Palm Beach County Florida

No Donald Trump Highway, Library, Holiday, Or Any Other Honor!

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The Crazy season has begun, now that Authoritarian Fascist Donald Trump, who provoked the US Capitol Insurrection on January 6, 2021, is thankfully out of office, and not the constant news item he was five plus years after he announced his Presidential campaign in June 2015.

So now in Florida there is a proposal to name the US 27 Highway, Donald Trump Highway, and to have a Donald Trump Presidential Library in Palm Beach County, where Mar A Lago, his resort, is located.

Also, in Ohio, there is a proposal to make Trump’s Birthday, June 14, which is already Flag Day, a state holiday in his honor.

All of these preposterous ideas should be vetoed, and a Presidential Library and Museum for a criminal, responsible for promoting so much harm and damage, is an outrage!

Any documented material of the Donald Trump Presidency should be owned by the US Government, and none of it should be made available in any way, particularly national security matters, to the former President or his family members!

We need the truth, the unvarnished truth about this monster, to come out, not a landmark established to “worship” him as if he was a God!

One must understand, it is one thing to name places, buildings, holidays, after our greatest public leaders, so to have honors for George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan, and others is fine.

But do we name places, buildings, holidays after Andrew Jackson, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Warren G. Harding, Herbert Hoover, or Richard Nixon?

The answer is obvious!

Trump’s Massive Waste Of Government Spending: His Trips, The Wall, And A Military Parade, While Other Issues That Matter Are Ignored

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Donald Trump has engaged in massive waste of government spending for his own personal desires, and plans to do more if not stopped by Congress and the Republican Party.

His excessive amount of travel to his Mar a Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida has cost the US government a massive amount of expenses, along with the costs to the local communities in Palm Beach County. He has spent more time on vacation than any President, and it is clear he does very little work, preferring to play golf, watch cable news, and eat McDonald’s Cheese Burgers and Diet Cokes.

Trump wants to spend billions of taxpayer money on the proposed Mexico Wall, a pure waste of money that will not work, and will have plenty of cost overruns if built. It also gives the United States a terrible image in the world, and will undermine relations with our 2,000 mile boundary neighbor to the South. It is certain that Mexico will not pay for the wall, should not pay for the wall, and that the taxpayers will be stuck with the bill, when the vast majority of the American people do not support the wall, and we could spend the tens of billions on such things as the opioid crisis, veterans health care, hurricane relief in Puerto Rico, infrastructure spending, and so many other priorities.

And now, Donald Trump wants an expensive military parade on Independence Avenue in Washington, DC, causing massive expenditures by the federal government, and the DC local government, and presenting security challenges. The military is celebrated on Memorial and Veterans Days with parades locally all over the nation, and with ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, and that is more than enough in a nation that has civilian government, not military government. We do not need to spend tens of millions of dollars to stroke the ego of a crazy narcissist, who wishes he was a dictator in the line of Kim Jong Un of North Korea, or like China, the old Soviet Union, or the old Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, or other authoritarian dictatorships.

It is up to Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell and the Republican Party to stop Donald Trump dead in his tracks on the Mexico Wall and on the military parade, and say NO WAY!

Trump Administration Refusal To Make Opioid Crisis A National Emergency An Unconscionable Declaration Of Democide, A Crime Against Humanity!

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The Trump Administration has refused to declare the Opioid Crisis a National Emergency, saying it is not necessary.

This is one of the most criminal acts of the Trump Presidency, as about 1,000 people per week are dying from abuse of pain medication, which means we have a September 11 equivalent every three weeks, which also means over 50,000-60,000 people will die in the next year, more than in auto accidents, because of refusal to mobilize resources to fight this epidemic of overdoses and addiction, which is affecting all of the nation, and particularly high rates in New Hampshire, West Virginia, Ohio, Maine, Maryland, and Palm Beach County, Florida, where this blogger lives. High levels of addiction are found in rural areas, and among white working class people, many of whom voted for Donald Trump, but Trump just says one must teach one’s children not to abuse drugs as if a lecture will resolve it, and as more teenagers become victims every week.

Everyone is susceptible to this situation, and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has, commendably, brought attention to this crisis, from the time of his Presidential campaign when he spoke about a good friend who died from opioid addiction. It was the most human moment of his failed campaign, but he is still very much involved in trying to promote action on this crisis, which has become one of ethics, and morality.

For Trump to refuse, through his despicable Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, himself a doctor, to address this issue as a national emergency is an unconscionable declaration of democide, a crime against humanity, that should lead to prosecution and imprisonment for Trump, Price, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who instead wants to promote more convictions and imprisonment as punishment for those who are unfortunately addicted to pain medication.

The problem is that opioids are available from overseas nations, including China, via the internet, so it is not just an issue of drugs being brought across the border from Mexico, as is often the assertion we hear from the Trump Administration.

One can wonder if the thought in the Trump Administration is that a good way to get rid of people considered “unproductive” and a burden on society is to let them die, offer no help or assets to deal with the crisis, other than punishment through imprisonment. This may sound crazy to many, but it is clear that Trump has no regard for poor people, elderly people, disabled people, and “unproductive” people, and it would save a large portion of the funding for the “social safety net”.

Prediction That Four States Will Decide Presidential Election—Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Florida–Is That Legitimate?

Ronald 4 Comments

Many political observers are saying that four states are the true battleground that will decide who is inaugurated President on January 20, 2017.

Those states are Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, and Florida.

The question is whether that belief is legitimate.

This blogger thinks it is much more complicated than those four states, and that two of them–Pennsylvania and Florida—are assured for the Democrats as it is.

Yes, it is true that Pennsylvania west of Philadelphia and east of Pittsburgh is often called “Alabama”, but Pennsylvania has been reliably “Blue” or Democratic for six straight elections from 1992 onward, and that is not likely to change. If “Alabama” really mattered as much as some think, then how did our African American President win the state both in 2008 and 2012? If anything, with the economy far better now than it was in 2008 and 2012, and with Barack Obama’s public opinion rating now at 58 percent, the highest since his first year in office (2009), Pennsylvania is assured to go “Blue” again. Remember, all that is needed is to win the most popular votes to win the electoral votes, not necessary to win a majority, but just a plurality.

Florida, despite being Republican in state elections, went for Barack Obama twice, and now there are many more Puerto Rican citizens who have moved from the island to central Florida in particular, due to the tough economic times in Puerto Rico. Puerto Ricans are citizens who just need to re-register at their new address, and the vast majority of them are Democrats, and therefore now lessen the Cuban influence on the state vote. And many younger Cubans are not automatically conservative or Republican as their elders are. With the I-4 corridor (Central Florida) becoming more likely Democratic, add much of South Florida to the equation (Broward and Palm Beach Counties), and the influence of North Florida and Miami-Dade County (where many immigrants turned citizens from Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and other nations in Latin America have migrated and not generally Republicans) are therefore outweighed, and with the better public opinion ratings of Obama added to the mix, the odds are that Florida will go “Blue” again.

Ohio is more difficult, and history tells us that every elected Republican President has won Ohio, so this is truly the crucial state but with Hillary Clinton having the edge in most polls. And one must remember Hillary has a built in edge in “Blue” States, and does not have to win Ohio, while Donald Trump must win it or have no chance to win the White House.

North Carolina went for Obama in 2008 but went “Red” for Mitt Romney in 2012, but polls now indicate that Hillary is favored, but again is not essential for Hillary to win the Presidency.

I would say beyond these four states, there are the states of Georgia and Arizona and Utah, all “Red” states, that indicate close races, with the possibility that they could go “Blue” for this election, and possibly beyond, particularly true for Georgia and Arizona, due to the increase in Hispanic and Latino population and voters.

So Hillary Clinton still has an overwhelming advantage, with eight weeks out from Election Day, to win the Presidency.

America’s Fascist Demagogues In History: Huey P. Long, Joseph McCarthy, George C. Wallace, Patrick Buchanan!

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The United States has had its Fascist demagogues in the past nearly hundred years of our history, but luckily, they “burned out” very quickly.

We had Democratic Governor and Senator Huey P. Long, who condemned the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the early 1930s era of the Great Depression.  He had a big following on radio; drew large public crowds; preached “Every Man A King” and “Share The Wealth” as he attacked Wall Street; had his own group of “storm troopers” to protect him;  and made clear that he hoped to come to power on a national level, having alienated his Senate colleagues and the President by his tactics and showmanship.

His potential threat disappeared, however, when he was assassinated in the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge in September 1935, a mystery that still exists today, as covered in Chapter 7 of my book, ASSASSINATIONS, THREATS, AND THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY: FROM ANDREW JACKSON TO BARACK OBAMA (Rowman Littlefield Publishers, August 2015).  He reminded many of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler, both of whom had not yet become as aggressive and warlike as they would become in the mid to late 1930s and early 1940s.

Then we had evil personified in Wisconsin Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin, who stirred fear and insecurity in America in the early 1950s, when he accused Presidents Harry Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower and many government and other public figures of being Communists, or “soft on Communism”.

He ruined thousands of people’s lives, caused their deaths or complete destruction of their lives, but it was all a ploy backed by right wing conservatives, who continue to honor him, even after his political downfall in December 1954 when the US Senate condemned him, and his early death of alcoholism in May 1957.  This despicable man was a true Fascist demagogue with too many people ready to back him, but his cockiness and arrogance and false charges finally brought him down.

Then we had Democratic Governor George C. Wallace of Alabama, who sowed racism in America as he stood in the door of the University of Alabama in 1963 to attempt to block integration of the state university, and allowed police brutality in Birmingham and elsewhere, leading to the bombing of a black church and the death of young girls in the explosion.

A true Fascist demagogue of the worst kind, he actually gained five states and 46 electoral votes as a third party candidate for President in 1968.  Then, while running in 1972 again, he was shot and paralyzed for life by an assassin, a tragic event for sure, but brought on by his notoriety and demagogic nature.  Wallace’s story is well covered in Chapter 11 of my new book mentioned above.

And then we had Patrick Buchanan, an aide to President Richard Nixon and President Ronald Reagan, who promoted nativism and racism and antisemitism, including Holocaust denial,   as he campaigned against President George H. W. Bush in the 1992 primaries; against Bob Dole in the 1996 primaries;  and then ran as a third party candidate of the Reform Party in 2000.

Due to confusion in Palm Beach County, Florida, Buchanan gained 4,000 votes that were intended by voters for Al Gore, but mistakenly, these elderly, mostly Jewish voters punched the wrong hole on the “butterfly” ballots, and by doing so, caused the election of George W. Bush statewide, officially by a total of 537 votes, sadly denying Al Gore the Presidency, despite his national popular vote lead of 540,000!

Buchanan clearly was and is a Fascist demagogue, who, however, has become someone ignored, and no longer has a major media presence in his later years, as he once did on cable television as a political commentator on MSNBC and CNN, although he still is on Fox News Channel and PBS.

And now we have, at the least, two Fascist demagogues, now considered the front runners in the Republican race for President—Donald Trump and Texas Senator Ted Cruz!  Again, the fight against right wing Fascism and its elements–racism, nativism, misogyny, antisemitism—remain a battle decent people must fight with every ounce of their energy!

Republican Party Fraud In Voter Registration In Florida: Time To Hold Rick Scott And Other State Republican Leaders Accountable!

Ronald 3 Comments

The Republican Party has been earnestly working to prevent “voter fraud” in all of the states governed by Republican Governors and legislatures, claiming it is widespread.

In actual fact, the only voter fraud going on is by Republicans in many states, trying to prevent senior citizens, college students, African Americans, Latinos and Hispanics, and poor people from their guaranteed right to vote under the Voting Rights Act of 1965!

Fortunately, in most cases, state courts have prevented many of these pieces of legislation, interfering with the right to vote, from moving forward.

But Florida has been one of the worst of all states, cutting down the number of early voting days to only eight, and not including the Sunday before the election, when many black voters go to church and then go to vote, and now cannot do so! Thirty states have already started voting, but Floridians are being denied that until late October.

Florida Governor Rick Scott, who should be in prison for Medicare and Medicaid fraud, has been incessantly working to make voting impossible for many, and yet, it now turns out that a Republican consulting firm has been involved in promoting voter fraud in Palm Beach County and nine other counties in the Sunshine State!

This consulting firm is only registering those voters who say they are Republican! Also, dead people are being registered; fake signatures that look alike for many applications are being submitted; fake addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers have been put on the forms; and Democratic registrations have been voided!

A criminal prosecution is being pursued, but this horrible situation demonstrates that the Republican Party in Florida and elsewhere has no limits in their aim to deny people the right to vote, and yet themselves be engaged in what they claim is the reason for restrictive voter registration laws!

The governors of these Republican states, plus the state Secretaries of State responsible for voter registration on the state level, and the Attorneys Generals who “wink” at this illegal activity, need to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law!

Maybe this could be the way to get Rick Scott out of office and in prison, where he belongs! He is a disgrace to his party and to the state of Florida!

Only through voter fraud and voter suppression, and allowing billionaires to spend inordinate amounts of money, can the Republican Party have a chance to win!

It is time to give the right wing extremists the sound defeat they deserve for the Presidency, and both houses of Congress, and in the states having local and state wide elections!

Two Former Governors As Third Party Candidates: Could It Affect The Presidential Election Results Of 2012?

Ronald 4 Comments

Just a few days after an post about the likelihood that no third party would have a significant effect on the Presidential Election of 2012, suddenly the possibility arises that while no candidate is likely to win a state or gain a large percentage of votes, a 2000 Presidential Election scenario, where two candidates had small numbers of votes and percentage, and yet helped to determine the electoral vote in Florida, and therefore decide the winner of the Presidency, presents itself!

In 2000, Ralph Nader ran as the Green Party candidate and won 2.74 percent of the national vote, and Pat Buchanan ran as the Reform Party candidate and won 0.43 percent of the vote. But in Florida, about 97,000 people voted for Nader; and in Palm Beach Country, Florida, about 3,400 people incorrectly voted for Buchanan over Al Gore, because of confusion about filling out the infamous “butterfly” ballot, throwing the election in Florida to George W. Bush, and deciding the election of Bush over Al Gore.

Well, in theory, the same situation could arise in 2012, although highly unlikely that “lightning” would strike for a second time in 12 years.

Having said that, neither Ralph Nader nor Pat Buchanan were officeholders, while this election, two former governors are running, and cannot , therefore, be ignored!

The Libertarian Party has just nominated former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, and the Reform Party is likely to nominate former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer in August at their convention in Philadelphia.

Just being governors gives them a lot of status and clout, so we cannot assume that they will have no effect on the election results, just hope and pray that that is so!