Steve O'Donnell

Marjorie Taylor Greene, of all people, is arguing that Republicans could reopen the government if they wanted to, using a tactic they used to confirm Trump nominees a few weeks ago. Her argument is veeeeery close to one made recently by Bill Scher in Washington Monthly.

A great thread. Stick with it until the end. There was another post on Bluesky about the idea that even the Republicans, behind closed doors, are saying that Trump has dementia.

Nice idea. You'll want to answer honestly to specific ethnicity and history questions from your doctor, in the privacy of the exam room. But I like this idea of not allowing the patient database to help profile people.

Did you want to share a specific example of slanted, or soft, reporting?

If the majority leader cannot control what Trump and his people are doing, the majority leader needs to find a new job.

As someone else said on Bluesky, what is WRONG with the man that he assumes a stopped elevator is a plot to assassinate him?

White House Uses Shutdown to Maximize Pain and Punish Political Foes

Here's the headline from the lead story in the Oct. 2 New York Times major news email today:

"White House Uses Shutdown to Maximize Pain and Punish Political Foes"

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/u...

🗣️THIS is the message!!

Brava, Congresswoman @aoc.bsky.social!!

That's a neat framing to what may turn out to be an existential issue for our country. I believe it was Washington, at his farewell address, who warned us about putting the interests of party ahead of the interest of the country and its citizenry.

And well they should. My daughter volunteers at my grandson's school. I have to ask her what the teachers have been saying about Walters' resignation.

You hit the nail on the head.

Cowardly deflection. Leavitt is good at spewing her talking points, but every so often there is a glitch in The Matrix: She couldn't think of a valid comeback (because there is none) so, just like her boss, she criticized the question and the questioner. At least she wasn't wearing her cross today.

There was another post this morning that referenced a TikTok video detailing gun deaths in major developed countries over the past few decades. Unfortunately, the U.S. "won" that contest, too.

All it takes is trying to understand what people need to live their lives in something approaching confort. Mamdani undoubtedly doesn't have solutions to all of our problems, but he's thinking creatively about solutions, which, as you say, is why people in the establishment don't care for him.

I guess the guys who apply gold leaf to everything in sight are contractors. I just hope they get the checks they were promised. (Actually, I hope they walk off the job before they apply all that gold leaf, but I'll take whatever I can get.)

"The president takes crime seriously." Yes, he performs crime whenever he gets the chance.

Saw another post of Goodall at a young age. She was beautiful as a young woman, and she was beautiful as an old woman. Probably had something to do with the fact that she was beautiful inside.

R.I.P. Someone who dedicated herself to just sitting with the animals and learning from them.

Trump speaks the truth [for once]!

She's correct. The president has the right to post off-the-wall-and-bouncing insane videos on his own social media platform and then delete said posts. Also, we have the right to take these actions as evidence that the president is off-the-walls-and-bouncing insane.

I'm sure you're correct. I find it interesting—make that "distressing"—that adherence to human rights, due process, wartime rules of engagement, and even the precepts enshrined in the Bill of Rights can be considered "inconveniences."

He wants to get ahead of this Mamdani thing, and shut down funding now.

That is the sickest thing I've heard in a long time. DEI subways?

More guns than people…

Is it freedom or a national death cult that keeps growing?

That is a brilliant illustration of the issue.

"Move along, folks. Nothing to see here."

— Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh

It makes Russia evil. And it would (will?) make us evil, as well.

Or, "Republicans Can't Muster the Courage to Kill the Filibuster and Reopen Government." And if they did kill the filibuster, they could easily argue that they "saved" the American people from a Democrat-led shutdown.

As a morning person, I'll own this. 😊