Thursday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
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Thursday, July 17, 2025
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45 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).
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BlueSky.
Another day in the decay and corruption of the United States:
No, not suspicious at all.
Maurene Comey, daughter of James Comey and prosecutor of Jeffrey Epstein, is fired
I hope these people who are canned, planned well, and carried a lot of documentation and evidence out the door with them.
Making America Sick Again.
Rio Grande Valley’s biggest free health clinic event of the year is canceled due to federal cuts
Coincidentally.
Harlingen doctor becomes first Democrat to challenge GOP Rep. Monica De La Cruz for South Texas congressional seat
@Scott:
Honest question – if Trump was intentionally trying to make himself look guilty of something what would he do any differently than he is doing right now?
@Scott: Don’t employees of the federal government have job rights protecting them from unwarranted dismissal? She appears to be someone who can avail herself of various remedies.
1.4 million of America’s poorest renters may lose their homes because of HUD policy change.
A few things.
From X, Part 1:
One reply explains they heard about Rhodesia in a Roblox group. Either a child by age or a child by brain.
Another reply:
It’s not about where you’re from, dude. It’s about your choice to take up the Lost Cause. It’s about your choice to be a bigot. It’s about your delusion of victimhood.
—
From X, part 2:
When I first saw this, two of the first replies were about Biden.
Anybody stillNo wonder why we could not get a positive defense of Trump in these threads?.—
On food destruction:
When I was a kid in the Deep South, whenever foreign aid was discussed in Washington, the common refrain was:
“We should deal with our problems at home first.”
Yet, these ‘America First’ people choose to destroy food rather than distribute it to Americans in need.
Oh, right. It’s not about America First. It’s about a particular group conferring upon themselves the right to define who is American, as Steven and others have pointed out. Same with the 1A.
Of course, I’ve seen different people in that crowd who seem to misunderstand what “inalienable” means, appearing to believe that the founders saw rights as conferred by place of birth rather than birth itself.
I slowly learned to suppress the gag reflex when I see any Trumpists use the word “values.” But man, for quite a while, it was more uncomfortable than a long bout of hiccups.
Also from AP:
This is now a daily event in the United States.
@Slugger: I expect Ms. Comey has some available recourse within the government. But under the circumstances, why would she want to keep the job? And, if she wants it, a lot of opportunity just opened up in what passes for the Blue equivalent of wingnut welfare. If nothing else, I expect she’s getting calls from publishers.
@Kingdaddy:
Veterans are props to these people. Mascots. Human shields. The worst kind of virtue signal—reducing flesh and blood to a flag pin.
@Kingdaddy:
Needless to say that in a normal administration this would be a real issue. For Trump it is normal incompetence.
Last week workers have been tearing up the pavement on the one road to my regular supermarket, which is also the road I take to get to work (and most other places as well). So I’ve been expecting them to start resurfacing it soon.
I did not expect them to close it down. Usually they pave one side, then the other. Not today. It was closed. I had to take a long, long detour and forego an early morning minor shopping trip. I hope they get it done today. They’ve closed access to the supermarket, as well as to some offices, a medical lab, an a school (which is probably closed for the summer break).
Query for the legal experts- Since ICE wears masks and as I understand it refuse to show their badges but just verbally declare they are ICE what happens if someone is a US citizen and fights back? In that case ICE has no legal authority and how is the person fighting back supposed to be sure they are not just being kidnapped? My guess is that the ICE people would just shoot someone who fought back and they would make up some BS but hopefully it would be on tape.
I think this deserves more attention. Anonymous paramilitary groups hiding their identification has never been good for the general populace and AFAICT from reading history is a tactic limited to authoritarian governments.
Steve
Italian PM Meloni has weighed in after Israel strikes Gaza Catholic church, killing three:
Rebecca Watson on why the Epstein/Taco kerfuffle is not a conspiracy theory. Nor a distraction.
Gist:
I saw Superman yesterday, and I loved it, except for one thing — and I will avoid all spoilers — did anyone else see one character as an antisemitic caricature?
Picture with no spoilers: https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/dcstudios/images/e/e0/Vasil_Ghurkos.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20250709191907
(There are almost no pictures of this character on the internet)
Large nose, jewfro, a little rotund… This is just how the actor looks. He’s Croat, but a lot of our stereotypes about Jews are really just East-European. Given his role (let’s ignore what that role is, other than to say that he is never presented as a good guy), I think maybe just don’t cast the guy who just happens to look like that.
At least he was never seen eating a bagel or something — it was clearly identified as a donut. A plain, roughly bagel colored donut.*
Other than what I take as mild and presumably unintentional antisemitism, I really enjoyed it. Strongly recommend.
Also, I was unprepared for how much Lex Luthor looks like comics writer Grant Morrison.
——
*: my apologies for spoiling the donut. The donut has no effect on the plot. Also, sorry for spoiling that the movie does not revolve around a donut — there’s a really strong silver age vibe in spots, so it wouldn’t be entirely out of place to be based on a donut, but, like the vast majority of movies, it isn’t.
Recently we changed the elevators in our building. This had a huge cost (we’re still paying), and took five months. Now, the owners board (the apartments are individually owned) decided to install biometric access.
Why? No clue. it’s not like we’ve had problems with guests or contractors or delivery personnel running up and down the building. There was one (1) incident years ago where some drunk teens at a party in the common room, went to several floors and rang doorbells, rather late at night, for some kid of prank or dare or something. One time. Years ago.
So what about guests now? Well, every apartment gets 20 invite QR codes per month (more can be requested) valid for one day each (when used). Or you can call the elevator to your floor and hope they’re in it, or you can escort them up and down.
It feels like fortress mentality.
And if the drunk kids recur, now as drunk adults, they can do the same with a QR code. It doesn’t take a combined IQ of 360 to do so.
@Gustopher:..(There are almost no pictures of this character on the internet)…
There is no picture when I click on your link.
@Gustopher: I can say with no uncertainty that the thought of antisemitism never crossed my mind. Never occurred to me that this guy looked Jewish. And I that donut is the subject of much conversation, every sentence identifying it as a donut.
Glad you enjoyed the film, by the way. I did, too…
@gVOR10: I try to follow the Corleoni rule,”keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
@steve222:
I’m actually much more concerned about a bunch of Klan/Militia types deciding to cosplay as ICA and murder a whole bunch of people for funsies. I would say that given the way ICE goes about it’s job that it’s an almost certain that some of these idiots have thought of that and the only thing stopping them is the fact that conservatives are fundamentally cowards.
@Gregory Lawrence Brown: See what I said about almost no pictures! It’s like he’s vanishing!
(The only pictures I’ve found are embedded in stories with spoilers, and I *thought* this one wasn’t protected against direct linking, but I was wrong)
Here’s the IMDB page of the actor, with an old photo where he’s looking a bit like Malcolm Gladwell.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0121519/?ref_=ttfc_fcr_cst_32
That, but older. And less comical.
@wr: this is why I ask. I am fully aware that I might be wrong, or it might not be noticeable. To me, has a lot of similar features to some of the Orthodox Jews I would see on the subway in NYC.
I’m also pretty close to face blind, so I don’t know whether that makes it better or worse. (insert shrug emoji here)
There’s so much antisemitism swirling about society these days that I’m a bit on edge. Something about white supremacists in the White House.
And sometimes a donut is just a donut, and not a round bread product with a hole that is legally distinct from a bagel. I don’t know why it was so prominent in the donut scene, but James Gunn has a distinctive style and it’s not out of character for him to include a prominent pastry or something for no specific reason other than texture.
Definitely the best Superman movie of this century so far. (At least the best live action Superman movie of this century — I haven’t followed all the DC Animated films, but the ones I have seen felt weak, even when taking from strong material).
So, apparently Trump has been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency. This is why his ankles were so swollen the other day.
What I find strange about this is that they’ve admitted this/made it public. Why? That’s not the MO for this crew. Normally we’d have his press secretary up there saying he has the best ankles of any world leader, etc. and then they’d ignore it. Charlotte Clymer has a theory.
I genuinely don’t know how to react. It’s saying something when they do something normal like admitting a medical condition, and that behavior is so uncharacteristic we all think something must be up.
@Beth: I expect the Klan/Militia types don’t need to masquerade as ICE because they are ICE. McDonald workers aren’t cosplaying as McDonalds workers when they’re off the clock, making a burger in their spare time.
Please enjoy “There’s A McDonalds In The Pentagon” by Silly Stu.
https://youtu.be/eXx3PbtMLyY
(Video chosen with my sound off at a coffee shop, apologies if it is mislabeled and actually the mating call of tapirs or something)
@Jen:
A symptom of chronic venous insufficiency is leg cramps. Those hurt a lot. Maybe that’s what’s keeping the Sick Taco up at night, requiring many naps during the day.
On the other hand, swollen legs are also a symptom of renal issues. They may be admitting to something obscure and not readily understood, in preference of “kidney issues” which is far better known. Maybe he has dialysis often.
While I can see Vance eagerly take up office, I can’t see El Taco giving it up unless he’s dead, and even then only after whining about it a lot.
@Gustopher:
He struck me as the secret love child of Mad Vlad and El Taco.
@Jen:
From the link to Charlotte Clamer’s substack:
I’m not buying her theory.
He could just resign, he doesn’t need an excuse. Just declare victory and go home, pardoning himself on his way out the door.
“I’ve built an amazing administration. An administration unlike any the world has ever seen. An administration so administrative that it can administrate for America without my constant oversight…”
I don’t have an alternate explanation that I’m committed to, beyond “it doesn’t look healthy, please be about to die.”
Maybe they’re covering up something worse (please). Maybe they’re experimenting with adding a few true things in press conferences so people will be more likely to believe the many, many false things. Maybe she just screwed up and said what she was specifically told not to say.
There might have peen a paper in front of of her that said “Do NOT mention the President’s chronic venous insufficiency” and there was a post it note over the “Do NOT”
I’ll withhold judgement until the President states that the doctors at Duane Reed Medical Center have told him that he has the most sufficient veins of anyone they have ever seen. Such veins. The best veins. The most sufficient veins. Really, the only risk is that his veins are too sufficient.
I really hope he’s about to die.
But, at least there’s this:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8126535/
Suffer you miserable melon-colored miscreant! Suffer!
@Kathy:
This long interview with journalist Tina Brown is the most intelligent dissertation of why the Epstein issue is doing so much damage to Trump, particularly with long-time loyalists, I’ve seen yet.
Bright lady, she is.
Trump always walked a thin line in his astounding career as a gaslighting con-man. The high risk nature of his game is real, notwithstanding him getting away with it for decades.
Not convinced this is “it”, but the demolition of confidence games tends to be sudden and Jenga-tower complete.
@Kathy: I’m really pleased that other people don’t see it. I’d rather be just way off rather than have it tarnish an otherwise fun movie.
You know, I just thought of a line of rhetoric about the Epstein mess that works just fine for me:
“The question before us is whether we live in a world where the rich and well-connected can get away with pedophilia and expect to be protected by the US government, or not.”
I like it because it doesn’t make any assertion about Epstein or any particular client. Heh, it’s all innuendo, which is a stock in trade for politicians.
And yet, that’s the core question, right? Does the government work for us, or on us?
@Gustopher:
Nor I. There is no way the felon resigns. He’ll complete this term and fight to have another. Now if he could force Vance out and replace him with Jr or eric…
@Gustopher: Agreed, I am not one who typically subscribes to any conspiracy theory, it just isn’t in my nature to believe overly complicated explanations for…anything, really. I just find it so wildly out of character for them to ADMIT a problem, any problem…let alone a medical issue.
That transparent behavior is so unexpected is its own problem, I guess.
@Gustopher: @wr: @Kathy: @Gustopher:
Haven’t seen this movie but the conversation reminds of Episode 7 of The Studio titled Casting where everyone is in a tizzy of the casting of Ice Cube as the Kool-Aid man in a movie. As well as coming up with a cast that won’t offend anybody. Pretty funny but it touches on the subject of typecasting, ethnic stereotyping etc mostly through mockery.
@Beth: I’m waiting for someone to “stand their ground” and decide to defend themselves against an unknown and unidentified threat.
@dazedandconfused:
A really good use for AI would be instant transcripts of video interviews. I could get the gist faster and at work.
Of course, the subtitles/close caption Youtube’s AI does fails consistently. We might get an interview about the Epi-pen files…
@Jen:
I don’t even think it’s something cunning like Rule of Acquisition number 76: Every once in a while, declare peace. It confuses the hell out of your enemies.
@Gustopher:
Last week he was Superman.
https://variety.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Donald-Trump-Superman-Poster.jpg
This week he has cankles!!!
https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets.eastidahonews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trump-swelling-2.jpg
We are living in a weird timeline!!!
Just happen to be watching a rerun of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Titled Past Tense. Sisko, Dax, and Bashir get accidentally transported to an American city full of civil unrest, homelessness, etc. The time? San Francisco, 2024. Episode came out in 1995. Hmm..
@Kathy: Yeah. Seen some pretty spotty transcription from machines.
I really prefer to listen, transcripts exclude tone. Minimized on my screen and fed to the ear piece, I can listen while working…as long as it’s not complicated work.
@Scott:
Spooky. Btw, one of Nostradamus’s predictions was we would see “the great shameless, audacious bawler”
A GOP strategist, claiming to be “working with the White House,” asked county clerks in Colorado if they would give a “third party vendor” access to their voting systems to look for vulnerabilities.
https://www.threads.com/@kyleclark9news/post/DMOxqAevL9F?xmt=AQF0NCq5pxmhSwZEM_TFoK0hLeq55sWLFUufWZBlVh049w
Short video of Marina Sirtis explaining Deanna Troi’s accent.
It is hilarious.
@Gustopher: “There’s so much antisemitism swirling about society these days that I’m a bit on edge.”
I get that… but I think if you have a thought like “Hey, that actor looks like a Jewish stereotype — wonder if this film is antisemitic,” you really have to take a step back and look at the broader context. In this case, the entire movie is an argument against bigotry and for embracing those who aren’t exactly like us.
I’m pretty sure that if James Gunn — not the subtlest filmmaker out there — had wanted to spread antisemitism through his Superman movie, he would have found a more direct way to do it.
@wr: My expectation would be that James Gunn — not the subtlest filmmaker out there — would be attempting to draw parallels and then step in a pile of shit because he cannot do delicate and nuanced.
@Kathy: Wow, that was super fun. Thanks for sharing it.
Indigenous people – Native Americans and maybe some others – describe Trump as The Trickster. In the NW, he would be called Coyote. Coyote messes everthing up. He makes a mess, and then he leaves.
This isn’t completely valueless, since some of the things Coyote breaks need to be broken. I think we might see this.
Now “the great shameless, audacious bawler” sounds a fair bit like Coyote, like a Trickster.
I think it’s plausible that what comes after Trump is a desire to eat the rich. Which if we brace ourselves, will allow for some very valuable things to be accomplished (along with things I don’t personally like, but it ain’t a perfect world).
I’m not saying I want any of this, or would choose any of this. I am saying we need to get ready for what comes next.