Thanks for highlighting project 2025. Every voter needs to read this and let it sink in as far as the expanded power of the presidency and the filling of the daily government positions with sycophants whose only qualifications are to say the 2020 election was stolen. This is really a blueprint for authoritarian government t
Post and repost the May 1 issue of Heather Cox Richardson’s substack issue. I've sent it to everyone I know with the header “ A MUST READ”. She outlines this interview very well.
Here in Washington state our GOP is openly calling for the abolition of Democracy. That’s crazy but they are dead serious. We must believe what they say and vote accordingly
I saw a video of someone arguing against democracy. What’s their beef? Don’t they realize that without democracy, they wouldn’t have the freedom they have today to stand up there pontificating?
The assumption is that, if they get rid of democracy, they will still have freedom, but you won't have freedom. That's what they want. They never seem to realize that the leopard is going to eat their face, too, not just ours.
In the video I saw, the woman wanted to replace the word “democracy” with “republic” because she said “democracy” sounded too much like the political party of Democrats. It was that idiotic.
Sure, they understand that, but they also understand that if they're in charge and they take away that right, they'll be the ONLY one allowed to speak. That's their ultimate goal, to have all the power, permanently.
So absolutely true. It’s a completely uninformed position on the part of the voters. All it takes is some reading on what life is like for the ordinary citizens of any theocracy, or Arabic kingdoms, or Russia. It’s almost like the attitude of the complient child: Dad will take care of everything.
Dad [parent)-child dynamics. Well put. And they might get a dad (like Trump) who doesn't care about his own children or anyone else's for that matter! Only himself- and he doesn't even know how to do that well! (He's a damaged child himself who has never grown up or grown out of his own darkness and toxicity. Sorry, I am practicing psychiatry without a license; but there are qualified people who do say that. Could we add that many who support him have shame issues too, which express as anger, grievance, violence in rhetoric and action, attraction to "strong men? Add toxic religion and greedy billionaires to the mix- Oh, my!) But I digress. Thanks for your post.
All those billions in their banks aren't enough. Permanent power and the race to beat all other billionaires out of their goods are the points. Two movies to watch for the fruits of their policies are Judgment at Nuremberg after the Nazis lost and Wall-E if they win.
I believe many republicans are calling to end democracy and they are saying it out loud. I believe they think they have gerrymandered and created enough voter suppression across the country that they can probably win this election.
I saw that and was absolutely horrified. Blame the string of cases starting with Buckley v. Valeo (1976).
Also blame Lewis Powell, corporate lawyer whom Nixon appointed to the supreme (sic) court within months after his 1971 memo to the national Chamber of Commerce advising the corporate takeover of the US government and how to accomplish it.
The rollback of citizen voting rights really took off after that. See Citizens United v. FEC, (2010), Speech Now v. FEC (2010) which authorized the creation of Super PACs, and McCutcheon v. FEC (2014), which struck down other campaign finance laws.
Yes!!! I saw that, it’s jaw-dropping. I’m sure everyone on here, if you’ve ever used Twitter, will have had the experience of some MAGA smartass correct you when you say something about “our democracy” & they’ll say,
“We aren’t a democracy, we are a Constitutional Republic.”
They want to go back to the way it was way back when your 2 Federal Senators were chosen by the state legislature, rather than by statewide vote (direct election) In other words, they want power back in the hands of the wealthy bosses, this democracy thing just gives too much power to the riff raff. 🤬
Jess, you are a hero who keeps on pushing. And in reading about all our past presidents, losing an election is a common thread. I hope you are strengthened to know that we’re rooting for you and look forward to seeing you on the national stage!
Hi Jess! First, you are such an effective communicator. As a door knocker myself (wish I was able to do it more than I do), I value voices like yours and do my best to emulate when I'm in those "elevator pitch" situations.
Secondly, thank you for doing the work in a state that really needs the help. When there is movement towards a more democratic government, it'll be thanks to people like you. I look forward to seeing your continued success.
Thank you for your heroism, courage, and dedication Jessica in doing all you can to subvert these people.
Just watched the film 'Bad Faith' - and was rather shocked that the unholy coalition of right wing groups like Heritage, Federalists, Corporate money-grubbers, GOP, & Christian Nationalists actually put in writing their manifesto to destroy our current form of government and replace it with their dystopian ideology of a pluto-theocracy. Truly shocking. Even more disturbing are the disciples who are willing to enlist in this [Un]Holy War against democracy, which they've been brainwashed into believing as righteous.
The situation seems grave and overwhelming, but my faith has taught me that love, service, compassion, and kindness are more powerful than hate and cruelty, especially when we unite against such treachery and lies.
I feel like we are being swamped by right wing politicians who cater to both the wealthy and the stupid so they can remain in power with the perks that come with that. Also the super wealthy and large corporations who simply want to ensure their tax breaks and deregulation, which will save them millions even though it will cost lives. These are the two groups that have always been among us.
Then the downright stupid, religious fanatics, and willfully ignorant and racists and homophobes add to that group and where does it leave the rest of us? This last group may have always been there too, but are in much larger numbers now, maybe due to poorer education, heightened evangelicalism and the gullibility towards social media that is a newer phenomenon.
I’m in a red state too…Florida (I have like minded friends).I see no way out of this without enduring several decades or more to maybe see a turnaround, if that is even possible. Then there’s climate change, never ending wars which could make it all a moot point.
I’m old and have mockingbirds bathing, without a care in the world, all the time in my birdbath right out my window. What a delight they are and it lowers my BP when I think about all this other and feel it’s hopeless. Perhaps a good lesson.
Top-Notch analysis, as usual. If you think for a minute that big money and big business cares about abortion, wokeness, environment, immigration (cheap labor?) you have only been looking at the surface reporting. They embrace and fund cultural issues like this to keep their right wing coalition together. Citizens United paved the way. It is absolutely about taxes and regulations.
It sure sounds as if Missouri progressives have a tough row to hoe, Jess. My state used to be reliably red, and is now close to flipping control of the Legislature to turn the state solid blue. I wish I had some helpful advice to give, but I honestly do not know why this is happening. The electorate here is roughly equally divided between R’s and D’s and Independents. Maybe the Independents are just tired of the regressive policies and constant chaos of conservative rule. All I can say is hang in there and keep fighting.
One fundamental question I've had since I found out about project 2025 is... The ultra rich want to control seemingly everything that impacts their money making ability. That money, or a decent part of it, comes from consumers... who will be thrown into a deep, dark well wholesale if their plans get implemented. The banking industry and stock markets would be severely inpacted as well...so, what are these plans going to do for them as the planet is subjected to even more climate crisis and the majority of the 'little people' who will bear the brunt of the social and economic consequences which means consumerism dies as well? To me, they seem like the bad guys at the end of the first Indiana Jones movie where they achieve their quest for the Ark... And then they melt, screaming, into puddles when they behold what they most desired. 😣 But the rest of us can't just close our eyes to survive the consequences like Indy did...
I live in eastern NC, where there are large animal feeding operations-turkeys, chickens, hogs. Just normal operations of these industrial farms, puts communities at risk-rural communities without many employment options. THEN eastern NC experiences a hurricane. Talk about environmental damage!
These large animal operations have been around for years in this part of the state. A small farm with about 20 hogs stinks to high heaven! An industrial feeding operation smells EXPONENTIALLY WORSE! Not to mention damage to soil and water. But the big companies, some of which are owned by Chinese companies, want no regulation AT ALL.
When I was a kid in 4th grade we had to move from Arizona to Kirkwood Missouri. This was 1971/72 or so. The schools better than what I’d attended in Glendale Arizona, and I was a good student.
When my brother relocated from Tucson Arizona to st charles Missouri in 1999 with his young family, the chorus was “at least the schools are better”. Sounds like that may no longer hold.
I honestly don’t understand what we’re coming to. Sounds like near serfdom is the desired result.
Well, Kirkwood is a pretty high-income community, so the schools are still very, very good. St. Charles, the town and the county, have grown exponentially due to white flight from north St. Louis County and St. Louis city, so the schools are still good. This says a lot about schools everywhere. Running away from immigrants and people of color? Live in a relatively wealthy community? Your kids get a better education! Tying property tax to education should never have been allowed. It's a cruel injustice.
Fucking EVIL. This is why I stopped eating pork over 10 years ago.
"CAFO is an acronym for concentrated animal feeding operation. It can be a large barn holding anything from chickens to turkeys to cows to hogs. To be considered a large CAFO, an operation holds around 2,500 hogs or 700 cows. They can hold 55,000 turkeys or 30,000 laying hens. These are massive operations and they are common in rural spaces…they also decimate said spaces.
Corporations are now dominating our food system. While nearly half of all small and medium hog operations have closed in recent decades, the number of large farms has almost doubled. In 1997, large farms accounted for nearly 40% of the swine produced in the U.S. Today, these operations produce more than 72% of U.S. hogs, according to this report.
What does that look like in practice? It looks like Missouri lawmakers stripping local control of rural communities back in 2019. In 2022, the Missouri Supreme Court upheld that state law prohibiting local CAFO regulations. The Missouri General Assembly passed legislation to restrict counties from imposing regulations on industrial livestock operations — CAFOs won."
We're seeing factory farms and enormous slaughterhouses. The pork "industry"is particularly heinous. And the GOP wants to keep it that way.
We are looking at America becoming a nightmare world for animals and humans should Trump be put back into the presidency. A governor shooting a dog has outraged people, but the meat industry has not affected them at all, in large part because the horror of it is a well-kept secret.
More people need to educate themselves about the horrors of giant agriculture, the animal abuse is horrific & the environmental damage is incalculable. People really must stop eating so much meat & dairy. It’s damaging to our physical health too.
I became vegan over 5 yrs ago & I can honestly say, it’s great. If you live in a small town like I do, being vegan & eating out is a bit difficult; so I don’t eat out very often.
Let's not forget our terrible crumbling bridge infrastructures. Oh, and the roads. And the money that is NOT being spent on fixing them, even though it's available. And did I mention that roads in poorer, Black neighborhoods tend to get shoved to the end of the list? I want to be sure Republicans get credit for all of the issues they refuse to address and the ones they've caused.
Thanks for highlighting project 2025. Every voter needs to read this and let it sink in as far as the expanded power of the presidency and the filling of the daily government positions with sycophants whose only qualifications are to say the 2020 election was stolen. This is really a blueprint for authoritarian government t
Every voter needs to read it and the article on Trump in Time Magazine! Required reading!
Post and repost the May 1 issue of Heather Cox Richardson’s substack issue. I've sent it to everyone I know with the header “ A MUST READ”. She outlines this interview very well.
Here in Washington state our GOP is openly calling for the abolition of Democracy. That’s crazy but they are dead serious. We must believe what they say and vote accordingly
I saw a video of someone arguing against democracy. What’s their beef? Don’t they realize that without democracy, they wouldn’t have the freedom they have today to stand up there pontificating?
The assumption is that, if they get rid of democracy, they will still have freedom, but you won't have freedom. That's what they want. They never seem to realize that the leopard is going to eat their face, too, not just ours.
🏆🏆🔥
In the video I saw, the woman wanted to replace the word “democracy” with “republic” because she said “democracy” sounded too much like the political party of Democrats. It was that idiotic.
I have given up trying to understand them.
Sure, they understand that, but they also understand that if they're in charge and they take away that right, they'll be the ONLY one allowed to speak. That's their ultimate goal, to have all the power, permanently.
So absolutely true. It’s a completely uninformed position on the part of the voters. All it takes is some reading on what life is like for the ordinary citizens of any theocracy, or Arabic kingdoms, or Russia. It’s almost like the attitude of the complient child: Dad will take care of everything.
Dad [parent)-child dynamics. Well put. And they might get a dad (like Trump) who doesn't care about his own children or anyone else's for that matter! Only himself- and he doesn't even know how to do that well! (He's a damaged child himself who has never grown up or grown out of his own darkness and toxicity. Sorry, I am practicing psychiatry without a license; but there are qualified people who do say that. Could we add that many who support him have shame issues too, which express as anger, grievance, violence in rhetoric and action, attraction to "strong men? Add toxic religion and greedy billionaires to the mix- Oh, my!) But I digress. Thanks for your post.
All those billions in their banks aren't enough. Permanent power and the race to beat all other billionaires out of their goods are the points. Two movies to watch for the fruits of their policies are Judgment at Nuremberg after the Nazis lost and Wall-E if they win.
I believe many republicans are calling to end democracy and they are saying it out loud. I believe they think they have gerrymandered and created enough voter suppression across the country that they can probably win this election.
I saw that and was absolutely horrified. Blame the string of cases starting with Buckley v. Valeo (1976).
Also blame Lewis Powell, corporate lawyer whom Nixon appointed to the supreme (sic) court within months after his 1971 memo to the national Chamber of Commerce advising the corporate takeover of the US government and how to accomplish it.
The rollback of citizen voting rights really took off after that. See Citizens United v. FEC, (2010), Speech Now v. FEC (2010) which authorized the creation of Super PACs, and McCutcheon v. FEC (2014), which struck down other campaign finance laws.
Yes!!! I saw that, it’s jaw-dropping. I’m sure everyone on here, if you’ve ever used Twitter, will have had the experience of some MAGA smartass correct you when you say something about “our democracy” & they’ll say,
“We aren’t a democracy, we are a Constitutional Republic.”
They want to go back to the way it was way back when your 2 Federal Senators were chosen by the state legislature, rather than by statewide vote (direct election) In other words, they want power back in the hands of the wealthy bosses, this democracy thing just gives too much power to the riff raff. 🤬
Yes! I always wondered why that definition was such a contentious subject. Now I know
Jess, you are a hero who keeps on pushing. And in reading about all our past presidents, losing an election is a common thread. I hope you are strengthened to know that we’re rooting for you and look forward to seeing you on the national stage!
Hi Jess! First, you are such an effective communicator. As a door knocker myself (wish I was able to do it more than I do), I value voices like yours and do my best to emulate when I'm in those "elevator pitch" situations.
Secondly, thank you for doing the work in a state that really needs the help. When there is movement towards a more democratic government, it'll be thanks to people like you. I look forward to seeing your continued success.
Thank you for your heroism, courage, and dedication Jessica in doing all you can to subvert these people.
Just watched the film 'Bad Faith' - and was rather shocked that the unholy coalition of right wing groups like Heritage, Federalists, Corporate money-grubbers, GOP, & Christian Nationalists actually put in writing their manifesto to destroy our current form of government and replace it with their dystopian ideology of a pluto-theocracy. Truly shocking. Even more disturbing are the disciples who are willing to enlist in this [Un]Holy War against democracy, which they've been brainwashed into believing as righteous.
The situation seems grave and overwhelming, but my faith has taught me that love, service, compassion, and kindness are more powerful than hate and cruelty, especially when we unite against such treachery and lies.
I need to add that film to my list! Solidarity.
Just bought the film on Amazon. Thank you for suggesting it.
I feel like we are being swamped by right wing politicians who cater to both the wealthy and the stupid so they can remain in power with the perks that come with that. Also the super wealthy and large corporations who simply want to ensure their tax breaks and deregulation, which will save them millions even though it will cost lives. These are the two groups that have always been among us.
Then the downright stupid, religious fanatics, and willfully ignorant and racists and homophobes add to that group and where does it leave the rest of us? This last group may have always been there too, but are in much larger numbers now, maybe due to poorer education, heightened evangelicalism and the gullibility towards social media that is a newer phenomenon.
I’m in a red state too…Florida (I have like minded friends).I see no way out of this without enduring several decades or more to maybe see a turnaround, if that is even possible. Then there’s climate change, never ending wars which could make it all a moot point.
I’m old and have mockingbirds bathing, without a care in the world, all the time in my birdbath right out my window. What a delight they are and it lowers my BP when I think about all this other and feel it’s hopeless. Perhaps a good lesson.
It is not hopeless as long as there are those of us with hope. Solidarity with you and the mockingbirds! "
Hope is a thing with wings!"
Yes, Hope! "Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul" (Emily Dickenson)
Top-Notch analysis, as usual. If you think for a minute that big money and big business cares about abortion, wokeness, environment, immigration (cheap labor?) you have only been looking at the surface reporting. They embrace and fund cultural issues like this to keep their right wing coalition together. Citizens United paved the way. It is absolutely about taxes and regulations.
Yes. FedEx and AT&T are big donors to the extremists.
It sure sounds as if Missouri progressives have a tough row to hoe, Jess. My state used to be reliably red, and is now close to flipping control of the Legislature to turn the state solid blue. I wish I had some helpful advice to give, but I honestly do not know why this is happening. The electorate here is roughly equally divided between R’s and D’s and Independents. Maybe the Independents are just tired of the regressive policies and constant chaos of conservative rule. All I can say is hang in there and keep fighting.
One fundamental question I've had since I found out about project 2025 is... The ultra rich want to control seemingly everything that impacts their money making ability. That money, or a decent part of it, comes from consumers... who will be thrown into a deep, dark well wholesale if their plans get implemented. The banking industry and stock markets would be severely inpacted as well...so, what are these plans going to do for them as the planet is subjected to even more climate crisis and the majority of the 'little people' who will bear the brunt of the social and economic consequences which means consumerism dies as well? To me, they seem like the bad guys at the end of the first Indiana Jones movie where they achieve their quest for the Ark... And then they melt, screaming, into puddles when they behold what they most desired. 😣 But the rest of us can't just close our eyes to survive the consequences like Indy did...
They wrote it to streamline their agenda among all Republicans and/or Christian Nationalists. They are lockstep in this process.
I live in eastern NC, where there are large animal feeding operations-turkeys, chickens, hogs. Just normal operations of these industrial farms, puts communities at risk-rural communities without many employment options. THEN eastern NC experiences a hurricane. Talk about environmental damage!
These large animal operations have been around for years in this part of the state. A small farm with about 20 hogs stinks to high heaven! An industrial feeding operation smells EXPONENTIALLY WORSE! Not to mention damage to soil and water. But the big companies, some of which are owned by Chinese companies, want no regulation AT ALL.
Your ex-governor and his friends at Duke Energy certainly cost your citizens a lot of pain environmentally. At least your voters turned them out.
When I was a kid in 4th grade we had to move from Arizona to Kirkwood Missouri. This was 1971/72 or so. The schools better than what I’d attended in Glendale Arizona, and I was a good student.
When my brother relocated from Tucson Arizona to st charles Missouri in 1999 with his young family, the chorus was “at least the schools are better”. Sounds like that may no longer hold.
I honestly don’t understand what we’re coming to. Sounds like near serfdom is the desired result.
I think you just hit the nail on the head!
Well, Kirkwood is a pretty high-income community, so the schools are still very, very good. St. Charles, the town and the county, have grown exponentially due to white flight from north St. Louis County and St. Louis city, so the schools are still good. This says a lot about schools everywhere. Running away from immigrants and people of color? Live in a relatively wealthy community? Your kids get a better education! Tying property tax to education should never have been allowed. It's a cruel injustice.
And this is not me denigrating either town/area. I have family in both places and I live near this area.
Fucking EVIL. This is why I stopped eating pork over 10 years ago.
"CAFO is an acronym for concentrated animal feeding operation. It can be a large barn holding anything from chickens to turkeys to cows to hogs. To be considered a large CAFO, an operation holds around 2,500 hogs or 700 cows. They can hold 55,000 turkeys or 30,000 laying hens. These are massive operations and they are common in rural spaces…they also decimate said spaces.
Corporations are now dominating our food system. While nearly half of all small and medium hog operations have closed in recent decades, the number of large farms has almost doubled. In 1997, large farms accounted for nearly 40% of the swine produced in the U.S. Today, these operations produce more than 72% of U.S. hogs, according to this report.
What does that look like in practice? It looks like Missouri lawmakers stripping local control of rural communities back in 2019. In 2022, the Missouri Supreme Court upheld that state law prohibiting local CAFO regulations. The Missouri General Assembly passed legislation to restrict counties from imposing regulations on industrial livestock operations — CAFOs won."
We're seeing factory farms and enormous slaughterhouses. The pork "industry"is particularly heinous. And the GOP wants to keep it that way.
We are looking at America becoming a nightmare world for animals and humans should Trump be put back into the presidency. A governor shooting a dog has outraged people, but the meat industry has not affected them at all, in large part because the horror of it is a well-kept secret.
More people need to educate themselves about the horrors of giant agriculture, the animal abuse is horrific & the environmental damage is incalculable. People really must stop eating so much meat & dairy. It’s damaging to our physical health too.
I became vegan over 5 yrs ago & I can honestly say, it’s great. If you live in a small town like I do, being vegan & eating out is a bit difficult; so I don’t eat out very often.
Your contribution, Jess, is beyond my words; your Mizzou life tells the tale. Thanks a million.
Let's not forget our terrible crumbling bridge infrastructures. Oh, and the roads. And the money that is NOT being spent on fixing them, even though it's available. And did I mention that roads in poorer, Black neighborhoods tend to get shoved to the end of the list? I want to be sure Republicans get credit for all of the issues they refuse to address and the ones they've caused.