Category Archives: Government

Lost Trust in America

09 Friday Oct 2020

Posted by in Government

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This country was founded on deceit and corruption but that is nothing new to people who actually read history. I doubt any country is as pure as the citizens would like. I bet a majority of every state question the morals and illegal activities of their officials and government.

Before Katrina New Orleans police was corrupt from rookie to chief. It was well documented but who was going to say anything when the whole city government was on the take too. Is it any better now? I doubt it.

Texas has a reputation of being owned by Big Oil and Big Business. The right and left attorneys in the State Attorney General’s office just sent a letter about their Republican boss’s activities. A.G. Ken Paxton has spent his entire five years in office under a criminal indictment for securities fraud. For all those years his personal attorneys have stalled the courts from having a trial. Yes, not only was he elected the first time but he was elected again. Texans don’t seem to care how crooked their officials are.

We have problems with criminal activity just as all other states and countries. Influence is sold. A high school coach became a multi-millionaire after a few years in Congress. Even after our former Republican U.S. Congressman announced he was quitting, donations continued to flow into his campaign chest. Was that out of the kindness of their hearts? Ha-ha.

Law enforcement has some bad and very bad apples, but the vast majority are very honest and caring people who hate being tarnished by those few crooked and racist cops.

No system, group, or political party is pure but we keep voting for the same good or bad ones because they buy our loyalty and vote.

Clancy Drained the Swamp

11 Friday May 2018

Posted by in Government, Politics, President Trump, Uncategorized

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In Tom Clancy’s Book, Executive Orders, he imagined what would happen if the President, Cabinet, Supreme Court, Joint Chiefs, and all the members of Congress were killed. Clancy forgot to kill off the lobbyists who are the real power. They spread millions of dollars and write many of the laws Congress votes on. The Supreme Court’s decision on Citizen’s United allows millions in “Dark Money” (unregistered and hidden) to find its way into pockets, campaign chests, and political organizations.

Clancy did not write how such an event would affect the billionaires who currently control our three branches of government. In the book, Clancy proposed the people who would run for Senator might hate it so much one or two terms would be all they could stand. Of course, each Governor would appoint the Representatives for that state so they would be political. Think of it, no existing empires to control new people so it would have to start all over again.

Trump’s swamp is real but the first thing he did was to deepen it by doing away with the ethics rules. Lobbyists and lawyers who fronted for special interests were chosen for cabinet posts and under secretaries.

Before the reader thinks the swamp is only in the Administration, think about how a retired high school coach and Speaker of the House can still be wealthy after paying three million to a blackmailer. When they retire, high paying jobs in banks, consulting corporations, and others awaits them assuming they voted right. Those in the Administration get offers in the same places.

Who Owns Us

27 Saturday May 2017

Posted by in Government, Politics, U.S. Economy

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I have no power to exert any pressure on my representative and senator since I can’t put enough in their campaign chests or give a friend or relative a job. My little voice is lost in the hurricane of big spending lobbyists and paid speeches. I don’t have millions to fund those secretive foundations which put out misleading to totally false information to influence me and my elected officials. I don’t have money to put an assistant onto the staff of those officials.

Washington D.C. is now being run by billionaires and near billionaires who seem to have one thought in their mind — enrich themselves. Our president and his family are worth millions more than they were 130 days ago. He won’t release his 2015 tax returns so he definitely won’t release his 2016 returns showing his wealth increase because he won the election.

The tax reform proposals being sponsored by Trump and Ryan does more than tilt the scale toward the super rich — it drops the rest of us off the equation. The top 1% owns 90% of the country. Treasury Secretary Mnunchin says the current system needs to be changed so the rich can spend more money on creating jobs. Tax reduction has never spawned the predicted economic boost. Right and left economists agree on that so why put more money in wealthy pockets while increasing the deficit and national debt? They want to do away with estate tax to help the middle class. The tax doesn’t start until $5,500,000. I know of no middle class person that has an estate that big.

No, the tax cuts are not for us, they are for the billionaires who want to be richer. When it hits the fan they will have moved elsewhere!!

The Oval Office

16 Thursday Mar 2017

Posted by in Government, Uncategorized

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Isn’t it too bad Trump’s people have no corner to put the President when he rants and raves. In Mid-February he spoke out and tweeted the opposite of what his cabinet members were saying to other countries. One day he is for something and the next he is against it. He says his administration is a smooth running machine, it isn’t.

His comments remind me of Richard Nixon’s rants about the press during the Watergate stories. Those stories led to his abdication before impeachment. The difference is Nixon had a well-oiled machine of experienced people. He had Kissinger as his advisor while Trump depends on John Bannon and 31-year old Stephen Miller.

Trump says he has had no business with Russians, but his son said in an interview a few years ago that “we are doing an inordinate amount of business with Russians”. Who’s lying?

If Trump comes on TV and says we need to invade a country because… Would you believe?

What Is The Constitution?

16 Wednesday Nov 2016

Posted by in Government, US Constitution

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I hear people say they are strict constitutionalists. What does that mean? Do they know? Does that include the twenty-seven amendments? Who decides what it should intend?

Thomas Jefferson thought it should be torn up every ten years as the people’s thoughts of government evolved. Most people say that they were taught in civics class the constitution is a living document that changes as times change. Is that change by amendments or by the Supreme Court?

Those strict constitutionalists pick and choose the parts they like and disregard the parts they don’t like. Is the preamble a part of the legal constitution as most people believe or not as others think? Some want to keep the first ten and scrap most of the others. Is it just a coincidence that latter are usually white Republican men?

Should the Supreme Court change its opinions as the general population changes its attitudes? When the court ruled that abortion was legal, the majority of Americans disagreed. Today the majority agrees with the ruling. The majority believes in gay rights and the court agrees.

Roe vs. Wade won’t be overturned but the population wants restrictions on the second amendment and Citizen’s United. The Supreme Court is supposed to be apolitical but it isn’t.

President Obama nominated Merrick Garland, a judge both parties like. However the Republicans won’t talk with him because they decided they want a far right judge. Now President Elect Trump says he will nominate far right people to be judges.

We can’t let the far right or far left keep yanking us back and forth. The court should be moderates who keep the constitution a living document.

Who Really Won The Election?

16 Wednesday Nov 2016

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Let’s hope every single one of those people who voted for Donald Trump are as happy in a few years as they are now. I saw an interview with him many months before he became a raving lunatic.

What he said was almost opposite of what he raved for the last few months. He sounded like a New York City moderate Republican. In fact, he sounded a lot like former Mayor Bloomberg – his good friend. Before he started his rants, I thought he might have been another Kasich.

So who will be in the oval office, the one who will restrict gun sales, promote international relations and trade, raise taxes to pay for infrastructure and pay down debt, or continue with what he raved later?

Iran Deal Not Bad

01 Saturday Aug 2015

Posted by in Government, Iran

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Let’s get real for once. The deal with Iran is the best deal six countries could get with Iran. Is it perfect — NO! If it was perfect for us as the naysayers would like, the Iranians would not have signed.

The United Nations Security Council just approved the deal 15 to 0. The General Assembly will probably approve it with less than ten no votes. The approval by the Security Council means the U.N. sanctions are going away. The European Community countries are already eliminating sanctions they made. Russia and China were two of the six and will start doing business deals with Iran in the near future.

Without the support (hammer) of the rest of the world, the multi-nationals will rebuild their commercial ties with Iran. India will go back to buying oil from Iran again. Our sanctions will have little effect on Iran once the rest of the world does away with theirs.

More than half of Iran is under 25 years old and they like America. By signing off on this deal we insure they will continue in that appreciation in coming years. The Iranians don’t like their government as demonstrated by the country-wide riots of a few years ago. The sanctions had nothing to do with the riots. The young people are ready for a real democracy and tired of a theocracy. They do not share the religious fervor of their elders. Let’s not be the feckless country the naysayers continue to want, but sign and regain the world’s respect.

7-31-2015