Thom

We often extend the privilege of our understanding to those within our circle, allowing them to bend the rules we so rigidly enforce against those we perceive as outsiders.

We can have vigorous, even fierce, disagreements on policy without sacrificing our shared respect for the office and for each other. Decorum is the guardrail of a functional democracy.

5/5

🔹 It Sets a Toxic Example: Our leaders are role models, whether they want to be or not. Their conduct filters down, normalizing incivility in our own communities and online spaces.

4/5

🔹 It Erodes Public Trust: When officials resort to schoolyard taunts and personal attacks, it degrades the very institutions they represent. How can we trust them to handle a crisis if they can't manage basic civility?

3/5

🔹 It's a National Security Issue: Petty insults and undignified behavior on the world stage undermine alliances and embolden adversaries. It projects instability, not strength.

2/5

It's disheartening to see the constant erosion of basic decorum among some of our highest government officials. This isn't about stifling debate or enforcing a rigid code of conduct.

It's about recognizing that how our leaders behave has real consequences:

🧵 1/5

The core sickness in our discourse isn't a disagreement over policy. It's the pervasive refusal to see the person on the other side as a complex, feeling human being.

Once you reduce someone to a label for an idea, empathy becomes impossible. And without empathy, there is no dialogue. Only combat.

What was that about rhetoric from the Left fueling violence?

Shocking.

Disagreement is the engine of democracy. Dehumanization is the engine of collapse.

#Civility #Politics

The image shows two X posts. The first, by Juliette Kayyem (@juliettekayyem ) from 1 hour ago, states: "'Take care of' is not subtle. This weekend the ground has shifted and no person can deny what the president, unpopular and unfit, intends. To remain silent is to welcome this. They can both sides or claim they didn't hear, but there is no wiggle room about his plans now." The second, by Aaron Rupar (@atrupar ) from 6 hours ago, quotes Trump addressing the Navy: "We have to take care of this little gnat that's on our shoulder called the Democrats." The post includes a photo of Trump speaking to a group in Navy uniforms, with a caption noting he "called the Democrats. They want to give all of our money to illegal."

No President should ever stoke this kind of division and dehumanize the other half of the country in this way.

You can’t say you’re law and order and break any laws. Copyright laws included. #justiceforpokemon

The catch: Enforcement is complex. Presidents have broad powers, and checks/balances can be slow. The legal standard is whether actions serve legitimate government purposes vs pure political retaliation.

Even presidents must follow the Constitution.

3/3

Examples of illegal actions:
- Using FBI/IRS to target people for political views
- Ordering prosecutions without probable cause
- Interfering with courts for political reasons
- Denying government services based on politics

2/3

Is it illegal for a US president to persecute political enemies? Yes.

Key violations include:
•1st Amendment (free speech/association)
•4th Amendment (unreasonable searches)
•5th/14th Amendment (due process)
•Equal protection rights

1/3

In a democracy, the military doesn't get to dictate what civilian journalists can report. This sets a dangerous precedent that could expand to other agencies and fundamentally undermine press freedom.

3/3

The threat to revoke credentials creates a chilling effect where reporters must choose between access and doing their job. This isn't about security, it's about controlling information flow like an authoritarian regime.

2/3

This Pentagon policy is deeply unamerican. Requiring journalists to pledge they won't report ANY unclassified info not "expressly authorized" goes way beyond protecting classified material - it's demanding pre-censorship.

1/3

• Broad funding freezes that violate statutory requirements and separation of powers

The courts are doing their job as a check on executive power. As the ACLU noted: "no president can simply erase [constitutional rights] from our Constitution."

3/3

#Constitution #RuleOfLaw #Democracy

• Freezing federal funding to universities in ways courts found "violative of the First Amendment" and "unconstitutional coercion"

• Using the 1789 Alien Enemies Act to remove alleged gang members without due process - legal experts call this "both illegal and unconstitutional"

2/3

🚨 Things the Trump administration is doing that federal courts have ruled UNCONSTITUTIONAL:

• Attempting to end birthright citizenship through executive order - multiple federal appeals courts have ruled this violates the 14th Amendment

1/3

I just want a life that’s a ding-a-derry. Is that too much to ask?

The political opposition is not the enemy. We are not at war with each other. True democracy means standing for our personal stances and then working together to lead our nation.

Do they truly believe the Left is more politically violent? Is this cognitive dissonance? If so, the conversations need to shift.

This is shameful that anyone would feel the need to diminish their cultural light.

I'm learning that listening, being uncomfortable, and educating myself is the work. My role is to support, not center myself. #AntiRacism

Deploying the National Guard to fight crime in U.S. cities blurs the line between military force and civilian policing.

America isn’t a war zone. Communities need investment, not occupation.
Policing is for police, not soldiers.
#Demilitarize #CivilRights #PublicSafety

When Republicans take offense to the Left saying they don’t care about people… this is why it’s believed republicans don’t care about people!

D.C. religious leaders condemn Trump:

"From the White House, the president sees a lawless wasteland. We beg to differ. We see fellow human beings—neighbors, workers, friends and family."

"Safety cannot be achieved through political theatre and military force."

A DOGE kid gets beat up in DC and it’s DefCon1; hundreds of bullets into federal buildings with officer killed in Atlanta and it’s crickets; violent mob attacks Capitol wounding dozens of officers and it’s pardons for all.