Our Fascist Idiocracy: May 21, 2025

Grifting for the grifter: Ed Martin stoking the 2020 insurrection

Fascist Idiocrat spotlight: Yale fascism expert Timothy Snyder puts Trump’s recently demoted U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia in the spotlight:

Ed Martin is a major actor in Trump’s attempted regime change to authoritarianism. His particular role is to transform the law into a tool to intimidate Americans. After a stint as interim US Attorney for DC which was marked by unprecedented weaponization of the position, Martin will now continue his work for Trump as the official “weaponization czar.”

This is a new position within the Justice Department, designed by the Trump administration, to punish people who have committed no crimes. Martin was originally placed on the “weaponization working group” seemingly ex officio when he was a US Attorney; he will now continue as its chairman. On Martin’s account, his assignment will be to publicly single out Americans who have not been found guilty of anything, or for that matter even indicted. He says there will be “no limit to the targets.”

Mixed Signals. Yet more confusion at the top. On Tuesday, as Republicans were arguing, not about whether to cut Medicaid, but rather how deeply to slash into the nation’s healthcare system, Dear Leader did an about face, warning his House MAGA minions: “Don’t fuck around with Medicaid.” It’s likely Trump saw the KFF Health Tracking Poll in April that found that a whopping 76 percent of voters disapprove of MAGA’s cuts to Medicaid. That includes 79 percent of Independents and 55 percent of Republicans.

Rubio goes rogue: Secretary of State Marco Rubio has gone all in on the new authoritarianism. Marco Rubio Says No Judge Has Authority Over Him in Alarming Testimony.

What is DOGE hiding? DOGE, the secretive federal department that Trump and Elon Musk have deployed to destroy the U.S. government from within, has appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to to declare them exempt from compliance with the Freedom of Information Act. The appeal is a response to an order by a federal judge to comply with FOIA in March.

Our Fascist Idiocracy: May 19, 2025

Aftermath of suicide bombing at Palm Springs fertility clinic

As heard on Blue Sky, “Apparently the IVF terrorist self-identified as an anti-procreation, pro-death vegan.” At first, authorities in Palm Springs were confused because the bombing occurred Saturday at a fertility clinic there, not an abortion clinic. The one person who was killed turned out to be the bomber himself. He was identified as Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, whom the FBI described as having “nihilistic ideations.

Equalizer in Chief: His nibs says he’s invented a new word to describe his plan to reduce drug costs that actually raises the costs. “Basically, what we’re doing is equalizing,” Trump said. “There’s a new word that I came up with, which is probably the best word. We’re gonna equalize where we’re all gonna pay the same. We’re gonna pay what Europe’s gonna pay.” Europe pays more, so Americans will pay more.

Let them eat tariffs, Trump says, referring to Walmart, MAGA’s favorite retailer. He’s demanding that the company “eat the tariffs” instead of raising prices – which is a prime example of authoritarian economics.

Comey folds: Former FBI director James Comey was spotted leaving his home and ducking into a black SUV with the Secret Service before speeding off. CNN reported that Comey is cooperating with the Secret Service amid blowback over his “86 47” beachside post—which critics, including Trump himself, have alleged was a veiled assassination threat against the 47th president.

Making America the 90s Again: Deranged Trump Boosts Bonkers Clinton Kill List Conspiracy. “President Donald Trump boosted a wild conspiracy theory that accuses the Clinton family of murdering seven people.”

Brink Has a Message from the Brink

“I cannot stand by while a country is invaded, a democracy bombarded, and children killed with impunity. I believe that the only way to secure U.S. interests is to stand up for democracies and to stand against autocrats. Peace at any price is not peace at all ? it is appeasement. And history has taught us time and again that appeasement does not lead to safety, security or prosperity. It leads to more war and suffering.”

— Former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink, writing in the Detroit Free Press.

Our Fascist Idiocracy: May 16, 2025

"86 47" means "Toss the 47th president out of office"
“86 47” means “Toss the 47th president out of office”

Handing Trump the 2016 election on a gold-plated platter wasn’t enough to save former FBI director James Comey from being investigated by Trump’s secret police over an Insta post. The offending post was a photo of sea shells arranged to spell, “86 47,” which means toss the 47th president out of office. Fascist idiocrats claimed Comey’s post called for the assassination of Trump. Comey removed the post right away.

Speaking of idiots, our wannabe autocrat felt he had to explain groceries to a Middle Eastern leader: “We have a term ‘groceries.’ It’s an old term, but it means basically what you’re buying, food, it’s a pretty accurate term, but it’s an old-fashioned sound, but groceries are down.”

Fascism is allergic to voting, so it shouldn’t be surprising that the DOJ Voting Section Has Just Three Lawyers Left, Watchdog Estimates, says Democracy Docket. The section had 30 lawyers assigned to enforce voting laws before the Trump insane clown posse hit town.

And when the wannabe autocrats don’t like the way voters vote, they finagle a re-do: Republican legislators approve ballot item that would again ban most abortions in Missouri.

Our Fascist Idiocracy: May 15, 2025

Left to right: The worst and best presidents of the United States

The USDA hangs a giant banners depicting America’s best and worst presidents on the facade of its neoclassical headquarters in Washington.

What First Amendment? A Business Insider story with the headline, “Don Jr. is the new Hunter Biden,” has so enraged Don Jr.’s daddy that he has ordered his lackeys to attack the European conglomerate that owns Politico and Business Insider, because it is a “German Influence Operation.” Whatver that is.

Newsweek: Qatar’s Gift to Trump Is Unsold Plane It’s Been Trying to Dump for Years.

A president from the erstwhile party of free enterprises tells an American CEO where not to expand his business, and members of his allegedly pro-capitalism party fall in line and remain mute: Trump to Apple: Don’t expand iPhone production in India.

Sen. Josh “Running Man” Hawley, MAGA-Mo, is so afraid of voters on Medicaid that he’s swallowed his fear of Trump long enough to speak out against the boss’s “big beautiful” cuts to healthcare funding for those in need.

It’s not just the pundits. Science Tells Us the U.S. Is Heading toward a Dictatorship