After my last post about the CDC’s challenge to Pennsylvania’s reported measles deaths, which was a downer, I thought some pick-me-ups might be nice. So here are a few thoughts on some random stories that wormed their way into my various newsfeeds.
First up, the New York Times reports that President Trump posted a Truth Social tirade lashing out at communities that oppose data centers. He said that such communities “want to end up being backwards and poor.”
Way to read the room, Mr. President! Please post more of your hilarious ridicule of those silly people who are opposed to data centers. I think you should post such “thoughts” daily, and, while you’re at it, demand that Republicans who are up for election do the same. Make “Build More Data Centers!” a MAGA slogan.
Our second tidbit is a People Magazine report that eminently-qualified DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin criticized the Biden Administration’s immigration policies, seemingly forgetting that the Biden Administration is no longer in power. Mullin’s remarks came in an August 31st joint press conference with the Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, to announce the closure of truck driving schools that issued commercial driving licenses to people who failed to meet federal requirements, including requirements relating to English language proficiency. People Magazine’s characterization of Mullin’s remarks is worth quoting: “During the briefing, Mullin suggested that the Biden administration is actively harming Americans, saying, ‘You have a Biden administration that is failing the American people because they are allowing millions of people to come into this country illegally.’”
Mullin’s remarks prompt the question, is dementia contagious or are Mullin’s remarks a subtle homage to Trump’s diminished mental capacities?
Our last tidbit: In a continuation of the unraveling of the US military under Secretary of War!, Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of the Army, Daniel P. Driscoll, resigned. According to the New York Times, Driscoll had clashed with the moronic Hegseth over Hegseth’s ouster of combat-tested Army leadership. The Times described Hegseth’s firings and feuds as leaving the Army “rudderless”–a characterization that blurs the distinction between the Army and Navy. Do better, New York Times!
In any event, Pete’s lack of management skills and almost laughable combination of Dunning-Kruger disorder and Testosterone-Obsession disorder (and good old-fashioned racism and sexism) has seriously weakened the US military and so must be making the Russians, Chinese, Iranians, and, heck, even the Canadians and Greenlanders giggle with glee.
You may wonder why Trump is still keeping Pathetic Pete around. Well, perhaps it’s because Pete is a reliably awful distraction from Trump and the other miscreants, morons, and Markwayne Mullinses in the Administration. Or perhaps Trump hasn’t noticed Pete’s problems. He may not be getting the information in Natalie Harp’s carefully-curated newsfeed. Anyway, Pete’s attention-grabbing incompetence is yet another distraction from Trump’s personal failings and evident decline. Oh, and the Epstein files.