Graham Platner Finally Withdraws, But Leaves Major Problem For Democrats To Overcome Susan Collins!

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This author and blogger from “Day One” felt uncomfortable and doubtful about Maine Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner.

The gut feeling was that there was something suspicious and disconcerting about him, hard to pinpoint, but the feeling one gets when one meets someone and has a bad vibe about such person, something everyone has with some people they encounter in life.

The revelation of his past shortcomings and disgraceful behavior did not stop Maine Democratic voters from supporting him over Maine Governor Janet Mills, but the new revelations accusing Platner of rape was the turning point, forcing him out of the race.

A key issue was clearly the fact that Janet Mills is 78, and would be the oldest first term elected Senator in history, leaving office after one term in her mid 80s.

The fact that Republican Senator Susan Collins would be 80 years of age herself in six years, made for an unusual situation, as Maine already has the oldest age population of any state, with average age of 45.1, and 23 percent of the population being over the age of 65.

Of course, already, Maine’s other Senator, Independent Angus King is age 82, so would be 86 at the end of his present term in 2030.

Susan Collins has managed to win five terms, more than any Maine Senator in history, and win in a state that is very “Blue” in Presidential elections, and she has always gained the majority of women in Maine.

So the tragic situation with Graham Platner is a major negative for Democrats, as it seems clear that if the Democrats do not win Maine, the chance of them controlling the US Senate in the 120th Congress (2027-2029) will go by the wayside.

With Platner’s announced withdrawal last night, a state convention of 500 delegates will be arranged before the state deadline of July 27.

It is urgent for unity to occur in the aftermath of the Platner disaster, as winning Maine for the Democrats is a priority.

Many Octogenarian US Senators, With Need For Younger Generation Entering The US Senate!

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It is disturbing that the US Senate now has more Octogenarian members than ever before, even though some are retiring:

Dick Durbin of Illinois
Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire
Mitch McConnell of Kentucky

However, the following Octogenarians remain in the Senate:

Peter Welch of Vermont 79–will reach 80 in May 2027
Ed Markey of Massachusetts 80
Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut 80
Angus King of Maine 82
Jim Risch of Idaho 83
Bernie Sanders of Vermont 84
Chuck Grassley of Iowa 92

Markey and Risch are running for reelection in 2026, while the others come up for reelection in 2028, except King and Sanders who have their seats until 2030.

Interestingly, of these ten Senators listed above, two are Independents (King and Sanders); three are Republicans (McConnell, Risch, Grassley); and the remaining five are Democrats (Durbin, Shaheen, Welch, Markey, Blumenthal).

Also of interest, six of the ten Senators are from New England—Shaheen, Welch, Markey, Blumenthal, King, and Sanders—with that section of the nation having the overall oldest average age population.

It is essential that a younger generation of US Senators are elected to the chamber, and there are many inspiring potential Senators who are in their 30s, 40s, and early 50s, as outlined in this blogger’s entry on June 30, 2026!

Medical Doctors Running For Senate And Governorship

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Three medical doctors are running for public office, two for the US Senate, and one for a governorship, who have a good opportunity for possible success.

Abdul El-Sayed seems to be the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate in Michigan, with the primary occurring on August 4. Senators Bernie Sanders and Chris Van Hollen have endorsed him. Congresswoman Haley Stevens is his primary opponent, backed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Former Michigan Congressman Mike Rogers will be the Republican nominee.

Annie Andrews is the Democratic nominee for the US Senate in South Carolina, challenging Lindsey Graham, who has been in the Senate for 24 years.

Amy Action is the Democratic nominee for Governor in Ohio, challenging billionaire and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to replace Republican Governor Mike DeWine.

All three have a tough race ahead, but if they won, it would represent a challenge to the looney health leadership of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Trump’s Phony Attack On “Communism”, When He Consorts With Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, And Kim Jong Un!

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Donald Trump is now promoting a new tactic, attacking “Communism”, which to him is being critical of progressives, liberals, and “democratic socialists”, who have won some Congressional seats for the upcoming 120th Congress (2027-2029).

Trump, meanwhile, consorts with “true” Communists, such as Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, and Kim Jong Un of North Korea, idealizing their totalitarian bent, and working to model himself after their strategy and tactics.

Trump is preparing to use the old, worn out tactic of promoting a “Red Scare”, as was conducted by Woodrow Wilson Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer from 1919-1921 after World War I, and by Wisconsin Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy, and a whole slew of Republicans and Southern Democrats in Congress from 1950-1954, including Richard Nixon.

These attacks on the Left were designed to scare people into promoting violations of the Bill of Rights, and to promote white supremacist Christianity, by utilizing ignorance and fear of “Communism”, to promote a right wing abuse and violation of the Bill of Rights.

So Trump is using the tactics that his close associate Roy Cohn utilized first with Joseph McCarthy, and now, three quarters of a century later, and nearly fifty years after Roy Cohn’s death, again his ghost is being revived.

Brilliant Messages Of Unity On Semiquincentennial Anniversary By Pope Leo XIV And NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani!

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At a time when Donald Trump is feverishly working to divide America, on its Semiquincentennial Anniversary, two true “statesmen” spoke of the “better angels” of America, and promoted tolerance and appreciation of the role of immigrants in the success of the American story over 250 years.

Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, demonstrated how statesmanlike both of them are, and give Americans who care about decency and open mindedness a sense that despite the divisiveness promoted by Donald Trump, that there is hope for revival of the American belief in Democracy and the Rule of Law.

Commemoration Of Bicentennial Anniversary Of Passing Of Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson And John Adams

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On this Semiquincentennial Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, it is also notable that it is the Bicentennial Anniversary of the passing of two Founding Fathers, who collaborated on the Declaration of Independence; then became dire political “enemies”; and then reestablished fast friendship by letters until they jointly passed away on July 4, 1826.

Thomas Jefferson passed away early on the 50th Anniversary, and John Adams died in the evening, uttering the statement: “Thomas Jefferson still survives”, not accurate, but an indication of their closeness and collaboration on the Declaration of Independence and the establishment of a new nation.

Interestingly, the 5th President, James Monroe, died on the Fourth of July five years later, in 1831, making three of the first five Presidents and “Founding Fathers”, who died on that most significant national holiday.

On The SemiQuincentennial Anniversary Of America, A Salute To Immigration Which Is The Nation’s Lifeblood Long Term!

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Here we are, on America’s Semiquincentennial Anniversary, and the immediate thought that comes to mind is that America is what it is today, the greatest experiment in democracy in world history, and so much of it due to IMMIGRATION, from all over the world.

In the past, there was discrimination and prejudice against Irish and German immigrants in the 1840s-1850s; the Jewish and Italian and Polish immigrants in the 1870s-1920s; Asian immigration and Hispanic immigration through most of American history; and Middle Eastern and African immigrants in recent decades.

But through all of the ups and downs of immigration history, it was such immigrants of all stripes and backgrounds who contributed mightily to American progress, and made the nation a better place.

We live in a time of overt racism and nativism, but the nation will, over time, get past this.

When one studies the history of immigration, one finds a primarily “welcoming” attitude overall by Presidents of all political persuasions until the 1880s-1890s; again in the 1920s and early 1930s; and again since the rise of Donald Trump.

The Presidents most negative toward immigration include:

Chester Alan Arthur, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Donald Trump.

Notice with the exception of Grover Cleveland and Woodrow Wilson (who were Democrats), all of the remaining 9 nativist Presidents were Republicans.

At the same time, Republicans, such as Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush were very open minded and tolerant on immigration.

While immigration is a negative right now under Donald Trump, one can be quite assured that in the long run, the role and contributions of immigrants will, once again, triumph in the post Donald Trump years.

America Has The Most Corrupt And Abusive Presidency In Its 250 Year History, Undermining The Celebration Of The Semiquincentennial

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Tomorrow, July 4, is the 250th (Semiquincentennial) Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, establishing a Republic and condemning Monarchy.

Now, tragically, America and the world face the most corrupt, unethical, immoral, and abusive Presidency in its history, with the threats well established of the damages and danger Donald Trump and his sycophants have brought to undermine American domestic and foreign policy.

The revelation of Trump’s unprecedented enrichment as President, more than $2 billion in the first year of his second term, while tens of millions of Americans have lost their health care;

have faced mounting economic hardship;

have confronted pure racism, nativism, misogyny, and promotion of extremist Christian white supremacy nationalism;

have faced arrest and prosecution without the protection of the Bill of Rights;

have faced the danger of illegal obstruction of the upcoming elections for Congress in 2026 and the Presidency in 2028;

faced the undermining of a multitude of government agencies and endangering American democracy, the rule of law, and national security and international alliances;

and so many other violations of law, morals, ethics, and constitutional norms that it is impossible to list all of them in a brief essay.

NO President or his administration comes close to the level of corruption, malfeasance, immorality, and lack of ethics of Donald Trump.

The most corrupt administration before Donald Trump is clearly Richard Nixon.

And there were disgraceful evidence of corruption also in other Presidencies—specifically, in chronological order:

Ulysses S. Grant
Warren G. Harding
Ronald Reagan
George W. Bush

with all of these Presidents being Republicans in party affiliation.

But none of these Presidents, other than Nixon, were so personally involved in scandals, while presiding over them, and therefore, having to be criticized and condemned for the people who served under them who engaged in abuses of power.

Even Richard Nixon, as much as he was horrendous in so many ways, accomplished some major positives, and knew when it was time to resign, and had a Republican Party who forced his hand, unlike the 2026 Republican Party which is unwilling to take action against the abuses and corruption that mounts daily.

This major historical moment, while very much in the midst of negative and horrible events, must be a clarion call for all decent Americans to resist the movement toward Fascism and acceptance of a new Monarchy, which was rejected in 1776, and must be vehemently opposed in very way imaginable in the coming weeks, months, and years!

Israel And Iran Will Cause Massive Political Turmoil In Midterm Elections Of 2026 And Presidential Election Of 2028!

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Foreign policy will take front stage in the Midterm Elections of 2026 and the Presidential Election of 2028, due to the heightened controversies involving Israel and Iran, with Israel having a controversial effect on the Democratic Party in particular, and Iran having a clearcut effect on the Republican Party in particular.

The decision of the United States and Israel to go to war against Iran, along with the continuing massive loss of life in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian West Bank caused by Israeli policies, will reverberate over the next two years. It likely will have a dramatic impact on not just the 120th Congress (2027-2029), but also on the likely prospects of a multitude of Democratic and Republican Presidential contenders.

Division and tumult regarding the appropriate policies toward both Israel and Iran will provoke major political splits in ways not yet possible to perceive.

One Issue Dealt With Properly By Right Wing Majority Supreme Court: Protection Of Birthright Citizenship!

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The right wing Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts has created, overall, a disgraceful record in recent years, and has kowtowed to Donald Trump too often, and promoted the concept of a “Unitary Executive”.

But at least on one issue, Birthright Citizenship, the Court by a 6-3 vote (which should have been 9-0)—Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson)—upheld the basic right that anyone born on US soil is a citizen at birth, added to the Constitution in the 14th Amendment 160 years ago. However, Kavanaugh based his vote on the concept that Congress could modify the 14th Amendment by legislation, so not a full support of the other five Justices who backed Birthright Citizenship completely as a basic right under the 14th Amendment.

The idea that Donald Trump wants a constitutional amendment to change that basic right is a non starter, as it would require a breaking of the Senate filibuster, and would require a two thirds vote of each house of Congress, followed by three fourths (38 states) to ratify.

It is clear, however, that with the Supreme Court as now constituted, IF and when the Democrats regain Senate control, they must work toward expansion of the Court membership; set up term limits of 18 years for future members of the Court; set up that each future President has two appointments in a four year term, leading in the future over time to constant turnover and change on the Court.

Also, there is need for the promotion of an ethics code, so that we do not see the kind of corruption that has been displayed by Associate Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, which would be banned; and also reform the so called “emergency” or “shadow” docket to limit unsigned or unexplained rulings on pivotal cases, promoting transparency and accountability, sorely needed.