Shutdown Drama
The Senate Democrats just decided to give up the only leverage they have.
And at the time we recorded the podcast, we were under the impression that the continuing resolution to keep the government funded would not pass.
Chuck Schumer just announced that he would vote for cloture. His decision may be all it takes to garner enough Democratic votes to pass the CR and avert a shutdown. Normally, I’d be in favor of that - but the filibuster is the only leverage our side has, and the government is already effectively shut down because of DOGE.
The vote is tomorrow. I am once again calling my Democratic Senators. I urge all of you to do the same. The 5Calls app makes it easy.
Watch this week’s podcast:
Or listen here:
Correcting the Record
We’re more than 50 days into this new regime and it is taking a toll on my ability to process information - something I painfully discovered as I edited the podcast.
I wonder if anyone can keep track of the dizzying pace of news, sinister actions, and just plain crazy talk that we must live with since the beginning of Trump 2.0 and the Musk government machete.
Here are some topics I need to correct:
The 80-year-old man who chained himself to a sign in Washington was protesting cuts to the VA, not Social Security. (Our sentiments about that are unchanged - this should not be happening.)
The law firm Perkins Coie - which won a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration this week - was targeted because it represented Hillary Clinton in 2016 (as well as other Democratic clients over the years). And Trump’s executive order not only stripped the firm of its security clearances, but prevented it from doing business with federal agencies, or even entering federal buildings.
Elizabeth Oyer, the US attorney who refused to give Mel Gibson back his gun rights was fired (I told Aliza she had resigned her post). That doesn’t change the fact that she was urged to return gun rights to a convicted domestic abuser because he’s a friend of the President.
I’m hoping that Karoli is available to rejoin us next week, as she is doing a better job than I am of processing all of the crazy. (It’s also just a lot more fun to have these discussions with all three of us.)
One Last Thing
