You’re right. This DOJ wouldn’t know what justice was if it slapped them in the face. He has destroyed our trust in our judicial system! It’s such a shame how much money he’s costing us for each and every case he brings to the court. He may pay his own attorney but we pay the rest from janitors to judges! court clerks, stenographers secretaries even the paper that everything is written on.. He abuses the system and he doesn’t care how much of our money he uses to rectify his retribution against his enemies. I can’t believe how this Congress has done anything but kiss trumps ass.
Again, not just "he" but the entire GOP congress is responsible for this and it's time we include all of them in our efforts to inform the public about what is going on.
Issues like this are exactly what is going to make the Republicans lose the majority in the House, the Senate and the Presidency for many years to come.
Lest we forget - “Based on 2025 reports, the Trump administration targeted several major law firms with punitive executive orders—restricting their access to federal business and security clearances due to their work against his interests.
“To avoid these sanctions, multiple firms, including Paul Weiss and Skadden, agreed to provide hundreds of millions in pro bono (free) legal work for causes supported by the administration.
“Key Details on the Deals:Total Free Services: By April 2025, firms had pledged approximately $940 million in free legal work, with firms like Kirkland & Ellis, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher, and Latham & Watkins participating.
“The Strategy: The administration used executive orders as leverage, threatening the firms' ability to work with the federal government unless they complied, effectively trading the removal of threats for free legal services.”
DJT is lawless, corrupt to the core. And he’s rapidly destroying our democracy.
And strapping him into a straight jacket, then permanently locking him in solidarity confinement, in an institution for the criminally insane with no cell phone works for me!
We cannot wait for 2028 or even the election of 2026. We must stop him at every intersection of law and justice, immediately and continuously. We need more public demonstrations and general strikes.
Everything he can b/c he’s always been hated in America but so much more in New York! He thinks he’s getting retribution for all the times he was shunned! What he doesn’t see or understand is that he can NEVER EVER win the love and respect that he so desperately wants b/c he’s a cold hearted, soulless and despicable human with no redeeming qualities! His soul will burn in Hell for eternity!
Yep. In the mid 1980’s, I worked and lived in Manhattan around the corner from trump tower. Even then, decades ago, his reputation in New York preceded him. He was well known as a liar, a cheat, a conman, a thief, a grifter, a bully, a bigot racist with ties to the mob, a misogynist pig who sexually assaulted women. He stiffed his creditors and his employees (who were primarily illegal), and he was notorious for filing bankruptcy. He’s always been proud of the fact that he rarely pays any taxes. And YES, he thrives on retribution. AND now he’s running our country just like he did his numerous failed businesses! He’s a robber baron who’s raiding our coffers and bankrupting the country!
Trump also has a long, well-documented history of filing frivolous lawsuits against everyone who insults him, demeans him, “defames” him or dares to stand up to him. In fact, “Donald Trump has a documented history of filing over 4,000 civil lawsuits since 1973, often employing litigation as a business weapon or to protect his public image.
“These cases, ranging from business disputes to defamation, frequently target critics, media outlets, and government entities, with a notable strategy of filing lawsuits that are later dismissed or settled out of court.”
“Key Examples of High-Profile or Notable Lawsuits:Media and Authors:
- Sued author Timothy O'Brien for $5 billion (dismissed) for reporting he was not a billionaire, and sued TV host Bill Maher for $5 million (withdrawn) over a joke.
- Governmental Bodies: Sued Palm Beach County over air traffic noise at Mar-a-Lago and the government of Scotland regarding a wind farm (lost in court).
- Business/Personal Disputes: Sued a Miss USA contestant for $5 million (won) for claiming the pageant was rigged.
- Political/Legal Tactics: Recently filed a $100 million suit against the New York Times, journalists, and his niece,
- and has frequently targeted New York Attorney General Leticia James with lawsuits.
“An analysis by USA Today found that in 1,900 of the 3,500+ cases analyzed (as of 2016), Trump or his companies were plaintiffs, setting an "unprecedented" record for a presidential candidate. Critics argue this pattern constitutes a "weaponization" of the legal system, using it to intimidate opponents or manipulate public discourse.”
We also know that trump is threatening to file a lawsuit against the IRS for $10B for releasing copies of his tax returns.
“The Tradition: Since the 1970s, most presidents and vice presidents have publicly released their tax returns to demonstrate transparency, identify potential conflicts of interest, and prove their tax compliance.
“The Exception: Donald Trump was the first president since Richard Nixon to refuse to release his tax returns while in office, breaking a 40-year tradition of voluntary disclosure.
“Mandatory Audit: While not required to release them publicly, the IRS has a policy (since 1977) to conduct a mandatory audit of every sitting president's tax returns.”
“Mandatory Audit: While not required to release them publicly, the IRS has a policy (since 1977) to conduct a mandatory audit of every sitting president's tax returns.”
But now, with Trump' lackey in charge of the IRS, and his publicly stated aim to cripple the agency, I doubt very much that any of his returns will be audited.
Agree. Trump now “owns” / controls every department and agency in the country. And as long as he sits in the WH, he will not allow an audit of his own tax returns …
“The Hill: Why Democrats released Trump’s tax returns
December 23, 2022
In The News
BY TOBIAS BURNS
“After years of fighting for Donald Trump’s tax returns, Democrats finally got a hold of them and released them to the public through two congressional reports published this week.
“But Democrats stress their decision was not about Trump himself but rather about oversight of the IRS and about the U.S. tax system more broadly — even though Trump was the first president since Watergate not to release his returns before assuming the presidency.
“The report from the Democratic-led Ways and Means Committee found Trump wasn’t audited during his first two years in office. His first audit as president came only right when the IRS was asked directly by Congress to produce Trump’s tax returns.
“That could be a violation of IRS policy, which states that “individual income tax returns for the President and Vice President will be subject to mandatory audit examination” and that they’ll receive “normal pipeline processing” and be subject to “regular filing and retention procedures.”
“The IRS has failed to administer its own mandatory audit program policies,” Ways and Means Chair Richard Neal (D-Mass.) said Thursday in the House, introducing legislation that bumps the presidential audit program up from the level of IRS policy to the level of federal law.”
So, when democrats took control of the House, after trump’s first term, the House released his tax returns. And I suspect that’s why he’s suing the IRS…BECAUSE HE CAN and at this point NO ONE WILL STOP HIM. He thrives on retribution.
Which means that taxpayers will likely be paying him $10 billion …
Dropping him in the middle of alligator Alcatraz and holding him indefinitely in his own 3x3 ft cage, with all the mosquitoes and cockroaches and worms in the food, filthy water, snakes, fecal stench… yeah, that works for me!
Everything he touches dies: I knew this as a 15yo kid in 1986 when he ran the USFL into the ground. Historians and posterity will wonder in bewilderment how this charlatan con man ever hoodwinked so many gullibly clueless Americans into voting for him and following him into the void of destruction.
As I recalled, he started the USFL because no owners in the NFL or AFL were willing to sell Trump a team. I remember it from the late 1980s and in retrospect it was a failure just like most of his other ventures.
Ethics are non existent in this regime. I don’t think any of them know the meaning of the word. There’s a giant black hole where justice used to live in this country.
I think that's a pretty simple answer. Of course it's the system enabling it. You can't create something when a system hold you accountable. And in a democracy, we are the system. And as much as THIS was caused by TRUMP... Does not mean that ending his reign is a victory. It's the first step in showing the system that we're willing to stop accepting the two choices that don't produce which are Democrat and republican. We want a leader that represents the people. He can call himself anything he wants. And his campaign , is to shut up and listen and about to fix these things and then do it.
It goes beyond your polarized two party system. The next adult admin has a moral duty to shore up your democracy by legislating: toothy campaign finance laws, revisiting Citizens United, and ethics czar to supervise all three branches of government, sanctions for lies during campaigns, disallowing insider trading by electeds, reforming immigration policy to be humane and reassuring to the populace, shutting all the concentration camps, making a woman's right to choose the law, instituting a national basic public education curriculum while restoring the Department of Education, forming an independent non partisan body to draw electoral boundaries, and instituting a universal national health care plan. And that is just the start...
You just listed a set of policy outcomes. I don’t disagree with a lot of them in principle. Trust me.... But that’s downstream.
The question is: what system actually produces AND ENFORCES THOSE OUTCOMES CONSISTENTLY? Really...
Because right now, both parties campaign on reforms they conveniently fail to deliver... Facts. As soon as power, donors, and institutional incentives kick in, they're dealing with unexpected issues , or couldn't get the cooperation they were hoping for. Little stomach especially not fair quarter Century on both sides of the aisle.
Campaign finance reform? Talked about for decades. Insider trading bans? Bipartisan support.... RIGHT UP UNITLl it gets close to a vote. Independent redistricting? Great Idea ... until it threatens someone’s seat. Then it's we'll do it next election. And of course three different combinations of Supreme Courts have already said they cannot ruin gerrymandering because they will not focus betrayal of all. Oh I didn't realize that the politicians were exempt from judgment and law...
So. Listen. I’m not dismissing your list. I’m saying.... it has been just A LIST for too long. And the reason is the exact structural problem I’m talking about.
If accountability depends on one “adult admin” doing the right thing, then we’re not fixing the system... we’re gambling on personalities. It's going to take revolutionary behavior from the citizenry like splitting the vote.. like demanding accountability from whichever candidate gets elected with a private Coalition of Republican and Democrat citizens who voted for different people. Since we actually went the same thing on about 2/3 of it you just ignored or are corrupted, that is our sticking point. We go in with the left and right values, however on these things.. these things we don't budge. You start having protests like that, sort of shoulder, left and right about not just training the swamp but putting the entire places then you will see change.
And we’ve already seen how that ends.
Real reform isn’t just naming good policies. It’s building incentives and enforcement mechanisms that make it politically painful not to follow through... regardless of party.
Otherwise, we’re just writing wishlists every four years and acting surprised when nothing fundamental changes.
I think what you have identified is the failure to legislate modern campaign finance laws.
I share your concerns, but I think...I hope...that this horrific experience of how easy it has become for a corrupt, selfish and unprincipled group of fanatics to seize control of a massive democracy will scare the pants off everyone. Having come so close to the brink of authoritarian disaster (and we are still not quite safe from that), should stiffen the resolve of the principled electeds to seal up the holes this rot crept in through.
Canada recently demonstrated that the electorate, when brought up hard by unpleasant realities, can reappraise and make sensible decisions. Including asking a truly talented candidate to step up.
I think the USA has equally talented and principled individuals, and the electorate has surely experienced those unpleasant realities.
Trump was/is a test for American democracy and humanity. I think you will be able to pass that test now, and while the nation will bear scars, it will survive and be better for this horrific trial.
Oh my god. Yes. I feel like the campaign Finance laws, for some reason, I kept out of comprehension from a large enough percentage of people that we don't get a true idea of how big the consensus would be to take the incentive out of running for office. Citizens united, unopposed elections. The donor class is a rig the system to the point that it's working as they designed it and this is one of many issues I feel cuz unite left and right because it's not the left or right issue. It's a democracy or crime issue
Not only would I be scrutinizing it, I'm saying right now that this situation will continue to happen under every party until we elect the party that hasn't allowed it every time it comes up for the last 25 years. Two parties are both owned by corporations and that is what needs to stop.
When people still frame this as a one-party problem… when it’s obviously a system problem that enabled Trump to push it so far with no accountability, they're only going halfway in their due diligence.
Fear, weak oversight, lack of enforcement… that’s not unique to one side. It’s what happens when the incentives across the entire system shift away from accountability.
Frame "this"? What is "this", exactly? Surely as a writer you understand the importance of communicating clearly.
I frame many elements of political life as a two-party problem. However, Trump pushing the envelope is most definitely a Republican problem. The GOP have a trifecta and they could stop a lot of Trump's unconstitutional moves if they had the backbone to do it. They choose not to. The system isn't even really Republicans versus Democrats anymore. It's Democrats and MAGA. And even the Democratic party is changing, albeit slowly, as evidenced by many pro-Democracy candidates who refuse AIPAC money, as an example. Mamdani and Platner are resonating with voters. Who in the Republican party is bucking MAGA?
The two parties are not the same. To say so is to simplify a complex political dynamic that has much nuance. Your argument is very black and white. Come back with a refined post in your Substack notes that addresses that complexity and perhaps I can seriously consider your argument.
You’re right that Republicans currently have the most direct leverage over Trump... and they’re choosing not to use it. That’s a real and serious failure... But you’re proving my point more than refuting it... Listen.
When I say “this,” I’m talking about the broader accountability breakdown: institutions that are structurally capable of checking power but repeatedly fail to do so when it becomes politically inconvenient. Congress (both parties at different times), the courts, regulatory bodies, even media ecosystems that selectively amplify or ignore depending on incentives.
Trump didn’t invent that weakness. He exposed how far it could be pushed. This is not a defensive him. Yes, the GOP owns a large share of the current responsibility. But systems don’t suddenly become fragile overnight.... Definitely not because of one person or part. They erode over time through incentives that reward loyalty over oversight, power over principle, and short-term wins over long-term stability. Take the national debt for example. Balance the budget under Clinton and went up every year for the next 26 years...
That’s why reducing this to “a Republican problem” misses the underlying issue: if the system only works when the “right people” are in power, then it doesn’t actually work.
And on your point about nuance—this is the nuance. Acknowledging asymmetry in behavior right now while still recognizing that the structural incentives enabling it didn’t come from one side alone.
If anything, that’s the uncomfortable part people tend to avoid. That's what I write about. I try to use data and patterns to point things out and to remind my side to take a look in the mirror and remember that if they don't demand accountability and call themselves out, all they have is a platform with this lately better of two parties, complaining about how bad the leader of the other party is. That's not a party that's going to get anything done.
The two parties are not the same, but both require reform (Republicans just require *more* reform), as does the wider system. Can we agree on that much?
Whataboutist arguments (he's bad but so is the other one) just shut down discussion and progress. Two wrongs still don't make a right.
Tim Snyder calls this a "superpower suicide." The answer to "how much is Trump going to destroy?" is everything. He is winning. Time is almost up. We need everybody to act.
They are going to destroy everything in their path to take us down. Next is Medicaid and Social Security. The more us old folks ‘croak’ the more money they keep for themselves. Taxes won’t go down, they will go up.
He has wanted that money from Medicaid and SS since he first got in on his first term. Remember he said the prices going up will be for just a short time and then would return to normal soon. LIE!! Prices will be bad when his 4 yrs are done. He tells people what he thinks they want to hear but never ever the TRUTH.
Exactly, people are a burden to them, we protest, we talk, ask & require things, they want their robots who are submissive, get the job done and they don’t require or demand equality & justice!
Hey Joanne. I do have some suggestions. We can start by making accountability automatic, not optional....
Right now everything depends on whether the people in power choose to enforce norms. That’s not a SYSTEM.. that’s like wishing on a Star.
A few places to start:
- Ban congressional stock trading with real penalties (not fines they laugh off). If they can’t beat the market without insider info, they shouldn’t be in the market.
- Automatic oversight triggers.. if certain thresholds are hit (ethical violations, emergency powers, etc.), investigations kick in whether leadership wants them or not.
- Independent redistricting everywhere... politicians choosing voters is the quiet engine behind most of this dysfunction.
Campaign finance transparency in real time... not months later when it doesn’t matter.
- Term limits for leadership positions (not just offices)... concentration of power breeds exactly what we’re watching.
None of this is ideological, only structural.
Because if the system only works when “good people” are in charge, it’s already broken. The goal is to make it work even when they’re not.
Right now we’re relying on damage control.
That’s not governance... It's some type of fever dream about living in constant survival mode with better branding..
He's the head of the snake, and has lots of help from our compromised government
Yes but that head is a good start.
It’s not just Trump. It’s the whole slew of them in Congress and the Supreme Court. Money means more to them than our freedoms.
You’re right. This DOJ wouldn’t know what justice was if it slapped them in the face. He has destroyed our trust in our judicial system! It’s such a shame how much money he’s costing us for each and every case he brings to the court. He may pay his own attorney but we pay the rest from janitors to judges! court clerks, stenographers secretaries even the paper that everything is written on.. He abuses the system and he doesn’t care how much of our money he uses to rectify his retribution against his enemies. I can’t believe how this Congress has done anything but kiss trumps ass.
Again, not just "he" but the entire GOP congress is responsible for this and it's time we include all of them in our efforts to inform the public about what is going on.
SCOTUS Robert's 6-crooks!
Issues like this are exactly what is going to make the Republicans lose the majority in the House, the Senate and the Presidency for many years to come.
Hope so....that is, unless we're under the complete Nazi/communist rule of the Deranged Dictator Criminal Dimwit and his party by November......
I hope.
If we get a chance to have a fair election.
I hope so!
Vote Blue, I am!
Lest we forget - “Based on 2025 reports, the Trump administration targeted several major law firms with punitive executive orders—restricting their access to federal business and security clearances due to their work against his interests.
“To avoid these sanctions, multiple firms, including Paul Weiss and Skadden, agreed to provide hundreds of millions in pro bono (free) legal work for causes supported by the administration.
“Key Details on the Deals:Total Free Services: By April 2025, firms had pledged approximately $940 million in free legal work, with firms like Kirkland & Ellis, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher, and Latham & Watkins participating.
“The Strategy: The administration used executive orders as leverage, threatening the firms' ability to work with the federal government unless they complied, effectively trading the removal of threats for free legal services.”
DJT is lawless, corrupt to the core. And he’s rapidly destroying our democracy.
Merry, you are correct! “We the People” need to ruin his life!!!
Yes we do.
And strapping him into a straight jacket, then permanently locking him in solidarity confinement, in an institution for the criminally insane with no cell phone works for me!
We cannot wait for 2028 or even the election of 2026. We must stop him at every intersection of law and justice, immediately and continuously. We need more public demonstrations and general strikes.
Everything he can b/c he’s always been hated in America but so much more in New York! He thinks he’s getting retribution for all the times he was shunned! What he doesn’t see or understand is that he can NEVER EVER win the love and respect that he so desperately wants b/c he’s a cold hearted, soulless and despicable human with no redeeming qualities! His soul will burn in Hell for eternity!
Yep. In the mid 1980’s, I worked and lived in Manhattan around the corner from trump tower. Even then, decades ago, his reputation in New York preceded him. He was well known as a liar, a cheat, a conman, a thief, a grifter, a bully, a bigot racist with ties to the mob, a misogynist pig who sexually assaulted women. He stiffed his creditors and his employees (who were primarily illegal), and he was notorious for filing bankruptcy. He’s always been proud of the fact that he rarely pays any taxes. And YES, he thrives on retribution. AND now he’s running our country just like he did his numerous failed businesses! He’s a robber baron who’s raiding our coffers and bankrupting the country!
Trump also has a long, well-documented history of filing frivolous lawsuits against everyone who insults him, demeans him, “defames” him or dares to stand up to him. In fact, “Donald Trump has a documented history of filing over 4,000 civil lawsuits since 1973, often employing litigation as a business weapon or to protect his public image.
“These cases, ranging from business disputes to defamation, frequently target critics, media outlets, and government entities, with a notable strategy of filing lawsuits that are later dismissed or settled out of court.”
“Key Examples of High-Profile or Notable Lawsuits:Media and Authors:
- Sued author Timothy O'Brien for $5 billion (dismissed) for reporting he was not a billionaire, and sued TV host Bill Maher for $5 million (withdrawn) over a joke.
- Governmental Bodies: Sued Palm Beach County over air traffic noise at Mar-a-Lago and the government of Scotland regarding a wind farm (lost in court).
- Business/Personal Disputes: Sued a Miss USA contestant for $5 million (won) for claiming the pageant was rigged.
- Political/Legal Tactics: Recently filed a $100 million suit against the New York Times, journalists, and his niece,
- and has frequently targeted New York Attorney General Leticia James with lawsuits.
“An analysis by USA Today found that in 1,900 of the 3,500+ cases analyzed (as of 2016), Trump or his companies were plaintiffs, setting an "unprecedented" record for a presidential candidate. Critics argue this pattern constitutes a "weaponization" of the legal system, using it to intimidate opponents or manipulate public discourse.”
We also know that trump is threatening to file a lawsuit against the IRS for $10B for releasing copies of his tax returns.
“The Tradition: Since the 1970s, most presidents and vice presidents have publicly released their tax returns to demonstrate transparency, identify potential conflicts of interest, and prove their tax compliance.
“The Exception: Donald Trump was the first president since Richard Nixon to refuse to release his tax returns while in office, breaking a 40-year tradition of voluntary disclosure.
“Mandatory Audit: While not required to release them publicly, the IRS has a policy (since 1977) to conduct a mandatory audit of every sitting president's tax returns.”
https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1641&context=popular_media
https://www.npr.org/2019/02/15/695054845/a-history-of-presidential-tax-returns
“Mandatory Audit: While not required to release them publicly, the IRS has a policy (since 1977) to conduct a mandatory audit of every sitting president's tax returns.”
But now, with Trump' lackey in charge of the IRS, and his publicly stated aim to cripple the agency, I doubt very much that any of his returns will be audited.
Agree. Trump now “owns” / controls every department and agency in the country. And as long as he sits in the WH, he will not allow an audit of his own tax returns …
“The Hill: Why Democrats released Trump’s tax returns
December 23, 2022
In The News
BY TOBIAS BURNS
“After years of fighting for Donald Trump’s tax returns, Democrats finally got a hold of them and released them to the public through two congressional reports published this week.
“But Democrats stress their decision was not about Trump himself but rather about oversight of the IRS and about the U.S. tax system more broadly — even though Trump was the first president since Watergate not to release his returns before assuming the presidency.
“The report from the Democratic-led Ways and Means Committee found Trump wasn’t audited during his first two years in office. His first audit as president came only right when the IRS was asked directly by Congress to produce Trump’s tax returns.
“That could be a violation of IRS policy, which states that “individual income tax returns for the President and Vice President will be subject to mandatory audit examination” and that they’ll receive “normal pipeline processing” and be subject to “regular filing and retention procedures.”
“The IRS has failed to administer its own mandatory audit program policies,” Ways and Means Chair Richard Neal (D-Mass.) said Thursday in the House, introducing legislation that bumps the presidential audit program up from the level of IRS policy to the level of federal law.”
So, when democrats took control of the House, after trump’s first term, the House released his tax returns. And I suspect that’s why he’s suing the IRS…BECAUSE HE CAN and at this point NO ONE WILL STOP HIM. He thrives on retribution.
Which means that taxpayers will likely be paying him $10 billion …
and then some ...!
Rita, nothing human about this MONSTER! He needs to go down and taken far, far away!
How about the Congo?
Dropping him in the middle of alligator Alcatraz and holding him indefinitely in his own 3x3 ft cage, with all the mosquitoes and cockroaches and worms in the food, filthy water, snakes, fecal stench… yeah, that works for me!
Everything he touches dies: I knew this as a 15yo kid in 1986 when he ran the USFL into the ground. Historians and posterity will wonder in bewilderment how this charlatan con man ever hoodwinked so many gullibly clueless Americans into voting for him and following him into the void of destruction.
As I recalled, he started the USFL because no owners in the NFL or AFL were willing to sell Trump a team. I remember it from the late 1980s and in retrospect it was a failure just like most of his other ventures.
I wish he would keep touching himself all over, so it happens soon!
Ethics are non existent in this regime. I don’t think any of them know the meaning of the word. There’s a giant black hole where justice used to live in this country.
All of it.
Everything he can.
He’s putting his name on everything but it’s like a scar.
First there’s the wound.
Then there’s the damage that never really goes away.
Turnip has to mark everything as his, sorta like a dog on a walk.
He is like a wolverine. They will eat their fill from a food source and then piss all over what remains so as to ruin it for any other animal.
Honest question:
If every crisis gets blamed on everyone else... but keeps happening under the same leadership…
At what point is it not “bad luck” or “media bias” anymore?
At what point is it the strategy?
So what’s more dangerous long term...
A leader creating instability,
or a system that keeps enabling it?
I think that's a pretty simple answer. Of course it's the system enabling it. You can't create something when a system hold you accountable. And in a democracy, we are the system. And as much as THIS was caused by TRUMP... Does not mean that ending his reign is a victory. It's the first step in showing the system that we're willing to stop accepting the two choices that don't produce which are Democrat and republican. We want a leader that represents the people. He can call himself anything he wants. And his campaign , is to shut up and listen and about to fix these things and then do it.
It goes beyond your polarized two party system. The next adult admin has a moral duty to shore up your democracy by legislating: toothy campaign finance laws, revisiting Citizens United, and ethics czar to supervise all three branches of government, sanctions for lies during campaigns, disallowing insider trading by electeds, reforming immigration policy to be humane and reassuring to the populace, shutting all the concentration camps, making a woman's right to choose the law, instituting a national basic public education curriculum while restoring the Department of Education, forming an independent non partisan body to draw electoral boundaries, and instituting a universal national health care plan. And that is just the start...
You just listed a set of policy outcomes. I don’t disagree with a lot of them in principle. Trust me.... But that’s downstream.
The question is: what system actually produces AND ENFORCES THOSE OUTCOMES CONSISTENTLY? Really...
Because right now, both parties campaign on reforms they conveniently fail to deliver... Facts. As soon as power, donors, and institutional incentives kick in, they're dealing with unexpected issues , or couldn't get the cooperation they were hoping for. Little stomach especially not fair quarter Century on both sides of the aisle.
Campaign finance reform? Talked about for decades. Insider trading bans? Bipartisan support.... RIGHT UP UNITLl it gets close to a vote. Independent redistricting? Great Idea ... until it threatens someone’s seat. Then it's we'll do it next election. And of course three different combinations of Supreme Courts have already said they cannot ruin gerrymandering because they will not focus betrayal of all. Oh I didn't realize that the politicians were exempt from judgment and law...
So. Listen. I’m not dismissing your list. I’m saying.... it has been just A LIST for too long. And the reason is the exact structural problem I’m talking about.
If accountability depends on one “adult admin” doing the right thing, then we’re not fixing the system... we’re gambling on personalities. It's going to take revolutionary behavior from the citizenry like splitting the vote.. like demanding accountability from whichever candidate gets elected with a private Coalition of Republican and Democrat citizens who voted for different people. Since we actually went the same thing on about 2/3 of it you just ignored or are corrupted, that is our sticking point. We go in with the left and right values, however on these things.. these things we don't budge. You start having protests like that, sort of shoulder, left and right about not just training the swamp but putting the entire places then you will see change.
And we’ve already seen how that ends.
Real reform isn’t just naming good policies. It’s building incentives and enforcement mechanisms that make it politically painful not to follow through... regardless of party.
Otherwise, we’re just writing wishlists every four years and acting surprised when nothing fundamental changes.
I think what you have identified is the failure to legislate modern campaign finance laws.
I share your concerns, but I think...I hope...that this horrific experience of how easy it has become for a corrupt, selfish and unprincipled group of fanatics to seize control of a massive democracy will scare the pants off everyone. Having come so close to the brink of authoritarian disaster (and we are still not quite safe from that), should stiffen the resolve of the principled electeds to seal up the holes this rot crept in through.
Canada recently demonstrated that the electorate, when brought up hard by unpleasant realities, can reappraise and make sensible decisions. Including asking a truly talented candidate to step up.
I think the USA has equally talented and principled individuals, and the electorate has surely experienced those unpleasant realities.
Trump was/is a test for American democracy and humanity. I think you will be able to pass that test now, and while the nation will bear scars, it will survive and be better for this horrific trial.
Oh my god. Yes. I feel like the campaign Finance laws, for some reason, I kept out of comprehension from a large enough percentage of people that we don't get a true idea of how big the consensus would be to take the incentive out of running for office. Citizens united, unopposed elections. The donor class is a rig the system to the point that it's working as they designed it and this is one of many issues I feel cuz unite left and right because it's not the left or right issue. It's a democracy or crime issue
Be honest:
If this exact situation were happening under the other party, would you still be defending it the same way?
Not only would I be scrutinizing it, I'm saying right now that this situation will continue to happen under every party until we elect the party that hasn't allowed it every time it comes up for the last 25 years. Two parties are both owned by corporations and that is what needs to stop.
Here we go again – "the both parties are corrupt" routine.
When people still frame this as a one-party problem… when it’s obviously a system problem that enabled Trump to push it so far with no accountability, they're only going halfway in their due diligence.
Fear, weak oversight, lack of enforcement… that’s not unique to one side. It’s what happens when the incentives across the entire system shift away from accountability.
Frame "this"? What is "this", exactly? Surely as a writer you understand the importance of communicating clearly.
I frame many elements of political life as a two-party problem. However, Trump pushing the envelope is most definitely a Republican problem. The GOP have a trifecta and they could stop a lot of Trump's unconstitutional moves if they had the backbone to do it. They choose not to. The system isn't even really Republicans versus Democrats anymore. It's Democrats and MAGA. And even the Democratic party is changing, albeit slowly, as evidenced by many pro-Democracy candidates who refuse AIPAC money, as an example. Mamdani and Platner are resonating with voters. Who in the Republican party is bucking MAGA?
The two parties are not the same. To say so is to simplify a complex political dynamic that has much nuance. Your argument is very black and white. Come back with a refined post in your Substack notes that addresses that complexity and perhaps I can seriously consider your argument.
You’re right that Republicans currently have the most direct leverage over Trump... and they’re choosing not to use it. That’s a real and serious failure... But you’re proving my point more than refuting it... Listen.
When I say “this,” I’m talking about the broader accountability breakdown: institutions that are structurally capable of checking power but repeatedly fail to do so when it becomes politically inconvenient. Congress (both parties at different times), the courts, regulatory bodies, even media ecosystems that selectively amplify or ignore depending on incentives.
Trump didn’t invent that weakness. He exposed how far it could be pushed. This is not a defensive him. Yes, the GOP owns a large share of the current responsibility. But systems don’t suddenly become fragile overnight.... Definitely not because of one person or part. They erode over time through incentives that reward loyalty over oversight, power over principle, and short-term wins over long-term stability. Take the national debt for example. Balance the budget under Clinton and went up every year for the next 26 years...
That’s why reducing this to “a Republican problem” misses the underlying issue: if the system only works when the “right people” are in power, then it doesn’t actually work.
And on your point about nuance—this is the nuance. Acknowledging asymmetry in behavior right now while still recognizing that the structural incentives enabling it didn’t come from one side alone.
If anything, that’s the uncomfortable part people tend to avoid. That's what I write about. I try to use data and patterns to point things out and to remind my side to take a look in the mirror and remember that if they don't demand accountability and call themselves out, all they have is a platform with this lately better of two parties, complaining about how bad the leader of the other party is. That's not a party that's going to get anything done.
The two parties are not the same, but both require reform (Republicans just require *more* reform), as does the wider system. Can we agree on that much?
Whataboutist arguments (he's bad but so is the other one) just shut down discussion and progress. Two wrongs still don't make a right.
That's a false equivalency wrapped in a fallacy. Be honest: you don't know what you're talking about.
https://substack.com/chat/6147559?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android
I don’t think the “other”party would daily do whatever to not only destroy this country but the entire world!
After 1st repeat
Tim Snyder calls this a "superpower suicide." The answer to "how much is Trump going to destroy?" is everything. He is winning. Time is almost up. We need everybody to act.
You mean…how much MORE is he and his partners-in-crimeS going to destroy? Oh, much more before they’re all 86’d (thrown out 😏). 🤬
Every single thing that they can! Thats their plan, burn it ALL DOWN!
Comey's big crime is being much, much taller than Turnip.
They are going to destroy everything in their path to take us down. Next is Medicaid and Social Security. The more us old folks ‘croak’ the more money they keep for themselves. Taxes won’t go down, they will go up.
He has wanted that money from Medicaid and SS since he first got in on his first term. Remember he said the prices going up will be for just a short time and then would return to normal soon. LIE!! Prices will be bad when his 4 yrs are done. He tells people what he thinks they want to hear but never ever the TRUTH.
Exactly, people are a burden to them, we protest, we talk, ask & require things, they want their robots who are submissive, get the job done and they don’t require or demand equality & justice!
At some point we have to stop treating this like normal politics.
When leadership turns into chaos, allies pull back, markets react, and the consequences hit everyone else.
This isn’t strategy. It’s damage control on repeat.
Any suggestions?
Hey Joanne. I do have some suggestions. We can start by making accountability automatic, not optional....
Right now everything depends on whether the people in power choose to enforce norms. That’s not a SYSTEM.. that’s like wishing on a Star.
A few places to start:
- Ban congressional stock trading with real penalties (not fines they laugh off). If they can’t beat the market without insider info, they shouldn’t be in the market.
- Automatic oversight triggers.. if certain thresholds are hit (ethical violations, emergency powers, etc.), investigations kick in whether leadership wants them or not.
- Independent redistricting everywhere... politicians choosing voters is the quiet engine behind most of this dysfunction.
Campaign finance transparency in real time... not months later when it doesn’t matter.
- Term limits for leadership positions (not just offices)... concentration of power breeds exactly what we’re watching.
None of this is ideological, only structural.
Because if the system only works when “good people” are in charge, it’s already broken. The goal is to make it work even when they’re not.
Right now we’re relying on damage control.
That’s not governance... It's some type of fever dream about living in constant survival mode with better branding..
Does that make sense? .
Donald Trump is an old fool with dementia! The biggest liar and loser of them all!
Dina, Appreciate your article. Your summary paragraph says it all.
He will continue to destroy as many as he can for as long as he can. 🤬 💔💔💔🇺🇸💔💔💔♥️🇨🇦
🍊 goals, money, revenge and subjugation.