Monday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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Monday, November 24, 2025
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41 comments
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About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science and former College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored
A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog).
Follow Steven on
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BlueSky.
The shitshow that is now Trump’s Ukrainian policy?
I can’t summarize better than Heather Cox Richardson:
@Scott:
The Cuban Missile Crisis comes to mind. Had these fuckwits managed that there’d be big, radioactive, smoking holes where American and Russian cities now stand.
@Scott:
It’s like this: In normal times, had anyone claimed the plan to subjugate Ukraine to Russia was drawn up by the US, they’d have been laughed out of the planet.
@Michael Reynolds:
At Balloon Juice Adam Silverman, in his nightly wrap up of Ukraine and Georgia, talks about this peace plan clown act. He quotes, of all people, Bill Kristol.
Driscoll is described as Vance’s guy at DOJ. People are dying, war and peace are at stake, and the highest levels of our government are playing junior high kool kids games, with no president able to provide adult supervision.
@Scott:
American Pie heartlander J.D. Vance, and by extension, Peter Thiel, are Russian assets??? No way !!!
A tale of two Petes —-
Bad Pete obfuscates:
Did you give the order!?!???
She wants the truth!
Hegseth can’t handle the truth!
Good Pete articulates:
For Pete’s sake, America, and your own, go with the good Petes out there.
@gVOR10:
Driscoll is described as Vance’s guy at DOJ.
If it is Daniel Driscoll, he is Secretary of the Army and went to law school with Vance. He is an Army Vet (Officer). He seems competent. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/21/dan-driscoll-army-secretary-trump-administration-prominence-00663917?nid=0000018f-3124-de07-a98f-3be4d1400000
One theory about AI floating around, is that eventually one of the LLMs, image/video generators, etc. will prove massively useful and profitable, therefore lots of companies are investing every year the cost of the Apollo program* on the technology.
One would think then the investment would be in research and development, not in deployment of thirsty data centers. Apparently, they all want to be positioned to take immediate and large scale advantage of the magic AI when it finally shows up…
The sooner the bubble pops, the less dire the consequences all around.
*Per Wikipedia, the cost adjusted for inflation in 2020 of the Apollo program was about $257 billion (does not include Skylab or Apollo Soyuz).
Trump set to propose framework to fix Obamacare subsidies
Hard to view this 180 degree without crediting elevation of the ACA subsidies issue through the shutdown/standoff, with the Dems being bolstered by 7 million No Kings protesters.
People Power lives!
Negotiators to end Russia’s war of aggression: the Russian equivalent of the Treasury Secretary, an American real estate mogul, and the president’s corrupt & conflicted son-in-law. Missing – anyone from Ukraine, anyone from NATO, anyone from Europe, anyone with a deep understanding of Russian and Ukrainian history. Cheerleaders = JD “I wanna be president” Vance, and Marco “quiero ser presidente” Rubio.
Rep. Cory Mills Accused of Stolen Valor for His Bronze
Our entire political ‘ecosphere’ is ready-made for résumé padding.
@Rob1: What? The guy with a restraining order may have lied?
Blech.
— H. Rap Brown, 1960’s civil rights activist. Oct.4, 1943 – Nov.23, 2025, Age 82. Died while serving a life term in prison for killing a police officer in 2000.
@Jen: Only the finest, right?
The Trump administration’s peace plan reminds me of North Vietnam’s stance from early 1970 to Fall 1972 to resolve the Vietnam war.
Total withdrawal of US troops
The toppling of the regime in Saigon
and no guarantees so far as exchanging POWs
@Michael Reynolds:
Maybe.
On the other hand, maybe he goes on TV and declares “I talked to Kruschev, he’s a nice guy, very smart, not a communist lunatic at all, many people say that. And he told me those are not his missiles.”
He then goes golfing for the next week, to ponder what other parts of the White House he can demolish for a second ballroom. The navy won’t shoot at the Soviet ships without orders. Next thing you know, there are Soviet nukes a short hop from Miami.
@Scott:
and … Per NBCnews: President Donald Trump inserted fresh tensions into the high-stakes Ukraine-Russia peace talks on Sunday, publicly accusing Kyiv’s leaders of showing “zero gratitude” for U.S. support just as U.S. officials in Geneva were working to show a united front.
The clown car spins out, into the infield, JD struggles to get out of the car, rips off his helmet throws it to the ground and blames Hegseth (or Rubio) for this. I think this show needs new screenwriters. Or maybe this is exactly right?
Soon to come … as Trump realizes that the rollout of the Sellout is … not … doing … well.
… ‘I don’t know anything about this agreement, never heard of it.’
Breaking:
Comey & James indictment dismissed, Halligan not authorized to present.
@Bobert:
But. . . but. . . she’s hot in that creepy, plastic way that flatters Trump’s old man ego.
Can’t make this bluster up. I’m guessing someone is setting up Hegseth for a removal.
The indictments against James Comey and Tish James have been dismissed.
@CSK:
They were dismissed without prejudice which means they can be refiled.
@Richard Gardner: They are attempting to court martial a decorated naval officer, astronaut, and the husband of a former member of congress who survived an assassination attempt, on the basis that he [checks notes] reminded others serving that they are not to obey illegal orders? Do I have that right?
That seems like it is unlikely to go the way they are thinking it might.
@Bill Jempty:
I believe the statute of limitations has run out in the Comey case, hasn’t it? I vaguely remember they were in a rush to file when they did so earlier.
ETA: Found the answer at The Empty Wheel. The ruling appears to prevent Bondi from re-indicting Comey, but doesn’t “moot his other legal challenges.”
https://www.emptywheel.net/2025/11/24/buh-bye-lindsey/
What the heck?
Checking in at a hotel has to be a logistical nightmare based on luggage alone. Why would this be happening?
Cruise critic has the answer–
Passengers will be disembarking late from the Dawn. That is going to cause problems- missed flights- also. Why was this congestion just figured out now?
Dear Wife and I sailed Norwegian Joy for our Alaskan cruise. It was a great experience. Over the next 14 months, DW has us embarking on four more cruises already. One going to the eastern Caribbean this next Sunday, an Antarctica cruise in January, a New England and Canada cruise next summer, and an around the world cruise starting in January 2027. All of those will be with Holland America. Two of those cruises will be out of Fort Lauderdale, about 40 miles south of where we live.
@Richard Gardner:
El Taco’s so-called administration produces so much bullshit, they have to spread it around several government departments.
@Kathy: To begin with, the Soviets would have felt no need to to put nukes close to a nation run by one of their most useful idiots.
By statute the statute of limitations in the Comey case is extended for six months. The problem for Trump if he wishes to prosecute is that the court will now appoint an interim U.S. Attorney, who if he /she has any integrity, will elect not to prosecute. Any appointment by Trump will have to pass Senate confirmation.
An interesting by product of the judge’s opinion is that any official act of the improperly appointed U.S. Attorney is if not void voidable. That includes any other indictment returned during this period but any other official act such as the hiring or firing of AUSAs.
@dazedandconfused:
Maybe they would, because their useful idiot would allow it. the missiles would still be there by the time Americans put a useless genius* in the oval office.
On other things, of late I’ve been running across some observations and questions I’ve made on various topics, covered in books I’m reading and on videos I watch on Youtube.
For instance, one thing I’ve long wondered is whether communism required a totalitarian, oppressive, pervasive form of governance, or whether that was a result of the Russian soil, figuratively speaking, where it first took root.
Volkogonov’s book on Lenin takes this up early on. He doesn’t say it was required, but that it turned up that way because it was how Lenin saw power and governance.
*Or even a compromise useless idiot like Reagan.
FAA issues a security NOTAM* on flights near Venezuela, causing major disruptions in most international carriers in the region.
*”Notice to airmen”
This was merely a petty harassment IMO, but I suppose we have to hand it to the Trump administration for originality and efficacy. Doesn’t directly affect any US carrier as there are no US ops in and out of Venezuela, but scares the crap out of people. Looked like the kind of NOTAMS that go out just before things other than aircraft start flying around.
@a country lawyer:
The following is posted at Empty Wheel:
Does this mean that the indictment is considered valid and therefore the statute of limitations gets extended?
(I am genuinely trying to understand this, because I remember thinking that the scramble to get in under the wire seemed like ripe conditions for a major screw-up.)
@al Ameda:
Why do I suspect Kyiv has been appropriately grateful for any help from the US, but Trump expects some more, shall we say, personal and tangible expression. Maybe Kyiv should learn from Putin and dangle a possible Trump Tower Odessa in front of him for years.
@Kathy:
I would say communism as Marx envisioned it, with all forms of industry being state run, is precisely those things and makes no apologies for it. The only issue is whether totalitarian, oppressive and pervasive government is run by a committee or by one person. Lenin thought committee, but Stalin had a different opinion.
@Jen: This is the type of question you often find on a law school exam and the answer hangs on the question of what is a “valid” indictment. The trial judge ignored that issue leaving it to the appellate court. Your guess is as good as mine as to how the appellate court will rule if or when the issue reaches it
@dazedandconfused:
I have never read Marx’s corpus, only read about it second hand, plus some study of portions of it in school. I won’t got reading the Manifesto or Das Kapital, but I’ll look into it to see what he said about such things, if anything (it’s amazing how the practical aspects of implementation are overlooked, glossed over, or plain ignored by lofty philosophers).
Hearing anyone in El Taco’s cabinet talk about civility is highly ironic.
Not to mention some missing questions in his short video:
Are you setting up unrealistic, padded schedules, because you face little to no consequences for delays and cancellations?
Are you packing your passengers as tight as canned sardines?
Are you nickel and diming your passengers for everything from checked bags, to buy on board snacks, to spotty Wi Fi access*, to seats nearer the front of the plane?
Do you annoy your passengers with endless pitches for your branded credit card on top of all the above?
Do you overbook flights and offer insufficient compensation to bumped passengers, because you can always call the cops to remove them if they refuse to be “voluntarily” bumped?
I’m sure I’m missing more than a few. Feel free to pile on.
*Ok, I can see charging for Wi Fi, and perhaps even at rather high rates. It depends, too, on what free entertainment an airline offers (seatback, free airline content streaming, nothing).
@a country lawyer:..time travel..
I just stumbled back to your post from last Saturday’s Forum thread, the anniversary of the JFK assassination in 1963, where you wrote: “I was driving in to an afternoon physics lab in my ’68 VW which had only an AM radio…”
If you still have that car maybe you can take it for a spin into the future and report back how the mid term elections turn out a year from now.
It’s not that they’re now saying the quiet part out loud, it’s that they don’t even realize it’s the quiet part.
Congresswoman Maria Salazar blithely says the main reason to invade Venezuela is to take the oil: “The first of those reasons, she said, is that “Venezuela for the American oil companies will be a field day…”
I’m sure there are economic justifications for this. I’m sure there are no moral or legal justifications at all.
I’m also sure in this community I don’t need to explain what’s wrong with the idea, or why it’s a tremendously bad idea to begin with.
Salazar continues with claims like “we’ll be welcomed as liberators,” because Maduro is unpopular. And that it will be just like Panama.
@Gregory Lawrence Brown: Yeah, I caught that typo too late to correct it. It was a 1958 VW beetle, black with a sunroof. It had a 36 hp air cooled engine and could make 60 mph down hill. It had no gas gauge but little lever next to the accelerator that when kicked over gave an extra gallon of gas when the engine started to sputter.
@a country lawyer:..VW beetle…
Someone I knew in High School had one of those cars with no gas gauge. It was a real treat riding in traffic when it was low on gas.
I remember seeing old VWs that had semaphore turn signals. I always thought they were neat!
@a country lawyer:
“ It had no gas gauge but little lever “
Most motorcycles didn’t have a gas gauge before 1985 or so and used that system. When the engine started sputtering you reached down and turned the lever from on to reserve. When you fill up you must remember to turn the lever back from reserve to on or next time you’re low on fuel there is no reserve. Don’t ask me how I know this.