the block, Randy Fine.