Concerned yet?

From an article on Yahoo that's talking about how he's making sure there's no paper trail: "One Bannon quote making the rounds this weekend: 'Lenin wanted to destroy the state, and that’s my goal, too. I want to bring everything crashing down and destroy all of today’s establishment.'” Yep, that's the President's Chief Strategist, strategizing about how to destroy our country. This might be a problem.

Surprise!

Rodrigo Duterte is who we thought he was:  A murderous thug, bent on the destruction of his own people.

Are we on the same path?

Muslim ban fact check

From Alicia a. Caldwell, Associated Press:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In the face of widespread criticism, President Donald Trump and other member of his administration have staunchly defended his order temporarily banning refugees and nearly all citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries. But in a statement Sunday, tweets Monday and comments Tuesday, Trump and others misstated the facts or offered contradictory statements multiple times.

What Trump and others said and how it compares with the facts:

___

SEAN SPICER: "Well, first of all, it's not a travel ban," the White House spokesman said during his daily briefing Tuesday when asked about Trump's executive order halting travel to the U.S. for people from seven majority Muslim countries.

JOHN KELLY: "This is not a travel ban; this is a temporary pause that allows us to better review the existing refugee and visa-vetting system," the Homeland Security secretary told reporters Tuesday.

THE FACTS: That's not what their boss said Monday. Trump defended the order and its immediate implementation in a tweet by saying: "If the ban were announced with a one week notice, the 'bad' would rush into our country during that week. A lot of bad 'dudes' out there!"

Spicer also called it a ban Monday at George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs, saying "the ban deals with seven countries that the Obama administration had previously identified as needing further travel restrictions."

___

TRUMP: In a White House statement Sunday, he said, "My policy is similar to what President (Barack) Obama did in 2011 when he banned visas for refugees from Iraq for six months."

THE FACTS: That's not exactly what happened. According to State Department data, 9,388 Iraqi refugees were admitted to the United States during the 2011 budget year. The data also show that Iraqi refugees were admitted every month during the 2011 calendar year.

The Obama administration did slow processing for Iraqi nationals seeking refuge in the U.S. under the government's Special Immigrant Visa program for translators and interpreters who worked with American troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. That happened after two Iraqi nationals were arrested on terrorism-related charges. But that year, 618 Iraqis were allowed to enter the U.S. with that special visa.

Government data show that during the 2011 budget year, more than 7,800 Iraqis were allowed into the United States on non-immigrant visas, including tourists.

___

TRUMP: In the same statement, he said, "The seven countries named in the Executive Order are the same countries previously identified by the Obama administration as sources of terror."

THE FACTS: That is misleading. The Republican-led Congress in 2015 voted to require visas and additional security checks for foreign citizens who normally wouldn't need visas — such as those from Britain — if they had visited the seven countries: Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. This was included in a large spending bill passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by Obama.

As the law was enacted, the Obama administration announced that journalists, aid workers and others who traveled to the listed countries for official work could apply for exemptions. There were no special U.S. travel restrictions on citizens of those seven countries.

___

TRUMP, also in Sunday's statement: "To be clear, this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting. This is not about religion — this is about terror and keeping our country safe. There are over 40 different countries worldwide that are majority Muslim that are not affected by this order."

THE FACTS: Trump is right that there are many majority-Muslim countries that have not been included in the travel ban. But he's also being misleading. The executive order signed Friday does not specifically say Muslims can't visit the U.S., but it does create a temporary total travel ban for citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries. It also indefinitely bans Syrians.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani recently told Fox News that Trump had asked him to create a plan for a Muslim ban that would meet legal tests. Giuliani said he ultimately made recommendations that focused on security and what countries posed security threats.

___

TRUMP: The president also tweeted: "If the ban were announced with a one week notice, the 'bad' would rush into our country during that week. A lot of bad 'dudes' out there!"



THE FACTS: The immigration system doesn't allow the kind of "rush" Trump is describing. There are 38 countries, mostly European, whose citizens can visit the U.S. without a visa. But they must be approved for travel in advance by supplying background information to the U.S. government. Any other foreigner looking to visit or move to America for school or work has to get in line for a visa and be subjected to a variety of background checks, including reviews by federal law enforcement and intelligence. Before Trump's executive order was signed, some people were eligible to skip an in-person interview if they met a variety of requirements.

And the U.S. can always stop a foreigner from boarding a U.S.-bound flight or cancel a visa upon someone's arrival. A visa is not a guarantee that a foreigner will be allowed into the U.S.

Letter of Dissent

There is currently "a State Department dissent cable, asserting that President Trump’s executive order to temporarily bar citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries would not make the nation safer" traveling through American Embassies all over the world.  This article makes it clear how many American officials feel about the Muslim ban.  In case you aren't sure:  They are not in favor.

Acting Attorney General, Sally Yates

She's refusing to defend Trump's Muslim ban in court.

Before I could finish and post this, I read this:  "Trump fires acting U.S. attorney general after she refuses to enforce immigration order".  So much for that.  But this is what needs to happen.  Remember this woman for her act of conscience. Congratulations to you, Sally Yates.  There will be a better job for you somewhere.

The country is standing up!

Some of the best recent protest signs from the internet:

I also saw these on-line:  "Twitler" and "Make racists afraid again", both of which I thought were fantastic.

As if we're not being confronted with enough sickness right now

The woman at the center of the Emmett Till case has admitted that she made up her testimony.

From The Guardian

"Donald Trump's executive order means he is now officially gunning for Muslims",
by Moustafa Bayoumi

Update:  He might be gunning for them, but he won't get those Muslims.

Please support the ACLU.

YES!

Good people (and COUNTRIES!) still exist.  Hooray for the Netherlands.  This is a great response to Trump.

Pretty reasonable statements

Iran:  "While respecting the American people and distinguishing between them and the hostile policies of the U.S. government, Iran will implement the principle of reciprocity until the offensive U.S. limitations against Iranian nationals are lifted," a Foreign Ministry statement said.

"The restrictions against travel by Muslims to America... are an open affront against the Muslim world and the Iranian nation in particular and will be known as a great gift to extremists," said the statement, carried by state media.

What will your response be?

President Trump has placed a ban on immigrants from several Muslim countries (Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen).  Immigration officials have detained people at airports who were already on flights from the countries on the list.  What's next?  What if what's next is "detainment camps"?  Are you prepared to sit by and do nothing?  The people of Germany largely claimed ignorance about what was going on in the concentration camps.  Are you prepared for history to view you in the same way?

We may be on the doorstep of the most dangerous moment in American history. Are you prepared?

So, can we bury her now?

'Cause I'd really like to be done with her brand of ignorance.

I can't wait until the adults are back in charge again.

It's going to be a reeeeaaaally long four years.  "If I bully everyone, they'll think I'm strong!  That'll cover up for the fact that I actually feel very weak."  No, it won't, President Trump.  There are plenty of people with the psychological skills necessary to see right through you.  This is pathetic.

Common ground creates space for healing

The police chief of LaGrange, Georgia has apologized for the police force's failure to meet their responsibility in the death of an 18 year old African American man in their custody in 1940.  By taking responsibility for that failure, he has given the family and the community the ability to heal more fully and the ability to trust the local government.  This is the type of action required to heal our entire nation.  We have a long history of injustice in this country that hasn't been accounted for.  My hope is our cultural institutions will continue to take responsibility for their actions and that will allow African Americans and other minorities to come more fully into the mainstream of American society.

This is very good

William Saletan of Slate wrote an article about how reporters should handle Kellyanne Conway.  It's short and highlights just how broken that woman is, which is important, because we need to understand the stakes.

Twitter doesn't want me

I tried to sign up for Twitter, so that I could follow these new rogue U.S. government agencies written about in this article.  But Twitter doesn't want me because I don't own a cell phone.  When I tried to confirm my account, it told me my number was unsupported.  So I guess I won't be doing that, but you can!  And you should!  The list in that link could be a very valuable source of information.  I highly recommend it.

At war with the truth

Our President lies.  We're in deep trouble, people.

We are not alone

Resist!

Not a quote I'm excited to hear

"We're watching the dark cloud of Mordor extend over federal service," said the executive director for the advocacy group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, Jeff Ruch, as President Trump hobbles the EPA. If you're not a fan of "The Lord of the Rings", just know that it's not good.

Journalism has never been more important

And it's currently under attack!  Recognize what is happening around us.  The pillars of our society are being shaken.  Don't be caught unaware.

All right, Americans!

Hey, you people must be paying attention to what's going on!  Excellent.  You need to be, because Big Brother is watching you.

With apologies...

I figure I might as well start now with apologizing to people for the behavior of our soon-to-be President, Donald Trump.

Let's start with Mexico.  That seems like a good place to start.  To the people of Mexico, I apologize for our President-elect's racist statements about you as well as this.

1/13:  To people of good conscience everywhere, I apologize that our President-elect is believed to have engaged Russian prostitutes and performed or had them perform "golden showers" so as to defile the bed that President and Mrs. Obama slept in.  If this turns out to be untrue, then I apologize that the United States has elected a man that it is so easy to believe he would do this.

I can't keep up!

1/24:  To women, I apologize that our President has reinstated the global gag rule on abortion.

Our President lies

And for no reason other than to appease his fragile ego.  Right now, it's just pathetic.  At some point, this behavior will truly matter.  Be prepared.

Update:  He is sticking with his lie, despite multiple sources refuting it.  Extra: Look for Mitch McConnell's quote at the end of the article.  That guy wouldn't know the truth if it ran up and humped his leg.

Support the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)!

This kind of stuff is hard to believe.  Isn't this the United States of America?  The time to fight is coming up on us.

People are funny

Humor helps.  I love this:

Regarding the dishonest media, to quote Melania Trump, "When they go low, we go high." Period #SeanSpicerFacts

This woman might be more frightening than Trump

Her ability to unabashedly twist words is Orwellian.  She is leading the charge toward fascism.  How long before she starts saying things like "altfacts"?  Big Brother is watching you.

Pop on Trump

Gregg Popovich is a man of character.  He makes the valuable point that because Hillary won the popular vote, that means that most people aren't buying Trump's act.  That's important to remember.  It's upsetting to feel like the country thought Trump would be a good president.  But the country didn't really think that.  He just got elected anyway.

I can't decide which one is the worst

Is it that the new White House Press Secretary is clearly lying about the size of the crowd at the inauguration?  Or is it that he's taking the press to task for their reporting on it?  Or is it that he's discussing the size of the crowds at all?  Wow. The world is in trouble.

It happened today

Today Donald Trump has become President of the United States.  I can not even imagine what the world will be like in four years.  I think it's time for a good movie.

Dismantling Democracy

Reince Priebus, President-elect Trump's chief of staff is intimidating Walter Shaub, the head of the Office of Government Ethics.  He is intimidating the head of the Office of Government Ethics!  Shaub has stated that President-elect Trump needs to avoid conflicts of interest by divesting himself of his businesses. President-elect Trump doesn't want to do that, so he's attacking.  Priebus said, “The head of the government ethics ought to be careful..."  It really doesn't matter what comes after that.  It's a threat and it's inappropriate.  He then attempted to marginalize him by saying, “So I'm not so sure what this person at Government Ethics, what sort of standing he has anymore in giving these opinions.”

This is the President-elect's administration, removing the barriers to it's unethical behavior.  This is a problem.

Divide and Conquer!

President-elect Trump is using his bully pulpit to tear people apart.  We're going to have to learn how to see people as people, not enemies, if we want to survive these next four years.

What a loss

What a stark contrast to our President-elect.  In the years to come, I believe we'll look back on President Obama and recognize how valuable his leadership was, much more so than any political accomplishments he made.

I am so ashamed of this country.

I just can not believe that Americans thought electing this man could work out okay.

How are these accusations of an "extensive conspiracy" between President-elect Trump and Putin not evidence of treason?  He allegedly worked with Russia to subvert the democratic process.  As President-elect, he has deals with the President of Russia that are not in the best interest of the United States.  What is going on?  I understand that there needs to be verification of this information, but I don't understand why this isn't a bigger news story.

And I don't understand how this man is about to be POTUS.

With apologies...

I figure I might as well start now with apologizing to people for the behavior of our soon-to-be President, Donald Trump.

Let's start with Mexico.  That seems like a good place to start.  To the people of Mexico, I apologize for our President-elect's racist statements about you as well as this.

1/13:  To people of good conscience everywhere, I apologize that our President-elect is believed to have engaged Russian prostitutes and performed or had them perform "golden showers" so as to defile the bed that President and Mrs. Obama slept in.  If this turns out to be untrue, then I apologize that the United States has elected a man that it is so easy to believe he would do this.

I can't keep up!

1/24:  To women, I apologize that our President has reinstated the global gag rule on abortion.

Good job, Minnesota.

This is what our country is supposed to be about.  Congratulations to her and congratulations to Minnesota.

Happy New Year!

I would say that 2017 can't be much worse than 2016, but 2017 is probably going to be much worse than 2016.  Sorry.  Here are some political cartoons that really nail it.  Enjoy.