It wouldn’t surprise me if the Reflecting Pool fiasco is what finally collapses the Trump Administration. The Iran debacle is much more serious, yes, but to most Americans I suspect it’s a bit of an abstraction, and complicated. But the Reflecting Pool is simple. Trump bragged about how he was going to fix it, and obviously he made it worse. It has become a national joke. And Trump’s frantic excuses about vandalism aren’t helping him, I don’t think.
But here’s a nice surprise. The Senate passed a war resolution today.
The Senate for the first time approved a war powers resolution Tuesday seeking to block U.S. military action against Iran, as lawmakers warily watch President Donald Trump’s efforts to resolve a conflict that the administration launched on its own and now needs Congress to fund.
It was the 10th time the Senate has tried to stop the war, and the outcome, on a vote of 50-48, was a stunning turnaround from past efforts. While the resolution is largely symbolic, and does not fully carry the force of law, it reflects the growing concerns from a number of Republican lawmakers in both the House and Senate over both the war and the deal Trump struck with Iran to end it. The House approved the resolution earlier this month.
So what changed? Maybe nothing. Four Republican senators who have voted for curbing the war in the past voted to curb it again. These are Republicans Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. But a couple of Republican senators (Mitch McConnell, who is in a hospital, and Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania) missed the vote. So I can’t claim that maybe this is a sign that Trump’s support among Senate Republicans is slipping.
But there also have been reports of a growing feud between Trump and Senate Majority Leader John Thune. Trump is annoyed that Thune is not as utterly obsequious as Mike Johnson. And getting legislation through the Senate, given the filibuster rules, is a lot trickier than in the House, where you just need a simple majority. So Thune hasn’t been able to deliver legislation on demand as efficiently as Johnson, and Trump blames Thune. And a rift is growing. The article linked above suggests most of the Republican senators are on Thune’s side, although they aren’t rebelling against Trump, yet.
This was primary day in New York. In my district we voted for the Dem nominee who will face Republican Mike Lawler for a U.S. House seat in November. This is a district carved out of three counties that went for Kamala Harris in 2024, and I’m reading Lawler is vulnerable this year. There were five Democratic candidates on the ballot, and they are all respectable, although I don’t expect the one I voted for (the most progressive one) to win.
Hero, Zero. and Nero all rhyme. Lyre and liar are homonyms. A Nero style ruler without artistic talent might easily get confused and play the liar while his country was aflame. That he pictures himself a hero while acting more a zero, assuming normality, would be soul scarring for sure. That it does not may be a clue that assuming normality is an error. Some abnormalities are considered as talents while others not so much that way. It is like confusing the criminal justice system with a 'criminal' justice system. Which word deserves emphasis? Anyone could get that messed up. With the exception of one feigning infallibility of course. One who's gut has special powers of intuitive ability exceeding all expertise.
Such an admission of error would indicate a sign of mere mortality. Such a sign is totally incompatible with hero. The 'criminal' justice system must find a scapegoat and punish them severely. The delusion must be maintained at all costs. Play the liar. That will show the critics how flawed they all are.
Hah, to me, the war on Iran is a simple issue: we attacked a country with bombs, missiles, and drones, a country which had not attacked us; we're the Bad Guys, and we should just GTFO. Oh, yeah, also, of course, "Trump bragged about how he was going to fix it, and obviously he made it worse."
OTOH, to me, the Reflecting Pool mess is a messy technical problem involving old plumbing and ecological concerns pulling in multiple directions, which will require careful study and probably a lot more work than people imagine (replacing old underground pipes can mess up a city's traffic for a long time!).
Of course, I'm just being contrary, and I apologize. Getting Iran to fully open the Straits of Hormuz now will NOT be simple; and from a non-technical perspective, the mess at the Pool was a simple case of Trump implementing one of his silly whims in his usual corrupt manner.
In both cases, Trump created nasty messes from nothing.
True, and to the best of my knowledge, the ONLY project in which he failed to create a nasty mess was the TeeVee show in which he played a scripted role.
We can debate whether or not that TeeVee show was a nasty mess sociologically, but I think it was a financial success for NBC. IMO the show was worthless dreck, but technically not a failure (sort of like professional wrestling). I suspect he tried to make it a nasty mess but the puppet masters, in this case, prevented that.
I read today that they are erecting fencing around some of Trump's Swamp. IMO, the repair, after the draining will demonstrate that the liner is a complete mess. There is no 300 foot sabotage and Trump will try to paint over the disaster,
A federal judge struck down the executive order that tries to federalize elections under Trump. I'm sue the Idiot-in-Chief will appeal. But will the court maintain that the administration is prevented from implementing voter suppression tactics in the time it's under review?
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/trump-voter-identification-order-struck-down-by-third-us-judge
The first major piece of bipartisan legislation to make its way through Congress in recent memory passed. The housing legislation was touted as a win by Liz Warren as well as prominent Republicans. Part of the bill would limit corporate ownership of residential property. It also set the foundation for new low-income housing. Trump cancelled the signing ceremony until Congress passes the voter suppression bill that there are not the votes for. If everyone holds to their original vote, an override of the veto is certain. But with the trained seals in Congress, will they?
Don't worry, Cait will be great.