SNL

Deep State by Nancy OhanianThe House initiated the impeachment process against Bill Clinton in the lame duck session in December, 1998. Two months late the Republican majority Senate found him not guilt of both charges.

-by Helen KleinWhat is becoming increasingly clear is that despite Dr. Ronny Jackson’s gushing superlatives about Trump’s clean bill of health that extend beyond the physical, Trump’s personality make up and his mental/cognitive functioning are dead center in this shutdown mess. All arrows point to Trump. Now that the Republicans have hit a wall with Trump during the negotiations, even they are being forced to recognize his impairments in judgment and decision making, although of course they won’t do anything about it.

I just went through a couple of very intense years of cancer treatment. My doctor is an award-winning researcher and my cancer is extremely rare and extremely difficult to manage. She was one of the world's experts in it and she saved my life. She was born in China and I consider myself very lucky that her family immigrated to America, to California, where I live. Another specialist who my primary care physician suggested I also talk to suggested a much less intense treatment for the disease, much less stressful treatment. Everyone dies within a couple of years who goes that route.

The Simpsons come through... bigly. Less hilarious is the Newsweek suggestion that Señor Trumpanzee may fire Mueller next week while Congress is away for holiday vacation. That's what Jackie Speier (D-CA) says she's hearing in the Capitol-- specifically that he'll fire Mueller on Dec. 22. Democrats will want to impeach him if he does-- but so what? Republicans control both houses of Congress and there aren't many who would go along either.

You thought the SNL sketch was funny? David Wade a former John Kerry chief of staff, now makes his living as a lobbyist (GreenLight Strategies) and Democratic strategist; über--establishment. He says Democrats can win back Congress next year "by making Donald Trump the issue in [suburban] districts. You can't allow any Republican incumbent to separate themselves from Trump's brand, period.

Last week the malefactors who prop up the Koch network met in Manhattan for two days. They've gotten wind of the gigantic anti-Trump/anti-Ryan tsunami forming up in the hinterland and heading towards DC.

The Swamp by Nancy OhanianDespite how Trump regimistas and Paul Ryan are trying to sell it, on Friday the Tax Policy Center reported that the top 1% are the big winners in the Trump/Ryan tax plan. About a third of Americans earning between $50,000 and $150,000 will pay more, while millionaires and billionaires will pay much less, boosting their after-tax incomes by 8.5%.

Who are these fellow Americans of ours who still support Trump? Are they really all addicted to prescription drugs? Are they all racists? Are they all just terminally stupid? I don't know many personally-- I admit it-- and the ones I do know are indeed incredibly stupid and willfully ignorant, racist and addicted to prescription drugs.

-by Sam HusseiniMany have focused on President Donald Trump's statements on Charlottesville condemning the "violence" from "both sides." Which is understandable, since the killing of Heather Heyer and overwhelming violence came from white supremacists. But virtually no one has scrutinized the first half of his remarks: Trump criticizing the "violence" of others.How is it that Trump is designated to be in a position of judging the perpetrators of violence? The U.S. government is regularly bombing a number of countries.

You know how states are supposed to be petri dishes for new ideas? Long before the federal government was looking into protecting consumers from predatory mortgage banksters, Assemblyman (and then state Senator) Ted Lieu was hammering out and passing controversial legislation that did just that in California.