Trump’s selection criteria for his administration officials were spare. The qualifying exam appeared to consist of three questions:
(a) Did you vote for Trump?
(b) Will you do whatever he says, no matter how illegal or humiliating?
© Are you an internet troll? If not, do you work for Fox News?
In the aftermath of the killing of Charlie Kirk, we have witnessed the chaos that ensues when administration officials are selected based on their ability to type rapidly using only their thumbs. Those failing the “thumb test” could nonetheless secure a spot in the administration if they were blessed with a head of hair thick enough to earn a guest appearance on Fox & Friends.
Oh, how I wish the above were satire!
The rank amateurs who are running the Trump administration continue to demonstrate their unfitness for public service, much less the greater task of uniting America during a fraught time. Instead, they are using Kirk’s tragic death as a wedge to set Americans against one another—which is the revenue model of the internet.
On Monday, Vice President JD Vance took over Charlie Kirk’s podcast. During his stint as a substitute podcaster, the Vice President claimed that “left-wing extremism” is one reason that Kirk was killed by an assassin.
JD Vance then said,
This is not a both-sides problem. If both sides have a problem, one side has a much bigger and malignant problem, and that is the truth. . . . While our side of the aisle certainly has its crazies, it is a statistical fact that most of the lunatics in American politics today are proud members of the far left.
Of course, everything JD Vance said was wrong. No “group” is responsible for the actions of the assassin, Tyler Robinson. No one is (or should be) blaming members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because Robinson grew up in a devout Mormon household. No one is (or should be) blaming “MAGA” because (according to Tyler Robinson), his father was a “pretty diehard MAGA” follower. No one is (or should be) blaming the college he attended, the youth groups that nurtured him, or the internet gaming forums that were his online home. Nor should anyone be blaming so-called “leftists” because a young man rejected the politics of his father and independently decided to kill Charlie Kirk.
Moreover, to the extent that JD Vance was awkwardly attempting to assert that Democrats are more likely to celebrate political violence than are Republicans, we need look no further than Trump’s first day in office, when he issued a mass pardon of those Americans who staged the first violent assault on Congress in an effort to prevent the peaceful transfer of power. Compounding the celebration inherent in the pardons, Trump released an a cappella rendition of the Star Spangled Banner accompanied by a choir of felons convicted for assaulting the Capitol!
In truth, JD Vance was (falsely) implying that “leftists” are more frequently responsible for domestic terrorism and political violence than “right-wing” groups.
Unfortunately for JD Vance, a study posted on the DOJ website concluded that domestic terrorists are most often “right-wing,” nationalistic, white supremacist groups. See NIJ Journal (June 2024), What National Institute of Justice Research Tells Us About Domestic Terrorism.
The DOJ removed the NIJ article shortly after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, presumably because it contradicted Trump’s narrative that blamed “leftist lunatics” for political violence.
Per the NIJ article,
Militant, nationalistic, white supremacist, violent extremism has increased in the United States. In fact, the number of far-right attacks continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism. . . .
Since 1990, far-right extremists have committed far more ideologically motivated homicides than far-left or radical Islamist extremists, including 227 events that took more than 520 lives.
In this same period, far-left extremists committed 42 ideologically motivated attacks that took 78 lives.
No one should take comfort from the fact that the US suffers from political violence from “both sides” of the political spectrum. But if Trump and Vance are going to lie about “which side” of the political spectrum is responsible for the most politically motivated violence, the facts show that it is not a close question: Political violence is five times more likely to be motivated by right-wing ideology than “left-wing” ideology.
In their rush to exploit Charlie Kirk’s death, Republicans are resorting to troll attacks—nonsensical, emotion-driven, fact-free arguments that replace serious policy discussions on the internet.
Attorney General Pam Bondi used the occasion of Kirk’s death to suggest that the DOJ would crack down on “hate speech”—something that the far right has asserted enjoys the absolute protection of the First Amendment.
In her exuberance to target “liberals” who were allegedly “celebrating” Kirk’s death, Bondi said,
There’s free speech, and then there’s hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie in our society. We will absolutely target you, go after you, if you are targeting anyone with hate speech, anything, and that’s across the aisle.
The backlash from MAGA world against Bondi was swift and brutal. Right-wing groups have fought for decades (and succeeded) in convincing the Supreme Court that “hate speech” is protected by the First Amendment. See The New Republic, Pam Bondi Draws MAGA Outrage After “Hate Speech” Remark.
Per The New Republic, conservative commentator Matt Walsh said,
“We don’t need Pam Bondi swooping in to throw the entire conversation off the rails by completely missing our point. . . . having a ‘hate speech’ crackdown in the name of Charlie Kirk—a man who absolutely rejected ‘hate speech’ laws—is especially grotesque.”
Other right-wing commentators called for Bondi’s resignation:
Right-wing commentator Savannah Hernandez called Bondi’s sentiment “destructive,” adding, “She needs to be removed as attorney general now.” Talk show host Dave Rubin similarly called for Bondi’s “immediate resignation,” describing her statement as an “unbelievably bad take.”
In other words, the administration’s double standard in trying to silence “liberals” is so hypocritical that leading voices in the MAGA movement are aghast.
But the most inept, troll-like performance of the day was by so-called “FBI Director” Kash Patel. It is universally accepted that the FBI under Patel’s leadership botched the investigation into Charlie Kirk’s assassination. See Fox News, Kash Patel’s false start on Charlie Kirk killer draws scrutiny, but FBI nabbed suspect in the end.
Even Fox’s criticism of Patel contains a misstatement. The FBI did not “nab” Tyler Robinson. He turned himself in after his family realized he was the killer. See The Daily Beast, Tyler Robinson’s Family ID’d Kirk Suspect After Spotting Him in the News. (“[Robinson’s family,] along with a family friend . . . convinced Robinson to turn himself in.”)
When Fox News (which hates the FBI) is forced to lie to cover up the FBI’s failures, you know things are going badly for the agency.
Patel appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee and engaged in combative testimony that was, at best, evasive and, at worst, the most deceitful, shameful testimony by an FBI Director to the US Senate in the history of the FBI (and that includes J. Edgar Hoover’s testimony in support of McCarthy’s purge of Hollywood!).
See the following exchange with Senator Adam Schiff, who repeatedly tried to get Patel to answer whether any FBI agent was terminated because they were assigned to work on the Mar-a-Lago search warrant case or the January 6 investigation: ABC News, Kash Patel and Adam Schiff spar at Senate oversight hearing.
The exchange between Senator Schiff and Patel ended with Patel claiming that Senator Schiff was a “buffoon” and a “*fraud”—*which is how Patel ends most of his arguments on Twitter, i.e., ad hominem attacks on the person he is debating.
Once a troll, always a troll.
The hopeful news is that the whisper campaign to replace Patel as FBI Director has already begun. Indeed, Trump has already installed Patel’s replacement as the second-in-command at the FBI. See The Independent, Kash Patel on thin ice as FBI director after Trump taps new ‘co-deputy’ amid Charlie Kirk case criticism: report.
Firing Kash Patel cannot happen soon enough. He has a second appearance before Congress on Wednesday, September 17, 2025.
Trump and Pam Bondi violate the congressional statute requiring sale of TikTok
Back in the days when Republicans cared about national security (January of this year), they helped to pass a bipartisan bill requiring the parent company of TikTok to sell the popular social media platform to a third party.
TikTok’s parent is a Chinese corporation that is required by law to share information about TikTok’s users with the Chinese government. For obvious reasons, Congress saw the information sharing about hundreds of millions of Americans as a national security threat. See, e.g., ABC News, March 20, 2024, Senate mulls TikTok ban amid US national security concerns.
Congress required the forced divestiture of TikTok within a prescribed period of time. The bill imposed significant sanctions against US companies that continued to host TikTok after the sale deadline—which was originally January 19, 2025. The statute permitted the president to extend the deadline once if a sale was imminent. See USA Today, Trump postpones TikTok ban deadline for fourth time amid talks of sale.
Trump has completely ignored the statutory deadlines set by Congress. He has extended the congressional deadline multiple times by executive order—which is a nonsensical outcome. Executive orders do not carry the force of law and cannot override statutes passed by Congress.
But even if Trump ignored the law, why would US companies risk the severe sanctions under the statute for disregarding the congressional prohibition?
The not-so-sharp Attorney General Pam Bondi asserted the ‘plenary” right to “settle” claims held by the US against social media companies, releasing them from statutory sanctions.
While it is true that the Attorney General can settle cases with putative defendants, she cannot do so in a way that contravenes US law. “Settling” cases on a sham basis to circumvent a federal statute that Trump doesn’t like violates the constitutional separation of powers.
Bondi can’t “change” the TikTok ban simply by waiving the claims under the statute. Her job—and the president’s job—is to faithfully execute the law passed by Congress.
I am taking the time to explain the bad faith stratagems of Trump and Bondi to make this simple point: Trump simply disregards statutes he doesn’t like, and no one says anything. Not Congress. Not the media. Not the Supreme Court.
Trump disregards congressional mandates so consistently and persistently that it is simply accepted as a new presidential power.
And, with that background, Trump announced on Tuesday that he was postponing the TikTok ban for a fourth time because of another alleged “imminent” sale. See USA Today, Trump postpones TikTok ban deadline for fourth time amid talks of sale.
Did I mention that Trump does not have the power to extend the congressional deadline more than once for the sale of TikTok?
Opportunities for reader engagement
Join “We the Seniors” for a day of action on Wednesday, September 17
We, the Seniors, in conjunction with 5Calls, are urging everyone to call their senators and representatives on Wednesday, September 17, in support of the Fight for Science rally in Washington, DC.
Please tell your representatives to vote to impeach Robert Kennedy Jr and replace him with someone who actually knows something about science!
Find more information and a script by using this 5Calls link to make your calls.
A reader from New Jersey writes:
I wanted to let you know that we are having a Hands Across New Jersey event on September 17th, which is Constitution and Citizenship Day in New Jersey.
The event will take place from Fort Lee to Washington Crossing. We are forming a living chain to resist authoritarianism and to stand up for civil liberties and the rule of law.
If any of your subscribers would like to participate, they can reqeuest information at handsacrossNJ@gmail.com
Concluding Thoughts
The government-sponsored effort to “cancel” the free speech rights of Democrats will soon subside. The news will shift to the deadline for Republicans to pass twelve spending bills—October 1, 2025. To date, Republicans have passed NONE of the bills required to prevent a partial government shutdown.
A partial government shutdown sounds bad, and it is. However, all mandatory spending remains (approximately 70% of the federal budget), including Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. And every agency is permitted to designate certain employees and functions as “essential.” Therefore, even the remaining 30% of the government, subject to a shutdown, does not shut down entirely.
However, a partial shutdown will inflict hardship on government employees and tens of millions of Americans who rely on the government’s regular functioning to maintain their businesses, health, and safety.
But it is the obligation of Republicans, as the governing party, to propose bills (or a continuing resolution) that will pass through Congress. If they can’t do so, that is on them. Compromise is part of governing—something Republicans have abandoned under Trump.
Democrats must stand firm. Trump is governing in a lawless manner. Democrats should not assist or reward him for doing so.
Stay strong, everyone!
Daily Dose of Perspective
Jill and I needed a break on Saturday. We went to see Spinal Tap II. If you know, you know. Our review is here: Spinal Tap II: The End Continues An Expert Review
Protest and pro-democracy rally photos from readers:
Los Angeles, CA; event by Civic Sundays, on the 2 Fwy.
Below, Damariscotta, Maine, on Labor Day. (Photo touched up by me to remove distracting telephone wires.)
New York on Labor Day, Writers Guild of America in front of Trump Tower:
Below, Evanston, Illinois.
At the end of 2024, there were daily reports of mysterious drones flying over New Jersey. The reports reached a fever pitch, causing near panic for several days. In the end, the mysterious drones turned out to be drones that are widely available at retailers and online sellers. Who knew?
Below, the constellation known as the Pleiades, definitely not drones.
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