Update from the Sunland
No.1205
10.2.25 – 16.2.25
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
[No name] and his alter-ego Elon Musk claim there is rampant abuse and corruption in federal spending. Now, it that possible? Yes, of course. Any time you put human beings in charge of writing checks (spending money), the potential for fraud and abuse is real--palpable. Where this goes wrong is, [no name] has a long (very long) history of lying and at best grossly exaggerating anything and everything. We cannot trust a word he says. Further, they tell us they have “discovered” more than a trillion dollars of fraud and abuse. OK, so where is the evidence? We cannot trust their words. We must see hard evidence. Where are the criminal charges? They are accusing civil servants of felonious federal crimes. For we know, they are simply cutting programs they do not like and creating a smoke screen to obfuscate.
To be clear, part of me lauds the administration’s aggressive effort to ferret out and eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse. What I strongly object to is the manner in which they are doing this task. They are using a dictator’s approach to fraud, waste, and abuse.
A bizarre, surreal, impromptu news conference occurred in the Oval Office on Tuesday. President [no name] sat behind the Resolute Desk like a massive lump. Elon Musk stood behind him with his little son, some might say loomed over the president, and spoke for 30 plus minutes taking reporters’ questions in an effort to defend his actions at DOGE. I do not think the duo accomplished what they wanted to achieve.
On Tuesday, the Senate confirmed Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii to be Director, National Intelligence, adding yet another QAnon conspiracy advocate, [no name]-sycophant to the government in a very sensitive position. The Senate confirmation vote was 52-48-0-0(0). Senator McConnell of Kentucky was the only crossover, voting against her confirmation.
On Thursday, Robert Francis Kennedy, Jr., of somewhere, was confirmed by the Senate to be Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). So, we add yet another QAnon conspiracy whack-o to the clown show. The Senate vote was again 52-48-0-0(0), with McConnell voting against his confirmation.
The insanity of what is playing out in the nation’s capital is beyond description. McConnell voted against both confirmations for all the right reasons. We are going to pay a very heavy price for what We, the People, did last November.
An old saying seems to be relevant to the political and governmental turmoil and chaos that is and probably will remain a hallmark of the 47th administration. “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.”
The administration under the guise of the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) is ransacking the federal government. Their pretentious rationale seems to be the ferreting out of fraud, waste, and abuse. Under that general banner of fraud, waste, and abuse (within the phrase, we will add in corruption and malfeasance), I do believe We, the People, are universally and unanimously in agreement regardless of political persuasion or affiliation. Everyone wants to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse. Unfortunately, or perhaps regrettably, the devil is in the details. I note the saying above.
USAID, by its very definition, concentrates on international aid that is based on a myriad of reasons. If you are of an isolationist (America First, AKA MAGA) mentality, then there is no need for international assistance; therefore, the agency tasked with such distribution does not need to exist.
Like every other American citizen, I want fraud, waste, and abuse in every federal (oh heck, every governmental organization at any level) to be eliminated. Where I go crosswise to the current administration in that effort is, I do NOT trust a word they say. Fraud, corruption, and some levels of abuse are felonious criminal acts. I want to see those criminals prosecuted and punished. What I fear is, the MAGAts are using he broad banners to eliminate programs and agencies they (in their conservative mindset) do not agree with or support. That is WRONG! If anyone disagrees with a program, change the law, debate the issue in congress. Do the task properly in accordance with the law. Do NOT do it by dictatorial fiat.
We have absolutely no reason to trust President [no name] and any of his sycophants at any level. That man has a very long history of false statements and exaggerations. He can call a body of water anything he wants. With respect, I shall stick with the proper name that is 400+ years old. That body of water is not some street in Keokuk, Iowa. It is an international body of water and shall remain the Gulf of Mexico for history.
In a classic “do as I say, not as I do” parental chastising, Vice President Vance lectured our European Allies on the failings of democracy in Europe at the Munich Security Conference on Thursday. I do believe the vice president piled high onto the peak of hypocrisy with his speech. He is part of an administration of MAGAts that are thumbing their noses at the U.S. Constitution and setting an example as the antithesis of democracy. He displayed grotesque condescension and ignorance throughout the speech. To be clear, democracy is NOT as [no name] and Vance define it; it IS as We, the People, define it. As one American citizen, I condemn Vance’s speech, and I publicly and openly apologize to our European Allies for the absurdity of his words.
One of many principles of good leadership is, praise in public, chastise in private. What Vance did in Munich was exactly the opposite. From the examples he gave, Vance had good reason to criticize some of our Allies. However, it was precisely the wrong forum to deliver such a message. Then, again, I think that is exactly what [no name] wanted—create chaos and put our friends and Allies on the defensive—rattle their cage.
Added to Vance’s absurdities, Hegseth publicly declares that Ukraine will never be part of NATO. Not only is he grossly wrong, immature, and foolish, it is a direct public insult to Ukraine. I ask this whole MAGAt bunch from the pinnacle on down to the gnat’s ass, what was NATO formed for in 1949? We have not sought Ukraine’s membership in NATO. Their membership request has been and remains their free choice. It would be interesting to hear their answer. My answer is: for mutual defense against Soviet hegemonic ambitions. If I am correct, today we simply substitute Russia for the Soviet Union. Ukraine seeks mutual defense against Russian aggression; there is no better reason for Ukraine to be part of the NATO defense shield. If Putin’s Russia had conducted themselves as a peaceful neighbor, there would be no need. But, that is not what Putin and his far-right-wing supporters have done since they solidified power in Russia. Since then, they have sought to resurrect the Soviet Union in all its glory. Ukraine seeks our protection and cooperation against Putin’s hegemony. We should respect and embrace Ukraine’s calls for help. Putin and the Russia right-wing extremists have brought this upon themselves. We did not seek the confrontation. I will argue that we did everything to avoid it and failed in that effort.
Why is there so much bias against [no name]? It is an interesting question.
I do not know why others may feel that way. All I can do is express my opinion, my perspective. To me, the answer is simple and is quite akin to that man’s sense of persecution by the Justice Department and other state prosecutors—you break the law; you will be prosecuted. You act like a bully; you will be treated like a bully. You conduct yourself like a dictator; you will be treated as free people treat dictators. It is that simple.
On 28.January.2025, eight days after his inauguration, President [no name] sign another Executive Order (EO), titled: PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM CHEMICAL AND SURGICAL MUTILATION. The EO defines a child in the context of the order as an individual “under 19 years of age.” The EO conveniently ignores the age of majority laws in each state. In most states, the age of majority (when a child legally becomes an adult) is 18 years of age. There are exceptions. Alabama and Nebraska set the age of majority at 19 years of age, and Mississippi uses 18 years of age, except for the purpose of child support (21 years of age). The EO further offers a plethora of false statements and ignorance regarding children dealing with gender dysphoria.
The above EO comes on the heels of another controversial EO signed by President [no name] on inauguration day—20.January.2025. The title of that one was DEFENDING WOMEN FROM GENDER IDEOLOGY EXTREMISM AND RESTORING BIOLOGICAL TRUTH TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. The EO states that the federal government will only recognize male and female genitalia.
I acknowledge and appreciate the difficulty conservatives and especially religious zealots have with gender dysphoria. To them, I suppose they truly believe that gender is defined by physical genitalia. They refuse to accept the reality that some human beings are born with ambiguous genitalia. The condition is also known as atypical genitalia and is a rare birth defect where an infant's external genitals are not clearly male or female.
The inhumanity of these two EOs is incalculable, just to placate the far right of our society. Conservatives have been passing laws for many decades to preserve the status quo, which they perceive as perfect. The assumption implies that all change is bad and only diminishes the perfection of their perceptions. They refuse to recognize science and reality. Non-heterosexual people and individuals with atypical genitalia have existed since humans walked upright.
The anti-gender-affirming medical care EO at the top injects the federal government into the VERY private lives of a small fraction of our society. The arrogance, ignorance, and outright cruelty of both EOs cannot be overstated.
First, doctors do not do emergency medical procedures on children (less than the age of majority) without the permission and consent of the parents or guardian. The implication of the EO that doctors are out mutilating children is an outright lie. Just like conservatives told outright lies about late term abortions, which have always been illegal, even under Roe v. Wade. Both EOs are solutions looking for a problem. Second, this damnable penchant of conservatives to inject themselves into the private lives of citizens is contemptible, disgusting, and outright cruel. Conservatives are NOT the arbiter of morality. Conservatives must stop meddling in the private lives and freedom of choice of citizens, or we must relegate them to the shadowy margins of the dustbin of history.
As a crystal-clear sign of the times, seven federal U.S. attorneys resigned rather than comply with an order from President [no name] and new Attorney General Bondi to dismiss federal corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Leroy Adams. The predominant notion is there was a quid pro quo at hand. As fate would have it, they found a lackey who would fulfill their bidding.
Comments and contributions from Update no.1204:
“Someone published the wording of Musk’s ‘buyout.’ It’s not correctly a buyout and many flaws stand out. The low response rate makes sense.
“I don’t know if the Felon and his henchmen understand the rule of law as well as Hitler did. He might skip that step like the mob boss he is.
“The Felon’s outrageous territorial proposals, especially Gaza, make him the most horrifying real estate developer imaginable.
“Biden appointed one more Federal judge than the Felon, and some of the Felon’s appointees use ethics. I hope they can ‘hold the line’ until special elections and midterms give us a different Congress. Also, look for under-reported protests all over the country.
“Getting rid of U.S.A.I.D. removes whatever vestiges of respect remained for us in the rest of the world.”
My response to the Blog:
Oh, I imagine not. Further, from my perspective, the buyout appears to be unconstitutional in that the offer seeks to circumvent Congress. I suppose they could avoid that conundrum if they funded the buyouts with their own money, but that is not entirely clear to me. Congress created the laws that established and sustains the professional civil service. The buyout offers, while ostensibly voluntary, ignore the established law. Reportedly, 65K federal civil service employees have accepted the buyout offer. The offer is a blatant attempt to intimidate professional civil service employees. The federal government is NOT and never should be run as a business.
Oh, I think they understand it, but they believe the Constitution and the law do not apply to them . . . after all, they tell us 77M citizens told them to do what they are doing. [No name] has repeatedly defied the Constitution and the law, and he has gotten away with it.
Indeed! Among so many other horrifying traits. If he was doing these things in private business, it would be one thing, but he is doing it for the whole United States of America. He claims it is a clear mandate from the people to do what he is doing. He fails to acknowledge that it is a minority of citizens who put him there.
As I stated previously, we have come to the last line of defense—the Judicial Branch. [No name] has already begun his direct assault on the Judiciary. We shall eventually and clearly see whether we have a democracy anymore. This is what happens when a large portion of the electorate decided to abstain from voting. A minority is taking our once grand republic directly toward dictatorship . . . fulfilling the Tytler Cycle.
Quite so, which is precisely why I see it as a very wrong action for a host of reasons. Once again, the Judiciary stands in the breech.
. . . Round two:
“Everything the Felon does violates the Constitution’s structure for the U.S. Government. The Congress sets policy, budgets and appropriates funds to carry out the policies. The Executive carries out the policies as best it can, but can’t appropriate money or set policy by itself. Even if the money for these actions had been budgeted (it hasn’t), the Executive still couldn’t spend it until it’s appropriated. The same structure outlaws most of the policy moves.
“Some Americans voted for the Felon but they couldn’t vote to set aside the Constitution.
“The Judicial Branch has slowed some of the criminal actions. I still don’t care for blaming voters.
“USAID will rise or fall with the fate of the country.”
. . . my response to round two:
‘Everything’ is a bit much, but I accept the sentiment. Your summary is spot on correct, which is also the basis of my claim that what he is doing from creating DOGE to the actions Musk is directing is unconstitutional. The problem We, the People, have is, our only remedy in the short term is judicial action. Impeachment (again) is out of the question with the MAGAts infiltration of the House and Senate. We, the People, have given him virtually dictatorial power with the congressional MAGAts aiding and abetting his dictatorial actions. We, the People, did this! He told the world what he was going to do repeatedly, and we still elected him. We, the People, are to blame in all this malfeasance.
Correct. We have not voted to set aside the Constitution. He was very plain and direct in his campaign claims, declarations, and descriptions. He told us repeatedly what he was going to do. We, the People, elected him anyway. He was a convicted felon well before the election. He has been found liable in courts of law for malfeasance. Yet, despite all that public evidence, We, the People, elected him; he won both the popular vote and the Electoral College vote, fair and square in accordance with the Constitution. He is doing what he was elected to do, and We, the People, put him there to do exactly what he is doing, constitutional or unconstitutional, legal or illegal. We did this!
I appreciate that you do not care for blaming voters, but I am not as generous or forgiving as you are. I know exactly who caused this.
I hope you are correct. There is far more good that USAID does than any evidence-less accusations from a man who has a long history of lying and making false statements.
That man has been, is, and always will be a con-man. He is what he is. Far too many Americans have chosen to ignore the facts. So be it! We have what we have. We voted for this (or chose not to vote)!
. . . Round three:
“If we must assign blame, I’ll come back to something I edited out of my reply. The Democratic National Committee won the Presidency in 2020 and gained Congressional seats in 2022 in instances where their candidates addressed issues that concern most of the voters. Support for labor was a winner. Financial support for families and small businesses during COVID mattered. Healthcare could have been.
“Then they went back to being the weaker party. ‘We’re not him’ doesn’t draw votes, and “look how great it is” is clearly out of touch with about three quarters of voters’ lives.
“The human factor in this is that a majority of voters have never in history done the kind of research that you and I do. Don’t expect it. The Felon drew on voters’ fears, some of which are realistic. His solutions may be lunacy, but at least he talked about their concerns. There is such a thing as ‘left populist’ to counter the Felon’s “right populist”, but the DNC hasn’t come close to it.”
. . . my response to round three:
I cannot and will not defend or attempt to justify the failings of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). We can ascribe blame to the DNC if we wish. However, to me, the data does not support the hypothesis. When I look at historic voter turnout rates for presidential election since the founding of the Republic, I see a peak plateau at 80 per centum from 1840 to 1890, and then the turnout rate steadily drops to a low point at 50 per centum in 1920. It seems to have stabilized in a new plateau at 60 per centum, with a distinct spike to 66.6 per centum in the 2020 election. We can speculate why we dropped to 63.7 per centum in the 2024 election. To me, the most telling data is the midterm turnout rate that is generally 20 per centum below the presidential years. Your hypothesis for the drop in the 2024 election may well be correct, since every individual has independent and personal reasons for choosing not to vote.
As a side note, the British voter turnout rates have a median of 75 per centum over the last century with a peak of 83.9 per centum in the 1950 election.
The data aside, I will declare directly that there are more than a few American citizens who I would prefer did not vote since they are broadly uneducated. From my respective, they vote for emotional and capricious reasons that are never good. Yet, that is not our system of governance. Poll taxes in all their despicable forms are unconstitutional and illegal, and rightly so. We profess open and free elections. We, the People, vote because we want to vote.
The Felon-in-Chief (FIC), AKA [no name], has quite successfully formed a coalition of right-, extreme-right-, and ultra-right-wing groups, and they have been convinced to vote. Perhaps, the left needs their version of the FIC to mobilize the left.
I believe in my later years that the United States is a moderate, progressive nation. Unfortunately, the con-man-in-chief (FIC) has drawn the right-wing extremes out of the shadows and into the sunlight of the mainstream, making this country seem far right. I cannot (perhaps refuse) believe that is true or accurate. We are better than the right-wing.
As I have written numerous times, I see voting as a duty, an obligation as a citizen of the Republic. Our task as voters (citizens) is to select the best of the lot. If an individual wishes to participate in the selection of a candidate, then join the political party of your choice and vote in the primary elections.
At the end of the day, abstention (for whatever reason) is exactly why we must suffer the shenanigans of the current administration and the clowns who have made the White House a circus.
I agree with much of your assessment of the DNC and that party in general. However, I see voting in a different light. We are voting for the operation of the government, not a financial advisor to improve our lives.
. . . Round four:
“You offer a fine analysis of the ideals of voting, but it fails to address the mechanics of the situation. The two-party system offers no party of my choice, and that obviously applies to the 34% of voters who are independent. I have found a smaller party that comes closer, but we encounter the same ballot access issues and funding problems disproportionate to size that other small parties always have. You still want individuals by the millions to change rather than address systemic issues that have everything to do with this mess.
“What on earth does the reference to a financial advisor have to do with this? I'm not in a demographic that needs one of those.”
. . . my response to round four:
For the record, I am all in favor of improvement of our governance including our electoral processes. What sends chills to my bones is the thought that MAGAts will develop and institute those reforms to suit their quest for power. We can embrace and debate the chicken & egg conundrum, but at the bottom line we select our representatives by our votes. If we choose not to vote for any reason(s), we are abdicating to the MAGAts. They vote! So, we have a choice, we can hold out in hope that the system will be reformed, or we can vote for representatives who will deliver positive reform. The choice is still ours.
Not worth the time. Bad metaphor. Voting is not about each of us as individuals; it is entirely about the health and wellbeing of the Republic.
. . . Round five:
“I'll mention that neither ballot access nor campaign finance are Constitutional issues. The Founders failed to address them.
“You're welcome to all the indignation you're willing to feel at the rest of us. It doesn't change human nature at all.”
. . . my response to round five:
I must concede that point. True! However, I turn to the principles espoused in the Declaration of Independence. We are all created equal. Ballot access and campaign finance codifies inequality, which violates that basic principle of the Republic.
My indignation is my cross to bear. You (and every citizen) are free to choose whatever your wish for whatever reason(s) you wish. My opinion of your choices and reasons does not matter a twit.
I offer my opinion(s) only for contrast, not for persuasion.
Another contribution:
“I am sending to two groups. Anyone who would like to reply to Cap, you can either echo back to me and I will share to all, or you can send your reply directly to, who I have inserted his email into the ‘TO’ field above.
“Cap, as a retort, I might add to your weekly Update, that during the first term (2016) for Trump, and then during the entire Biden presidency, it seemed to me that the tactics and methods you refer to with similarities to Hitler, were collectively being done to Trump, his allies, and pronounced supporters (MAGA).
“Further, during COVID 2020 and beyond, it was experienced by many of us that it was Nazi Germany in America, with the lockdowns, forced masks, and many who were forced with the experimental VAX-JAB, or else, like losing their jobs and livelihood, losing their businesses, homes, marriages and for too many, suicide. This is my personal view, but believe me, it is shared by millions of Americans with many harboring much more radical opinion than mine.”
My reply:
Also, thank you for the wider distribution. I rarely get a response, but you never know unless you ask. All comments and contributions are welcome.
Let it suffice to say at this juncture, I do not agree. Yet, I am humble enough to admit I am not omniscient. I listen to and try to understand all opinions. My disagreement comes from your placing POTUS45 and POTUS46 in the same bucket. Further, we are discussing the current administration. The past does not justify the present or future no matter how hard anyone tries. What happened to [no name] in court is entirely his doing. He broke the law. He was duly and properly convicted of felonious crimes in a valid court of law. He has also been held liable in several judicial civil judgments. The federal indictments (plural) were heavily documented and spot on accurate; Special Counsel Smith would have gained convictions if he had been able to present the case against [no name] in court. A minority of 77M American citizens voted to condone his criminal conduct; so it is; so be it. We have what we have today.
Thank you for sharing your personal view on the pandemic response. I shall remind you that it was POTUS45 who activated and espoused the pandemic guidelines. They were federal guidelines; they were not laws. It was President Biden who ended the pandemic guidelines. Further, I do not agree with your “Nazi Germany in America” analogy. I will certainly listen to your argument in support of such a notion. Lastly, my comparison in Update no.1204 was about the present, the current administration, POTUS47. As I said, the past does not justify the present.
[Well, damn! My ‘puter dumped my response that I was editing before sending. I shall take the time to reconstruct what was lost!]
I certainly recognize and acknowledge that there are many American citizens who harbor far more radical opinions than you have presented. To be frank and blunt, history records that American citizens have held political views at both extremes from the KKK & Aryan Brotherhood to the American Communist Party. Until [no name] arrived on the political stage (2015), those political extremes were largely kept in the shadows. What [no name] managed to do was form a coalition of right-wing groups all the way out to the extreme, and give legitimacy and voice to those fringe groups. And, he convinced those right-wing groups to vote. He deserves malevolent credit for that accomplishment. To be clear, the popular vote totals from the last three presidential elections were:
[no name] opponent
2016 63M 66M
2020 74M 81M
2024 77M 75M
Those are hardly resounding mandate numbers. In 2024, only 63.7% of eligible voters chose to vote; that’s 89M who chose not to vote. What [no name] is doing today is telling We, the People, that he is speaking and acting on behalf of the People. He is emphatically not acting on behalf of We, the People. He is, in fact, acting on behalf of his far-right-wing coalition. Yet, that is our system of governance, but that does not mean we have to agree with what he is doing to this country.
[Just for an interesting comparison: the 1932 presidential election results were: Roosevelt – 23M, Hoover – 16M, with a turnout of 57%.]
[No name] was a very long way from that magnitude on the mandate scale.
. . . Round two:
“Thank you for your thoughtful response. I appreciate your detailed attention to much in the various realms we've discussed, and your insights.
“Because of this late hour, I wanted to at least get your thoughts out to the Group, and please await my response tomorrow (Wednesday).
“Cap, I appreciate your professionalism and civility, no matter the debate/discussion and any differing views.”
. . . my reply to round two:
I eagerly await your continuing contributions, whenever you can find the time.
I may not agree, but I am driven by the belief that democracy depends upon open debate and disagreement in an effort to find some state of compromise on any particular topic. Productive debate demands civility and respect for the opinions of others.
. . . Round three:
“Whether we have differences in politics, like many in our divisive climate, we do agree on many items, and I know without a doubt that you care about our nation very much.
“There were some additional items I wanted to add to my response to your Update, and as such, due to other tasks, did not get to it this evening, so Thursday will be a better day.”
. . . my reply to round three:
We have the beginnings of a mutual admiration society.
Yes, we do agree on many topics. We will also disagree. Yet, we will do so respectfully.
Take your time. Contribute when you are able. The door is always open.
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
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