…you’ll be reading this. Because friends, I have to disconnect for a couple of days. I’ve been trying to finish three novels since Christmas, and can’t, because I keep checking Twitter like a rat in a Skinner box. I have to keep up with the latest news — IT’S MY JOB — but this is simply wearing me out.
So Alan and I are off to a sophisticated Ontario city before the border closes or we start a trade war with them. Like we apparently already have with Mexico.
Peeps, I can’t even. We may have to assume protective coloration up there. You’ll know we mastered our accents if we don’t come back. But plans are to be back on Sunday.
In the meantime, stay safe, stay sane and can anyone else rustle up another women’s march? I need something to calm my nerves. Maybe some Canadian whiskey will help.
Scout said on January 26, 2017 at 4:25 pm
If you don’t return you can still blog from Canada, eh.
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jcburns said on January 26, 2017 at 4:45 pm
You’re my favourite blogger, always so colourful and centred.
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Dexter said on January 26, 2017 at 5:21 pm
All of Tillerson’s senior staff resigned today en masse. The shit show rolls on.
Josh Rogin, WaPo: “Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s job running the State Department just got considerably more difficult. The entire senior level of management officials resigned Wednesday, part of an ongoing mass exodus of senior foreign service officers who don’t want to stick around for the Trump era.”
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Peter said on January 26, 2017 at 5:24 pm
Well, put your reading toque on, have a big plate of poutine, and enjoy the Great White North.
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Peter said on January 26, 2017 at 5:25 pm
Dexter, I saw that article as well, but other sources say that the senior staff’s routine resignations were accepted; that is the New Fascist Overlords booted them out.
Cue the circus music.
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Sherri said on January 26, 2017 at 6:05 pm
I was talking with a member of city staff last night after our meeting, and she said her husband, an Iranian who has lived her for over 30 years, is afraid to leave the country now, for fear he won’t be allowed back in.
I just came back from lunch at the ACLU of Washington offices, where we listened to Anthony Romero’s town hall on what the ACLU is doing, what their priorities are, strategies they’re pushing, etc. One reason I’m such a big advocate of the ACLU is that I know they will fight every goddamn thing that trump tries to do to erode our civil liberties. They won’t pick their battles, they won’t keep their powder dry, they won’t try to work with him. They know what their values are, and they fight for them, period. They’ll fight trump, and they’ll fight the states that try to take advantage of trump’s administration to roll back rights, too. They filed the first FOIA request the instant he was sworn in, regarding his conflicts of interest.
Congressional Dems, OTOH, seemed to not know what to do. I don’t think they’re going to get Republicans to come to their side through deals to give in on some things. I think the only way to fight is to mobilize a large, loud army of people who show what it means to take away what we hold important. Fight for your values. Backroom deals aren’t going to work, because in case they haven’t noticed, these Republicans don’t do those with Democrats. There are plenty enough Dems in red states to keep the phone lines of Republican offices busy.
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Sherri said on January 26, 2017 at 6:12 pm
I’m trying to stay sane by focusing on what my values are and what am I doing to promote those values, even in little ways, every day. It’s not just about fighting what trump and the Republicans are doing, it’s about promoting what you believe instead. One of the things I learned on the call today is that the ACLU has put someone in charge of grassroots activism to do counter-values programming, to do events that promote the ideas the ACLU supports. This is to take advantage of the tremendous upswell in the number of people who have signed up to volunteer, and they’re moving as fast as they can to harness that energy.
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Sherri said on January 26, 2017 at 6:39 pm
Sarah Lacey calls out Sheryl Sandberg for building her image on being a feminist, and disappearing after the election: https://pando.com/2017/01/26/lean-out-deafening-post-november-silence-sheryl-sandberg/411261cacd15437490f73bb21d67f206c9417d85/
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LAMary said on January 26, 2017 at 7:30 pm
I just hope there’s some shred of Social Security and Medicare in existence when I hit that age. It’s not too far in the future. Retiring in the age of Trump sounds very scary.
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Jolene said on January 26, 2017 at 7:33 pm
Donald Trump is doing things to divide Democrats. For instance, he is courting people in the building trades. Building the Keystone pipeline will be attractive to labor unions and anathema to environmentalists. He’ll find other ways to do that, making it harder for Democratic leaders to find issues to build coalitions around, especially since he is not at all concerned about sticking to traditional Republican positions.
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Sherri said on January 26, 2017 at 8:16 pm
The building trade unions haven’t been reliable allies for Democratic coalitions for a long time, having been inimical to environmental concerns from the beginning. Environmentalism is a core value; it doesn’t have to conflict with jobs, but those unions have seen it that way for years.
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Rana said on January 26, 2017 at 11:25 pm
There’s a March for Science in the works. Local branches are proliferating, too. The Chicago one launched only a couple of days ago and now their page is at over 4,000 people following it.
(Chicago is not happy with That Man bad-mouthing the city and sticking his oars in. Not one bit.)
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Sherri said on January 26, 2017 at 11:31 pm
Needless to say, I agree 100% with Charlie Pierce here. Any Democrat who votes for Jefferson Beauregard Sessions as AG doesn’t belong in the party. End of discussion.
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a52607/democrats-senate-jeff-sessions-vote/
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 2:40 am
I’m sure it’s not a problem that every country in the world is probably eavesdropping on trump’s phone; he’s probably not saying anything that he’s not going to say on a tweet five m it’s later, or that someone’s not going to leak to a reporter in a few hours.
https://www.lawfareblog.com/president-trumps-insecure-android
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Suzanne said on January 27, 2017 at 9:12 am
Utterly amazing to me that the right was ready to put Hillary in prison for using an unsecured email server but Trump is still using his unsecured phone and there is no mention of this from the right and scant comment on it from the left ( or at least I am not hearing much).
Becoming more & more ashamed every day that I voted GOP back in the day.
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 9:22 am
Suzanne – you and I both!
Although, one perk that my mis-spent youth affords me is – I get to truthfully claim that I voted for Ronald Wilson Reagan for president 4 more times than Rush Limbaugh ever did (counting the primaries); ol’ Oxy-Rush had other priorities back when his now-god was in need of his votes
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on January 27, 2017 at 9:40 am
Drink Canada Dry!
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alex said on January 27, 2017 at 9:55 am
Lay Rob Lowe!
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Icarus said on January 27, 2017 at 11:20 am
“They want America to succeed, but in their America there isn’t room for anyone unlike them. There’s a reason Trump’s mantra stuck despite his deplorable behaviour. They think America was founded on conservative Protestant ideals because that’s what they’ve been fed, because that’s what aligns with their interpretation of the Bible and they will not go down without a fight.”
https://www.autostraddle.com/i-was-trained-for-the-culture-wars-in-home-school-awaiting-someone-like-mike-pence-as-a-messiah-367057/
SCARY STUFF!
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Heather said on January 27, 2017 at 11:59 am
Suzanne: Apparently a majority of Trumpies think it’s OK for him to have a private email server. Cue head banging on desk. http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/316414-trump-voters-think-he-should-be-allowed-to-have-a-private-email
Logic and pointing out hypocrisy just doesn’t work with these people.
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Suzanne said on January 27, 2017 at 12:59 pm
Icarus, living as I do in rural IN, I can say that the article you linked to is not alternative facts. Not at all. I know these people. And Mike Pence is a near Messiah to them.
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Hattie said on January 27, 2017 at 1:19 pm
Pence is the choice of white people who only feel comfortable around people just like themselves.
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 1:47 pm
Fellini movie moment (these shall be innumerable, before long):
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/behind-closed-doors-republican-lawmakers-fret-about-how-to-repeal-obamacare/2017/01/27/deabdafa-e491-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.html?utm_term=.53fd84979477&wpisrc=al_alert-COMBO-politics%252Bnation
an excerpt:
“We’d better be sure that we’re prepared to live with the market we’ve created [with repeal],” said Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). “That’s going to be called Trumpcare. Republicans will own that lock, stock and barrel, and we’ll be judged in the election less than two years away.”
D’ya think?
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MichaelG said on January 27, 2017 at 1:49 pm
I just had my Honda in for service this AM. The dealer replaced recalled airbag actuators. Not really news except that it’s the second time. There was a first recall and the actuators were replaced. Then the replacement ones were found to be defective. I wonder how good my new ones are.
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 1:59 pm
MichaelG – here’s hoping we never learn the answer to that!
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alex said on January 27, 2017 at 2:02 pm
Speaking of which, MichaelG, I was just having a flashback to all the hysteria a few years ago when Toyotas were supposedly accelerating out of control all over the place. Never hear about it now. What happened?
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Dexter said on January 27, 2017 at 2:56 pm
Car Talk: Hey, anybody ever drive a Hyundai? The local foreign car guys (excellent mechanics who do not sell cars unless they totally go through everything and fix them so they are instantly road-ready) had a Hyundai Elantra all fixed up and ready, and a friend asked me what I thought of that brand, since I have had so many damn many cars in 50 years of driving—but I was at a loss for words—I know nothing about them except new ones give ya a limited 10 year warranty. So? Anybody? As an aside, the head mechanic there told me it’s always worth paying a little more for a used Honda because they are, unequivocally, the best cars you’ll find when buying used.
Oh…I heard a radio news clip; Preacher Pence addressing the assembled multitudes—and I waited, waited…ad yes, here it came: “…and the unborn.” I knew he was gonna say that. He had that crowd like Elvis had the old ladies.
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Jakash said on January 27, 2017 at 3:07 pm
We’ve rented a couple Hyundais recently, Dexter; I think they were Elantras. So I don’t have anything to say about their reliability, but I did notice that there seemed to be more than the usual amount of road noise on certain surfaces. Don’t know if that was the tires, or what. We’ve gotten a Sonata before and didn’t notice that, so maybe it’s just the smaller car being less quiet…
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MichaelG said on January 27, 2017 at 3:44 pm
I had a bunch of Elantras when I was still working. I liked them a lot. They were comfortable, had reasonable handling and performance for an economy car. Since they were all rentals, I have no idea about reliability. Also this was three years ago. Boy, time flies.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 3:59 pm
It would be nice if news stories on the “March for Life” pointed out that much of the crowd and the politicians like Pence supporting the so-called rights of the unborn want to repeal Obamacare.
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alex said on January 27, 2017 at 4:04 pm
I know people with Hyundais and they’re quite happy with them and Consumer Reports gives the Elantra great reviews. My mother has one and her previous car was a Honda Accord that she dearly loved. She’s just as pleased with her Hyundai and in fact can’t get my dad to stop driving it all the time instead of his much faster and cushier Avalon. I’ve been a devout Honda and Toyota owner but if I were in the market for a car I would certainly give consideration to the Hyundai brand, and because I prefer manual transmissions and Hyundai is one of the few makers still producing them, a Hyundai may well be my next car.
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Rana said on January 27, 2017 at 4:20 pm
Sherri – that’s an excellent point. ACA was the reason we actually had affordable prenatal care when I was pregnant. And if it’d been available in full a year sooner, we would have saved a LOT on labor and delivery expenses (which were not required to be covered at that point).
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 4:20 pm
If trump just tweeted out pictures of a big beautiful wall and declared the wall had already been built and Mexico had paid for it because we seized all the factories on the other side of the border, how many trump supporters would believe it? He could send Sean Spicer out to berate the dishonest media for lying about his amazing wall, as a bonus.
Lest you think I’m just being a snobbish coastal elite looking down on salt of the earth real Americans, keep in mind that 15% of trump voters in a poll, when shown side by side unidentified images from Obama’s and trump’s inaugurations, said the image from trump’s inauguration showed more people.
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 4:27 pm
Sherri – I can just hear grumpyTrump and spittleSpicer exhorting the crowds –
“Visualize, people – VISUALIZE!”
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Peter said on January 27, 2017 at 4:27 pm
Sherri – only 15%? I would think that they can say that because a lot of the attendees at the Obama inauguration aren’t people to them.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 4:31 pm
40% identified the Obama image as the trump image, too.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/01/25/we-asked-people-which-inauguration-crowd-was-bigger-heres-what-they-said
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on January 27, 2017 at 4:32 pm
Tim Kaine says hi, apologizes for a terrible debate performance, and says “hey, the other side outhustled us. Let’s learn from that, and outwork them back into the nation’s confidence.” And he’s still in the Senate (I’m saying that, he didn’t.)
This is one of very few national candidates I can actually say I’ve met, and wow – do I wish he had an office in the White House. And he’s young, so . . .
The hardest part of all this for him is the sense that he could have done more. My take is that he went everywhere he was asked, but if he thinks he could have pushed harder, well, I’ll let him work out his own karma. But I sure like him.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 4:55 pm
People are calling! Maybe Dems will find spines!
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/27/us/politician-voicemail-boxes-full.html
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basset said on January 27, 2017 at 4:57 pm
One of my neighbors, sensible guy, has put about 100k on a Sonata & says it’s been totally reliable, bought an Elantra to replace his wife’s car and likes it real well… credible endorsements for me.
Mrs. B’s Camry is coming up on a quarter-million miles, if it ever gives out we’ll probably get a Hyundai. Not least because our local Honda dealer is so bad… $500 extra on the sticker for “fabric protectant” and such BS as that.
Back when the S2000 sports car was new and in great demand, I saw one on another Honda dealer’s lot in another town nearby with the usual rustproofing, nitrogen in the tires, and so forth added to the bottom of the sticker… and one more line, $1000 for “extra profit.”
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 5:02 pm
Basset – either that guy was a genius (“See how honest I am?”) or an idiot….hard to say
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brian stouder said on January 27, 2017 at 5:07 pm
Forgot to to say to Jeff – Agreed!!!
As JFK remarked about how many daddys victory has (as opposed to defeat) – so it remains true.
I really, genuinely want the current president to succeed (or at least not fail tragically) – and indeed, if he ends up a do-nothing place-keeper, he’s going to be judged a success.
I’ll readily grant all that – if lots and lots of moms and dads and uncles and babies don’t have to be incinerated somewhere on the other side of the planet, thanks to President Trump’s (and his cabinet’s) imperialist/mercantilist outlook.
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David C. said on January 27, 2017 at 5:31 pm
I drive a Kia Rondo, which is built on the previous generation Hyundai Sonata’s platform. It’s been a good car for us. It’s been very reliable through 105k miles.
I think tRump getting all right to lifey and getting anyone to believe it is one of the strangest parts of the campaign. Is there anyone who can’t imagine him saying “get rid of it” multiple times in his life? I can’t/
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alex said on January 27, 2017 at 5:40 pm
Your wish is granted, David C. As Trump was telling Howard Stern about the time he knocked up Marla Maples…
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 6:05 pm
We have a Prius, but the nearby Toyota dealer is so bad we won’t go anywhere near them. I think the one in Burien, down close to the airport, figured that out, and did a deal with Microsoft to offer discounts to Microsoft employees. You can go online through the Microsoft portal, and see their inventory and the discount before you ever have to make the 45 minute drive down there.
Hasn’t made the nearby one any better.
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alex said on January 27, 2017 at 6:21 pm
We have two count ’em two sucky Toyota dealers locally. I will purchase vehicles there depending on which gives the better deal — and if you take a Consumer Reports printout of what it should cost they don’t put up much of a fight — but I will never patronize their service departments. After a succession of ridiculously bad experiences with one, I take my vehicle to an independent garage for anything I can’t do myself. They broke a tensioner pulley one time while servicing the vehicle — I noticed it immediately upon leaving the place, turned around and took it back and they denied any responsibility. Tensioner pulleys invariably get busted by incompetent mechanics. They don’t just “go bad” in new vehicles. I almost didn’t go back there, but did one time, and this coincided with my tires needing to be replaced soon. They offered me an incredible deal on a set of tires purportedly from a vehicle that had been on the showroom floor, but the customer had wanted different rubber, so they were offered for about half price. A few months later I noticed a plug working its way out of one of the sidewalls and went back and showed them. They had the cojones to accuse me of trying to pull some kind of skullduggery. This after selling me an unsafe tire that could have blown on the highway and sent my truck rolling. That’s when I told them they’d lost my business and I’ve made good on the promise. Here’s a shoutout to you, Evans Toyota! Suck it!
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jcburns said on January 27, 2017 at 6:22 pm
A 2017 Prius Prime is the best of both worlds, we have discovered. Just a wonderful vehicle.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 6:28 pm
Ken Starr was dogged in pursuit of a presidential blow job. Multiple gang rapes by football players at his university? He told the WSJ that he personally had doubts they ever happened.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/baylor/2017/01/27/new-baylor-lawsuit-describes-show-em-good-time-culture-cites-52-rapes-football-players-4-years
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Deborah said on January 27, 2017 at 6:48 pm
What a beautiful day in LA! It’s about 62 and sunny, clear as can be. We went to see Frank Gehry’s house in Santa Monica this morning https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TyfV7LgVaF0 and then the Eames house in Pacific Palisades. I linked to the Eames house a couple of days ago. I thought the Gehry house was meh, but I really liked the Eames house and studio designed by Charles and Ray Eames. I had read a lot about it and them over the years. They designed some fabulous exhibits, not to mention furniture, films and all kinds of stuff.
I’m meeting up with LA Mary this afternoon. I’m looking forward to getting together with another NN.C-er in person.
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David C. said on January 27, 2017 at 7:31 pm
I find the new Prius quite ugly. I preferred the cleaner lines of the last generation. It reminds me of the last Mazda 3 before they divorced Ford. A lot of funky looking swoopy lines that IMO looked odd.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 8:02 pm
A Georgia Republican legislator, behind an adult entertainment store, with several thousand dollars of cash donated for storm relief, is shot in the leg. Hmm, wonder if there’s more to this story…
https://apnews.com/b26268d1b1714de3817b706de259dc7c
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 8:54 pm
Apparently in the current Republican world, the Civil War wasn’t about slavery, and the Holocaust wasn’t about Jews. I suppose next the Trail of Tears was about white settlers saying goodbye to their good friends as they left for Oklahoma.
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Sherri said on January 27, 2017 at 9:09 pm
Seattle and King County are moving ahead with a plan for a couple of safe injection sites.
http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/seattle-king-county-move-to-create-2-injection-sites-for-drug-users/
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Dexter said on January 28, 2017 at 2:53 am
Thanks for all the posts on the Hyundais and Kias…now I wish I would have bought that one for myself. I am just 55 easy light-traffic minutes from Toledo Express and over 40-some years I have rented , by the week, weekend, or day, around 150 cars also, including a dozen fly-drive rentals from various airports.
Worst was a 1977 Camaro..as soon as I got up to speed on I-75 from the Atlanta airport, the goddam hood flew up; after a panicky pull over to the side, by chance I found an old section of rope and a length of rusty wire and I wired and tied that hood down. Not wanting to face the hassles of taking it back for a switcheroo, I just drove it like that for my 4 day stay. Best cars for quiet comfort were the Camry and the Buick Park Avenue. The cars I hated an d always refused at all costs were those tiny Buick Century models…I am only 6 feet tall but my legs wouldn’t fit.
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David C. said on January 28, 2017 at 7:23 am
Only the Times would, or would need to, spend so many column inches explaining why they said liars lied.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/25/business/media/donald-trump-lie-media.html?mc=aud_dev&mcid=tw-nytimes&mccr=JanuaryTweetPromotion&mcdt=2017-01&subid=JanuaryTweetPromotion&ad-keywords=AudDevGate&_r=0
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Deborah said on January 28, 2017 at 9:36 am
It was so cool meeting LA Mary yesterday. We talked and talked over drinks at the hotel bar. I completely forgot to take a selfie to post on FB. So far I’ve met Nancy herself, Heather, Scout, Jeff tmmo and now LA Mary. Who’s next?
I really am loving LA. All of my husband’s students want to move here. If I were a young person I’d for sure want to live here too.
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alex said on January 28, 2017 at 9:50 am
In other words, this is why the Times dissembles when calling bullshit on bullshit. Had they squandered the capital of the word “lie” it would have been as flat broke as a Trump Casino already.
Sherri, that Georgia legislator might as well have been caught with his pants down. He was so titillated at the prospect of committing miscegenation and homosexuality with misappropriated funds that he didn’t recognize he was about to get rolled.
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 1:33 pm
Bit, Alex, it’s all the fault of us liberal socialist elites, who have destroyed this great Christian nation and allowed places like that evil adult entertainment store to proliferate. Were it not for that, I’m sure it never would have occurred to our fine-upstanding legislator that such an unnatural act was even possible!
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 1:47 pm
After this week, is everybody convinced that “give trump a chance” is no longer operative? We’re dealing with shadow president Bannon right now, the EOs have his fingerprints all over them.
Friday’s EO was executed to produce the most chaos. The order had been leaked all over the place by Wednesday. In general, the administration is signing the orders but not releasing the actual text of the order for hours, so that the initial news stories are about their spin of the order. A number of the orders don’t actually do anything themselves; an executive order to hire more border agents and build a wall doesn’t accomplish either without budget to do so.
But Friday’s EO could be implemented immediately. Doing it on a Friday causes maximum chaos for travelers suddenly unsure if they can come to the US. Delaying the text of the EO until after close of business means that CAIR is delayed until Monday to file he lawsuit they’ve had drawn up since the order was leaked. The EO was vague and confusing enough that there’s not going to be concistent guidance about enforcement out to customs officials for a while, certainly not immediately. In the meantime, it was completely unclear whether even legal permanent residents of the US who were of, say Irani origin, and out of the country, would be able to return.
My friend’s husband is not overreacting when he’s worried about leaving the country.
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David C. said on January 28, 2017 at 4:23 pm
This is what our new besties in Russia are doing.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/01/27/russian-parliament-decrimiinalizes-domestic-violence/97129912/
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 5:53 pm
The ACLU has sued on behalf of two Iraqi men who were en route to the US when the order was signed, had valid visas, and were detained and threatened with deportation upon arrival at JFK. One of the men had eventually been released from detention, but the other remains in detention.
https://www.aclu.org/blog/speak-freely/aclu-and-other-groups-challenge-trump-immigration-ban-after-refugees-detained
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 6:31 pm
Wonder if any of those tech company CEOs are regretting the big photo op with trump now that they have green card holding employees who can’t get back in the country? Others who aren’t affected yet, but may be afraid to travel because of fear that they could be next?
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beb said on January 28, 2017 at 6:45 pm
It’s hard to believe that Trump has been president for only a week. It seems like an eternity already.
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St Bitch said on January 28, 2017 at 7:25 pm
They’re now asking for IDs on the Miami Beach boardwalk. My Jamaican boo needs to watch his step.
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MarkH said on January 28, 2017 at 7:42 pm
Deborah @55 – That’s easy. Danny is just down the road in San Diego.
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Deborah said on January 28, 2017 at 8:41 pm
Ha ha, Mark H, San Diego is pretty far down the road.
Today was a day of contrasts in downtown LA. We walked 6 miles in a giant loop from the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, then to the Broad art museum then down to Skid Row to see an apt for homeless people. We then walked further down 6th street which was lined with homeless people living in tents and under tarps. They have a huge homeless situation. Then just beyond that is the arts district with art lofts and chic restaurants in former warehouse buildings. Then back up Bunker Hill to where we started. That walk back up the hill was brutal. My husband’s students got an eyeful today starting at 8:30 then back to our hotel at 5. Whew. Unfortunately we have to go back out for dinner with everyone. All I want to do is crawl in bed.
I read somewhere online that the minority president’s favoribity rankings dropped 8 points after the hideous first week.
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 9:40 pm
At least the immediate deportations have been stopped: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/us/refugees-detained-at-us-airports-prompting-legal-challenges-to-trumps-immigration-order.html
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 10:17 pm
The NY Taxi Workers Association chose the right side in the moral crisis of our time. Uber, on the other hand, didn’t.
http://jalopnik.com/new-york-taxi-workers-alliance-halting-jfk-airport-pick-1791737697
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Bill said on January 28, 2017 at 10:22 pm
Just thinking about genetics. Trump’s dad died at 95. So, he probably has another 25 years to live (give or take),
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 11:10 pm
That the ACLU got a national stay is great, but it only applies to people who already made it to the US. It doesn’t help the people who were turned away at foreign airports, or pulled off planes. Legal residents of the US who are out of the country can not return if they are from the affected countries.
The cruelty of this order is appalling. Republicans are saying that if you are Muslim, your life doesn’t matter, because your very existence makes their base uncomfortable.
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Sherri said on January 28, 2017 at 11:28 pm
Today’s EO put shadow president Bannon onto the National Security Council, while removing the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Director of National Intelligence because, really, why wouldn’t you rather have a political advisor in the NSC than the head of the armed services, and who are you gonna believe, the CIA or Steve Bannon?
I’m just surprised Kushner didn’t get added.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-holds-calls-with-putin-leaders-from-europe-and-asia/2017/01/28/42728948-e574-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.html
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LAMary said on January 28, 2017 at 11:31 pm
Deborah and I had a great time eating olives and figuring out we both know Harry Spetnagel Jr. The rain and the cold temperatures went away for her visit. All this week it’s been in the thirties when I left for work and my VW was showing a little snowflake on the dashboard display.
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Heather said on January 29, 2017 at 12:18 am
I went to the protest against the Muslim ban at O’Hare for a little bit. There were maybe 1500 people? A table was set up with lawyers who were working to get detainees freed. Then I came home and saw the news about Steve Bannon and the National Security Council, and also read some scary tweets from someone who thought this is all a set-up to create an excuse for martial law. Breitbart said the protests were set up by CAIR and were causing chaos while Dear Leader is only trying to protect the nation. So while I don’t generally think they’re smart enough to organize something like this, maybe they are? But what are we supposed to do, NOT protest?
Then it got a little testy on the tram between terminals, where we were riding with some travelers who were frustrated with the inconvenience. We made sure they understood the irony of complaining it was taking them so long to get home. I’m afraid I lost my temper with some middle-aged red-faced white guy who started yelling and wagging his finger at us, saying that the protesters were using “profanity.” I told him we weren’t listening to white guys lecture us anyore. He got pretty mad at that. I do need to watch my temper though. Getting angry at people doesn’t help–it only causes them to dig in.
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jcburns said on January 29, 2017 at 1:13 am
When I read about record donations to the ACLU over this weekend, I’ll think of the phalanxes of young lawyers who (with our tiny contribution helping), are out there, laptops open, at airports and everywhere else Trump’s unconstitutional order can be fought.
The new president has a thing or two to learn.
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Sherri said on January 29, 2017 at 1:43 am
Shadow president Bannon: http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/28/politics/donald-trump-travel-ban/index.html
There’s a neo-Nazi in charge of our government.
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Jolene said on January 29, 2017 at 3:09 am
It doesn’t surprise me that Trump would include Bannon in NSC meetings, but excluding the DNI and the chairman of the joint chiefs? What security issues would there be that would not be relevant to them?
I sometimes wonder how his family allowed him to run. They must have known how crazy–how impervious to evidence and reason–he is. What do they think when they hear him arguing about, for instance, the size of the crowd at his inauguration? Everybody has a relative who’s a little nuts, but most families wouldn’t put that relative in charge of the family business, let alone the fate of the nation.
Last night, there were photos showing three of his cabinet members (Ross, Mnuchin, and Cohn) going to have dinner at the home of Ivanka and Jared Kushner. I wondered if they were meeting to figure out how to run the government around him.
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David C. said on January 29, 2017 at 6:56 am
Middle-aged white men embarrass the hell out of me, and I am one.
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Deborah said on January 29, 2017 at 11:06 am
Jolene, I’ve wondered the same thing about his family, but then they know how his presidency will fill their pockets with $$$, it kind of explains why they don’t seem to try to stop him.
I saw a guy in our hotel lobby the other night who was the spitting image of Bannon. Same disheveled hair, same girth, same red nose, same slovenly outfit. Made me wonder for a few seconds, because I think he lived in CA before he was appointed to his new job. At least I’m pretty sure he lived here at one time. Nah, probably wasn’t him, he would be too busy hovering around his puppet.
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beb said on January 29, 2017 at 11:31 am
While Sherri has mentioned it, it’s important to remember that in the president’s National Holocaust Remembrance Day letter he failed to mention that holocaust targeted Jews, preferring to remember the gays, cripples gypies, etc. also killed by Hitler. Atrios reminds us that is this is Holocaust denialism pure and simple
http://www.eschatonblog.com/2017/01/holocaust-denial.html
For a while it looked like Riecus Priebus had won out for Trump’s heart and soul. But the Holocaust Denialism and this immigrant ban shows that Steve Bannon still has Trump’s heart under lock and key.
Trump’s approval rating dropped 8 points over the course of his first week. I wonder how far it will drop over his next week?
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Jolene said on January 29, 2017 at 11:56 am
Meanwhile, Ivanka and Jared had a lovely evening.
This photo was posted on her Twitter feed last night. Bizarre to think about people scrambling to prevent detention at airports while these two are dancing the night away.
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alex said on January 29, 2017 at 12:16 pm
Too bad TLo aren’t commenting on the Trumpkins. I’d love to see them fold that tinfoil dress five ways and shove it even further up Ivanka’s ass.
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Dexter said on January 29, 2017 at 12:42 pm
Deborah…theme music for your walk to Skid Row…”The Nickel” (5th Street LA)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sILtO6LAEq8
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MichaelG said on January 29, 2017 at 12:48 pm
Remember, this “ban on Muslims” applies to a small, select list of countries. It doesn’t apply to the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and a number of other countries. Among other things these are said to be countries where Trump does business. This really illustrates the essential emptiness and meanness of Trump’s actions.
I also wonder how long they will try to maintain the fiction that a 20% tax on Mexican imports will result in Mexico paying for the wall. We are going to pay for it.
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Sherri said on January 29, 2017 at 1:03 pm
People who have already been extremely vetted: refugees, green card holders.
People who have not been extremely vetted: trump, his appointees, his executive orders.
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ROGirl said on January 29, 2017 at 1:09 pm
I have come up with a mantra for dealing with our president. Whenever he does anything I say, “What a fucking asshole.”
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Deborah said on January 29, 2017 at 1:12 pm
My niece and her husband who voted for our corrupt minority president are appalled about the ban. I hope that is true about more of the supporters.
Having breakfast out on the pool deck, 67 degrees in West Hollywood, feels warmer.
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Mrs. BH Dork said on January 29, 2017 at 1:29 pm
The obsurdity of this election is beyond my brain’s processing power. I used to talk with my husband, the late great Baldheadeddork, about political and social issues. Now I just get depressed. I hit some of his favorite sites to see what he would be reading. I honestly can’t imagine how Brian would respond to 2017 politics. The world is crazy.
Thanks for letting me eaves drop on some intelligent discussion.
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Deborah said on January 29, 2017 at 3:06 pm
I’m going to have a long wait at LAX on Tues because I’m riding there with folks who have morning flights but mine is late afternoon. So if there are still protests going on, I will have plenty of time to participate.
I’ve been spending a lot of time online this morning because I wrecked my bum foot again from all the up hill and down walking I did yesterday. So taking it easy around the pool. I opted out of the morning outings with my husband’s students but I’m definitely going to the Getty museum with them this afternoon. I hope I don’t end up having to wear the damn walking boot for another 6 weeks after this.
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Sherri said on January 29, 2017 at 4:02 pm
We have tickets to see a touring production of The King and I tonight at 6:30, but there’s a protest scheduled at a park 5 blocks away at 5, so we’ll see whether we make it to the theater or just end up joining the protest. Maybe we’ll do both; protest, then break off and go to the theater.
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alex said on January 29, 2017 at 4:23 pm
Here’s what’s simmering on my stove at the moment (sans oxtails, which they don’t have at my supermarket). Used most of a bottle of cabernet on it and a quarter cup of Hungarian sweet paprika from Penzey’s. I could be totally sated just by smelling it. Here’s wishing myself luck with portion control later.
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David C. said on January 29, 2017 at 5:58 pm
You can’t go wrong when the first ingredient in a recipe is rendered pork lard. Looks delicious, Alex.
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Sherri said on January 29, 2017 at 7:19 pm
Just received the following email from Kathleen Taylor, the executive director of the Washington chapter of the ACLU, with some details of what went down at SeaTac yesterday:
A terrific team of ACLU and NWIRP staff and volunteer lawyers scrambled all day and into the night yesterday to stop the federal government from sending back to Dubai two lawful travelers who arrived in the US.
What a day it was! I got a call during Saturday’s ACLU-WA Board meeting from a reliable source that two travelers would be detained when their plane arrived Saturday afternoon. Staff (Vanessa, Michele, Jaime, Emily, and I) and board members (David Whedbee, Ceci Lopez, and Paul Lawrence) gathered in my office to make quick plans: La Rond Baker agreed to go down to the airport with David Whedbee and a couple of his partners to meet NWIRP attorneys, while others worked from Seattle. We had no information as to the identity of the travelers, which makes it hard to represent them! So the lawyers prepared a habeas petition and an emergency stay of removal on behalf of two John Does. Then began a scramble to get a Court Commissioner who then had to find a judge. Judge Zilly signed the order holding up the plane, but the order had to get to the airport. The travelers had been put back on the plane and it was about to roll away from the terminal when NWIRP’s Jorge Baron arrived with the judge’s order stopping the plane.
After some drama negotiating them off the plane, we learned that Customs and Border Protection wanted to hold them in the federal immigration detention facility, instead of releasing them. Jorge demanded that they be released, as did the growing number of demonstrators at the airport and multiple elected officials. Meanwhile, our communications staff was working the media and social media.
It was a stand-off for a while, and the protest got a bit rough. Finally the travelers were given cots on which to sleep in the airport, and in the morning were released to pursue their US travels. Hurray! What an ordeal for those guests to our country!
Judge Zilly’s order, which issued before the New York nationwide order, included a hearing for this coming Friday. Now that there is a nationwide injunction, the Friday hearing may be moot.
There may be more problems yet at SeaTac. Other work is also underway, including possibly a separate lawsuit by NWIRP and one by the State of WA that we are helping with.
And this is just the beginning of week two! Keep strong and healthy – we’ll need you all! So glad you are a part of our team of staff, lawyers, volunteers, activists, and other supporters of justice!
Onward!
Kathleen
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Sherri said on January 29, 2017 at 11:09 pm
The last line of this David Frum article is killer: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/01/trump-administration-jobs/514805/
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alex said on January 30, 2017 at 7:30 am
Nancy’s former neighborhood makes the news:
http://wane.com/2017/01/29/fort-wayne-resident-hangs-life-size-trump-doll-in-a-tree-from-a-noose/
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Danny said on January 30, 2017 at 8:24 am
Deborah, of you ever make it down to San Diego, there are a few hikes I would recommend once your foot and ankle are better. And I was surprised that you had a positive review of LAX. Most do not, including myself.
Lack of people movers between terminals and general inefficiency and filth are the usual observations. And I positively hate coming through customs there after a long haul flight. Without a two-hour layover to a connector to San Diego, it is easy to miss your flight.
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Danny said on January 30, 2017 at 8:46 am
I know a lot of you are rightly concentrating on more important news, but one story that caught my attention is that the beautiful model, Charlotte McKinney is considering breast reduction due to being bullied.
For Pete’s sake, JUST BE NICE to her. This goes under the heading of “why we can’t have nice things!”
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/2724647/charlotte-mckinney-opens-up-about-her-bullying-hell-over-having-bigger-breasts-prompting-her-to-consider-a-reduction/amp/?client=safari
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Deborah said on January 30, 2017 at 10:02 am
Danny, I think it was Brian who said he liked LAX. I had my wallet plucked out of my purse at LAX once so just from that experience I get a bad vibe from the place. I didn’t realize it was stolen until I got to the car rental place and they asked for my drivers license. I reached into my purse, one of those tote bags that didn’t have a clasp, with no wallet to be found. So there I was about to head into LA for a business trip with no money, no credit cards and no ID. It was horrible. I’ve really enjoyed LA this trip but not crazy about LAX.
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alex said on January 30, 2017 at 10:03 am
Danny, that one goes under the heading “why I never fall for humble bragging.”
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