good morning, it's 17 may 2017

Well, if we didn't know already, this is the crux of the matter.

If meaningful, _critical_ actions are not taken _now_, the GOP will take no action, at all, ever.

We _have to_ assume that Mr. Trump could order tanks into the streets and the Republican Party would be fine with it. We _have to_ assume he could shoot people down in cold blood and they'd go along. We have to assume there will be no help from the ruling party. _None_.

The institutions that could act meaningfully have failed, because, in the end, is is not the institutions, but the people who occupy them. And the occupants are looters, criminals, and traitors who have one, single goal: the strip-mining of all value available, to themselves, or the masters they serve.

This doesn't mean we can't resist, because we can. But it means the two-year war will not be short-circuited, and must be fought heavily at the state level. The Republicans will do _everything_ in their power to suppress votes, to gerrymander beyond anything we've seen even so far, and steal the next election, by hook or by crook. _If you want there to be elections in the future_, you _have to_ oust Republicans, en masse, in 2018. I don't care about how big a sellout your local Democrat is - stow it. You want to primary some people from the left, go for it, but when the primary is over, _get the fuck in line_, because this is existential to the _goddamn republic_.

News follows.

Trump, Russia, and Treason:

• Trump Revealed Highly Classified Intelligence to Russia, in Break With Ally, Officials Say
• ‘Far worse than what has already been reported’: Trump’s Russian disclosures so serious Senate had to be alerted
• Comey Memo Says Trump Asked Him to End Flynn Investigation
• Republicans Demand More Detail on Trump’s Meeting With Russians
• Source: There is "whole lot of interfering" in Russia investigation
• Trump on Comey 'tapes': 'I can't talk about that'
• Authoritarians thrive on ritual humiliation.
• I have lived through nearly 4,500 weeks in my life, and I have never seen a week like the one we just had.
• Clapper: Putin did it to demean Clinton and help elect Trump
• Trump/Comey: What's this week's political firestorm actually about?
• Here’s Why There Won’t Be An Independent Investigation Into Russia Anytime Soon
• ‘He Doesn’t Give a Crap Who He Fires’
• Donald Trump's tax law firm has 'deep' ties to Russia
• Trump must be impeached. Here’s why.

Trump, Authoritarianism (and neofascism), and Corruption:

• Trump Is Trying to Control the FBI. It’s Time to Freak Out.
• The Law Can’t Stop Trump. Only Impeachment Can.
• Americans are witnessing a slow-motion coup
• Telling Trump Fans He’s Betraying Them Won’t Work
• Card handed out at #RPW2017 by @wisgop US Senate hopeful John Schiess.

Good luck out there.

( It's May 17th, 2017; this is the news. )

good morning, it's second breakfast, 17 may 2017

"Trump’s voting commission is a sham." No kidding. The linked article is to an ACLU action item because people need to get signed up on this. They're going to gin up some fake results to repeat Trump's "three to five million illegal voters" lie, in order to engage in the kinds of voter suppression at the Federal level that they've been working at the state level. Stopping this will require pulling off the very few Republicans actually willing to vote against Cheeto Mussolini, so be ramping up on that.

"This is what emboldened white supremacists look like" - you mean Jeff Sessions? No, these are neo-Klan marchers in Virginia.

"Former Attorney General Eric Holder statement" is about Jeff Sessions's plans to undo sentencing reform.

"Erdoğan security attacks, beats US citizens protesting in Washington, DC" - graphic footage at link. This is the kind of leader Cheeto openly admires.

"Focus On Infants During Childbirth Leaves U.S. Moms In Danger" shouldn't be very surprising, and isn't.

LA LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU: "FCC halts public comments on Net Neutrality"

"No room for science in Trump administration" - true.

The word you're looking for, WaPo, is LIE: "Republicans misstate, again and again on TV and at town halls, what’s in their health-care bill"

"MSNBC Ending Lawrence O’Donnell “The Last Word” Show Despite Top Ratings (Exclusive)" - though fan response may have overwhelmed MSNBC. We'll see.

Good luck out there.

( It's 17 May 2017; we're back with more news. )

i am a horrible person

i am setting up lena oxton so hard in this chapter, oh gods, i'm terrible

i almost feel bad

almost