Attribution: Mamdani Wins by Bill Day, FloridaPolitics.com
72 thoughts on “Friction Force”
from sea to shining sea
California Governor Gavin Newsom makes remarks on the passage of Proposition 50 by a wide margin, allowing the redrawing of the state’s congressional district lines with an eye toward bolstering Democratic power in Congress.
From our chatroom…
Was this Newsom 2028, the soft launch? (Today’s Chat 10am ET, Supreme Court mystery theater).
Newsom on GOP’s bad night: “Voters feel poorer & sicker — that’s why they lost.”
I do think Newsome was the night’s big winner. Will Pritzker and Shapiro be close behind? I hope so. Who knew that people maybe don’t like to feel poorer and sicker and don’t like soldiers and masked agents in tactical gear roaming through their neighborhood asking to see their papers and abducting brown people.
And looks to me that the biggest loser last night was D,OA – he appears to have lost the young male and Latino voters he picked up in 2024. Hard to say that with any confidence, but let’s look at that in a year.
“First woman governor”? Jamie’s not calling it equality yet.
Half the seats, not half the headlines.
🎥 From last night’s chat — Next chat 10am ET: Supreme Court Oral Arguments On Tariffs (Bring Your Own Spitballs)
Stephen Miller will cost Republicans another midterm — Kids in cages won 40 House seats for Dems in Trump’s first midterm (2018).
It was quite an interesting election day. The total impact of what happened is rapidly showing itself, hour after hour. There were few battles requiring a recount. The blue wave really was. The top level seats were solid wins. No doubts or second guessing.
What I am looking at are the odd year elections results. One in particular is my old home town, Aurora, Colorado. The two at-large seats were on the ballot and two wards. One of the at-large seats was held by the nut who saw huge gangs and other garbage, which was picked up by sfb to use to attack non-white people of Aurora. I read a few of the media columnists prognostications for election results. Although non-partisan city council, candidates were well known for their positions. The reporters all stated that Aurora was moving conservative and would continue that course. The results are serving a lot of crow this morning. It was a blue sweep, not a red sweep. Solid blue, with the result of kicking a loud mouth liar out of office.
This action was repeated around the country. Ballot issues that were tax increases passed with ease, the opposite of what was expected. Election after election went Progressive, or liberal or left were the results. Quite exciting.
On Tuesday night, as he declared victory, Mamdani addressed the president directly:
“Donald Trump, since I know you’re watching, I have four words for you: Turn the volume up. To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us”.
Simultaneously, Trump posted on social media: “…AND SO IT BEGINS!”
No countries legally mandate that women must hold a certain number of political offices, but some have gender quotas in place to encourage representation. Rwanda, for example, has the highest percentage of women in its parliament globally, largely due to a quota system enshrined in its constitution. Other countries with high levels of female political representation, though not through mandated quotas, include Sweden, Cuba, Finland, and Argentina.
Rwanda: Rwanda’s constitution requires that at least 30% of parliamentary seats be held by women, and it currently has the highest percentage of female parliamentarians in the world.
Cuba: Cuba has a high percentage of women in its national assembly, a result of both a constitutional quota and a strong emphasis on gender equality in politics.
Sweden and Finland: While they don’t have specific quotas, these Nordic countries are known for high female representation in politics due to various policies and cultural factors that encourage gender equality.
Other countries with high representation: Some countries, such as Mexico and Nicaragua, have also achieved high levels of female political participation through a combination of quotas and other initiatives.
The Supreme Court hears arguments today on whether a president can unilaterally slap tariffs on half the planet — all in the name of “national security.”
We’re live at 10 a.m. ET with the audio feed and real-time analysis in our famed Mystery Science Theater format.
Guests: Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti and construction law attorney Luis Prats.
Google News Front Page — Enjoy while supplies last
What a night!!
DEMOCRATIC VICTORIES:
• Abigail Spanberger (Governor of VA)
• Mikie Sherrill (Governor of NJ)
• Zohran Mamdani (Mayor of NYC)
• Aftab Pureval (Mayor of Cincinnati)
• Ghazala Hashmi (Lt Governor of VA)
• Jay Jones (Attorney General of VA)
• 60-seat+ majority VA House of Delegates
• Alicia Johnson (Public Service Commissioner GA)
• Peter Hubbard (Public Service Commissioner GA)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court
*Probably ketchup on the WH walls today
It’s a good time to call your Republicans in Congress to tell them to wake up because the tide is turning & it’s BLUE! Call your Dems in Congress and tell them to hang tough.
Nov 4 (Reuters) – CEOs of Wall Street heavyweights Morgan Stanley (MS.N), opens new tab and Goldman Sachs (GS.N), opens new tab on Tuesday cautioned that equity markets could be heading toward a drawdown, underscoring growing concerns over sky-high valuations.
Fears of a market bubble come as the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab continues its meteoric climb, repeatedly hitting record highs and evoking memories of the dot-com boom.
“We should welcome the possibility that there would be drawdowns, 10% to 15%, that are not driven by some sort of macro cliff effect,” Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick said at the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit in Hong Kong.
Last month, banking giant JPMorgan Chase’s (JPM.N), opens new tab CEO Jamie Dimon had warned of a heightened risk of a significant correction in the U.S. stock market within the next six months to two years.
“I am far more worried about that than others,” Dimon said, according to the BBC, adding there were a “lot of things out there” creating an atmosphere of uncertainty, pointing to risk factors, including geopolitical tensions, fiscal spending and global remilitarization.
We are live in five.. room is open now — Hop In Here
today’s meme…
meme #2…
Renee
Yah know, you would think it would be difficult to kick ass in high heels. but not for some folks I guess.
Jack
It is that time of the year when Required Minimum Distributions RMD, need attention. Sigh. It would be nice to be rich enough to not have to deal with these.
Could US Marshals arrest MAGAt Mike for not doing his job? Could House Dems + some Republicans be enough to censure or impeach and remove him?
Now Spanberger has to strut around like Youngkin did and act like Virginia spoke for all of America
Craig,
Here is the original ball room plans before Trump wiped out the East wing to increase the size to serve over 900 instead of the original 650.
Judge says DOJ failed to give full transcripts of Halligan’s Comey grand jury proceedings
Currie had ordered that by Monday, Nov. 3, the DOJ was to provide her with “all documents relating to the indictment signer’s participation in the grand jury proceedings, along with complete grand jury transcripts.”
But on Tuesday, Currie issued a new order that said the material she received “fails to include remarks made by the indictment signer both before and after the testimony of the sole witness, which remarks were referenced by the indictment signer during the witness’s testimony.” The judge gave the government until Wednesday to comply.
*So, it sounds like Halligan is in trouble, having given only partial info twice; once after having been warned.
Anti-Trump Protest in DC Wednesday Is Expected to Draw Up to 20,000 People
Led by the activist group Refuse Fascism, the “Trump Must Go Now& #8221; & nbsp; rally intends to “flood DC” with waves of protesters over the coming days.
Handmaid Army DC will lead pre-programming actions beginning at Columbus Circle and Union Station at 7:30 AM.
Another partner group, FLARE USA, will host the procession at their ongoing anti-Trump encampment at Union Station, located at 50 Massachusetts Ave., NE, for a 9 AM rally.
The collective also plans to march to Congress with the Removal Coalition to speak with representatives and their staffs.
Some of the speakers expected to appear onstage at the Sylvan Theater include Michael Fanone, a former DC police officer who was assaulted at the January 6 insurrection; Sunsara Taylor of Refuse Fascism; Handmaid DC organizer Ashley Cash; and Kim Villanueva from the National Organization for Women (NOW).
*Bigger protests to come Nov 20 – 22. This is a great day to show Republicans that they NEVER had a tRUMPsky mandate.
The collective also plans to march to Congress with the Removal Coalition to speak with representatives and their staffs.
Any Goopers in town to talk to?
My main takeaway from yesterday:
MAGA’s Mojo Fades: Off-Year Votes Hint Trump’s Base Is Losing Its Charge
By every early indicator the Trump base looks like it’s leaking power at the edges. The 2025 off-year elections in Virginia and New Jersey gave Democrats stronger-than-expected results in places that usually swing red when his voters turn out in force.
Exit-poll data show only about 40 percent of voters in those states now approve of Trump, far below the mid-40s to low-50s range he typically drew in those regions during the 2024 election.
Even more telling: many Republican-leaning counties showed flat or lower turnout, while anti-Trump sentiment was unusually intense among independents.
None of this means his core faithful have vanished, but it does suggest they’re less motivated when he isn’t on the ballot — and that the once-formidable MAGA turnout machine may be losing its voltage.
Zohran Mamdani’s big ideas have transformed other cities
The City Where All the Buses Are Free
When Covid hit, Alexandria, Virginia saw an opportunity to make its residents fall in love with the least-loved transit option of all.
***
The Supermarket That Seeks No Profits
Jubilee Market in Waco, Texas exists for one reason only: to provide quality food in a neighborhood that lacks it.
At This Grocery Store, Shoppers Pay What They Wish. In St. Louis, a pay-what-you-can grocery store stays in business thanks to some customers voluntarily paying more than the price on the sticker.
***
100 Years of Urban Housing Success
As cities around the world confront an affordability crisis, a few have spent a century perfecting the art of subsidized housing for the masses.
*Links to the sub-headings in the main story link.
You know who else speaks to the struggling, white folks? Bernie & AOC. Sure, they are afraid of labels, many of which they do not understand, but when a policy is explained to them, they like it.
It will probably need to come from a white, straight, Christian, male in 2026 and 2028, but they like the idea of the tax dollars going back to them, their family, their community. They don’t like the idea of billionaires sponging off of everyone else.
When you win: Can the smiles, laughter, and canned jubilation…..instead present only a face of grim determination for the task ahead.
You didn’t “win”you were given a grave and serious duty.
Now that the tariff hearing is over and I’ve read a couple sources about it, it sounds like Coney-Barrett, Roberts and Gorsuch may indeed rule against Trump. Gorsuch’s comment about it’s different when you’re talking about Americans paying and has been since the founding is particularly telling.
When you win: Can the smiles, laughter, and canned jubilation
they get one day to celebrate, morale is important
otherwise i agree
one day
Not that it couldn’t happen, but it’s hard to see NYC foregoing $5B in fare revenue for the NYC Transit/Staten Island Railroad – 1/4 of the system operating budget – to provide free bus rides. Hard to say what the revenue loss would be if only busses were free – the MTA 2024 Report and Budget doesn’t break busses out separately. What’s the old Dirksen saying? Something like, a billion here, a billion there, before long you’re talking about real money?
The Trump administration told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that raising government revenue is not the purpose of the emergency tariffs that President Donald Trump imposed this year on all imported goods.
Though the president has repeatedly boasted that the government is making a “fortune” from his new import taxes, Solicitor General D. John Sauer denied that the tariffs are equivalent to a tax and said they would work best if they were never paid.
“These are regulatory tariffs. They are not revenue-raising tariffs. The fact that they raise revenue is only incidental. The tariffs would be most effective, so to speak, if no person ever paid them,” he told the justices.
Sauer’s comments were striking because for months the president has repeatedly celebrated the revenue gained from the 10 percent universal tariff he has imposed on all foreign goods and the higher levies he has applied to products from specific nations including China, Mexico, Vietnam and Canada.
“We’re making a fortune. We are taking in hundreds of billions of dollars,” Trump said this summer, referring to his false claim that foreigners pay the fees.
Likewise, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said it would be “terrible” if the court ordered the administration to refund some or all of the emergency tariffs it has collected. Through August, the government has collected nearly $90 billion from U.S. importers via the tariffs that were imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and that were at issue in the cases the Supreme Court heard Wednesday.
The administration’s presentation before the justices reflected a tension over the tariffs’ goals that analysts have long noted.
The president at various times has said that his tariffs are intended to promote greater domestic manufacturing; punish other nations for unfair trade practices; achieve unrelated foreign policy goals, such as persuading other countries to accept deported migrants; and fill a hole in the nation’s fiscal accounts.
In its brief filed with the court, the administration highlighted a recent Congressional Budget Office assessment of the tariffs’ budgetary impact.
“Vitally, the Congressional Budget Office recently projected that the IEEPA tariffs will reduce the national deficit by $4 trillion in upcoming years,” the administration said.
Sauer drew pointed questioning from Justice Sonia Sotomayor when he repeated that the tariffs would be “most effective” if no one ever paid them.
“If nobody ever pays the tariffs,” he said, “and instead Americans direct their consumption towards American producers and stimulate the rebuilding of our hollowed-out manufacturing base, then the policy’s by far the most effective.”
Sotomayor interrupted to ask why, if the president wanted to reduce imports to zero, he did not impose an embargo on foreign goods, which both sides agreed the law permits.
[…] (a little bit…)
Sauer’s the guy you send out to make an offer you can’t understand.
Running unopposed, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu officially secured her second term Tuesday night as she continues to dominate city politics and gain national prominence.
Wu, a 40-year-old mother of three, handily defeated opponent Josh Kraft in September by nearly 50 points, and he dropped out shortly after. She ran unopposed in November’s election. <- (Because she was just that popular.)
Her four years as mayor have seen some return on her lofty campaign proposals from 2021. She has made some of the busiest bus lines in the city, mostly in Dorchester, fare-free through 2026. <-
A promise to pursue rent stabilization turned into a home-rule petition in 2023 that the mayor and the City Council sent to the legislature in 2023.
Wu maintained her popularity as well, holding a 66 percent favorability rating in July amid back-and-forth jabs between her and Kraft. The poll showed that 65 percent approved of the job she has done as mayor.
Throughout her campaign, Wu has emerged as a national Democratic voice against the Trump administration – including as a “young-ish” new Democrat to watch, per New York Magazine on Monday, with the magazine citing her municipal Green New Deal.
Not fleeing: New report shows more wealthy residents in Mass., 2 years into ‘millionaire’s tax’
Staying and paying: It’s been about two years since Massachusetts voters approved a “millionaire’s tax” on wealthy residents in the state. But despite previous concerns, the tax hasn’t seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive research group. Using data from Wealth-X, researchers found the number of residents making $1 million or more per year has increased by nearly 40% since the tax went into effect.
Remind me again, what’s this tax? Voters narrowly approved a 4% surtax on incomes over $1 million in a statewide ballot referendum in November 2022. Advocates pushed, saying the new tax would bring in over $1 billion a year in new revenue to fund programs like free school lunches for students and free community college for state residents. But critics said it would likely force millionaires to leave the state.
The verdict: The new report found the number of ultra-wealthy residents in Massachusetts — those with at least $50 million or more — has actually grown since 2022, from 1,954 to 2,642 in 2024. The millionaires’ tax also greatly surpassed its projections in the first year, generating S2.46 billion for the state in 2023 alone. State officials expect it to haul in the same amount of revenue annually. “This is further evidence that multi-millionaires are not fleeing the state in response to the new tax,” said Shanique Rodriguez, executive director of the Massachusetts Voter Table.
Omar Ocampo, a researcher on the study, told WBUR’s Amy Sokolow that anyone who has left to avoid the tax does not highlight the bigger picture. Those being taxed are a “very small minority” of the population, said Ocampo. “This is not to deny that there will be people who move. It’s inevitable,” said Ocampo. “But I would argue that it’s very statistically insignificant.”
Free school lunches. Road and bridge repairs. New bicycle lanes. Free community college for thousands of students. Expanded financial assistance for public college and university students.
Those are just some of the initiatives that have gone from drawing board to reality since Massachusetts voters approved the commonwealth’s Fair Share Amendment, a 4% tax on Bay State residents who earn more than $1 million a year.
Popularly referred to as the “Millionaires’ Tax” the levy is expected to pump as much as $1.5 billion into the commonwealth’s coffers in its first year, according to advocates and Gov. Maura Healey’s administration.
Revenue from the tax provides $524 million in funding for education, including $71 million for early education and care; $224 million for K-12 education, and $229 million for higher education, Healey’s office said in an email.
A further $477 million for transportation funding will provide a shot in the arm to the MBTA and regional transit agencies, and more money for road and bridge repairs, according to the administration.
*There has been no massive “exodus of residents” triggered by the wealth tax, although high profile departures gain headlines.
i’m not going to pooh-pooh progressive innovation, if people like Mamdani can figure out how to make it work, more power to them
✊
The alternative is watching the billionaire class loot our society, no one’s telling them that they can’t because they are (actively doing so)
Government shutdown: US Army tells soldiers in Germany to go to the food bank
Approximately 37,000 US soldiers stationed in Germany face uncertainty over November salary payments as the United States enters its longest-ever government shutdown, with the Pentagon warning troops may not receive mid-month wages despite last-minute funding for October.
The US Army published guidance on its website directing soldiers in Germany to emergency social benefits, loans, food banks and food sharing organisations where volunteers provide leftover food through public fridges.
German social benefits remain largely unavailable to US troops, meaning that the soldiers will invariably be left to their own devices.
Unlike Germany’s monthly payment system, US service members receive wages fortnightly, intensifying cash flow pressures during payment gaps.
German food resources list that appeared on US garrison’s website wasn’t for Americans, Army says
*OK, then.
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — A listing of German food aid services included on a U.S. Army garrison page of resources available during the government shutdown was intended for local national employees rather than American troops, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said Wednesday.
The list of five German support organizations appeared on the “shutdown guidance” web page of U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria but was removed sometime Wednesday. Before it was taken down, an image of the listings was posted on a handful of Reddit pages.
US troops go hungry so Republicans can cover for pedophiles
A Democratic member of Congress interrupted Speaker Mike Johnson during his outdoor press conference on Wednesday, denouncing his “lies” and demanding that he bring House and Senate leaders together to try to end the federal government shutdown.
NEWSDemocratic Rep. Interrupts Speaker Johnson — Accuses Him of ‘Lies’Published on November 5, 2025 at 12:46 PM ET By David Badash
“I am part of the American people, and I believe that —” U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) told the Speaker.
“You should respect free speech,” she continued, in response to him chastising her for interrupting him.
“I’m asking you a question, if you’re ready to have a conversation with the other side,” Houlahan said. “You represent all of us. You are the Speaker for all of us, sir. You have an obligation not just to speak lies to the American people.”
“You have an obligation to call the leadership of both parties and bring us together and solve this problem together, Mr. Speaker,” she declared.
I’m certainly hoping our service members aren’t buying D,OA’s “Democrat shutdown” bullshit.
Anon, its a little long, but that would look great on a bumper sticker.
i’m trying to be a better person, but i’m going to enjoy Nancy Mace’s extended public mental-breakdown regardless 🍿
Conversely, i sincerely appreciate that Georgia congressperson’s intellectual and emotional growth, hopefully it culminates in her dumping that tool of a “boyfriend” and apologizing for platforming him and his embarrassing disrespect of Zelenskyy
Slava Ukraine
My new ACA premium (which is a terrible, highest-deductible plan/think it’s gone from $9,600 to $9,800 and a RX deductible of several thousand dollars before UHC kicks in) for 2026 is $1,165/month. Nope!
I’ll have to be half-deaf and off balance if this doesn’t get fixed before the end of the year.
Nancy don’t-you-know-who-I-am Mace seems to need a mental health professional…or maybe just some attention.
if you wanna discuss vertigo at the bluescrab, i can, or here if you don’t care
I took a laissez faire approach this season, and I’m doing much better
So Dodo the Dodderer can find his way.
The Mass. Millionaire’s tax amounts to $40,000 per million on taxable income above $1M. While that’s certainly something, if your wealth is generated in Massachusetts through taxable income, and you want to keep earning that kind of money in Mass, the expenses incurred in relocating may or may not be worth it to those high earners, besides, moving is a royal pain in the ass.
President Donald Trump appeared “exhausted” and made a number of gaffes during his speech to the America Business Forum in Miami, Florida, on Wednesday, his critics said.
“For generations, Miami has been a haven for those fleeing communist tyranny in South Africa,” Trump said. “If you take a look at what is going on in parts of South Africa. Look at what is going on in South Africa. Look at South America, what’s going on. We have a G20 meeting in South Africa. South Africa shouldn’t even be in the Gs anymore.”
South Africa has never had a communist government, so its citizens have never had to “flee communist tyranny” for Miami.
In fact, South Africans make up less than 0.03% of Miami’s population.
However, Miami has long been a port-of-call for people fleeing countries like Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, which have had socialist governments in the past.
Trump’s diatribe against South Africa comes just days after his administration restricted the number of refugees admitted annually to the United States to 7,500, and most of those are white South Africans.
Last month, Trump was ridiculed for falsely claiming Qatar and Iran are close neighbors when they are actually 500 miles from each other.
In August, he claimed he was meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in his home country, when the meeting actually took place in Alaska.
The dodderer. That’s perfect. Being one who’s got enough knee problems going on to be careful on stairs, I have watched D,OA negotiate steps, and he ain’t right. I generally look to make sure I get the first one right, but after that, it’s just walk down them. Now I don’t have the same spring in my step I had even a couple of years ago, but I do alright.
Only President who has openly copped to being a Sock Puppet.
My teeny tiny Post Office no bigger than a cowboy boot box in a teeny tiny farm town not far from the Wyoming border had its flags at half-staff today. Not sure who gave the order.
Out Gatsby the Fatsby. She be getting heat for this.
His [JD’s] half-brother, Cory Bowman, suffered a significant loss in his bid to become Cincinnati’s next mayor during the city’s recent municipal elections. Bowman, who’s a Republican, lost against Aftab Pureval, who won reelection as mayor of Cincinnati on November 5, 2025.
The 36-year-old pastor launched his campaign in February, shortly after attending JD Vance’s inauguration as the VP in January 2025.
For those unfamiliar, Cory Bowman and JD Vance share the same father, named Donald Bowman. They both grew up differently and connected much later in life. Bowman grew up on a farm near Hamilton, Ohio, before earning a degree in economics from Miami University and later completing a ministry degree in Florida…
According to The Daily Beast, Bowman’s campaign faced controversy in its final days.
As reported by The Rooster, he was accused of voter fraud after questions arose over whether his listed addresses were actually in Cincinnati’s West End, where he claimed to have moved following the primary. Yet, he did not respond to any of the allegations.
Mostly all good news in yesterday’s exit polls, but perhaps most encouraging is Dems won over young men, who were a big factor in Trump’s victory.
Among men under age 30 Spanberger led by 17 points, Sherrill by 14 points.
Last year young men were close to evenly split.
Young men are pissed off by their puny paychecks while fat pigs wallow.
Ivy, Dick Cheney.
Poge, I can see him doing that. From the grave.
Ivy – Their paychecks were already puny but post-election, Joe Rogan & Nick Fuentes started to have problems with tRUMP. Honestly, I think Talarico being on Rogan’s show may have helped.
Also, AI has eaten up white color, entry-level jobs (like legal raccoon Sam, who moonlights as a free coder), and some have realized crypto is just gambling and they’ll never be big players.
Did you know there’s a language called KAREN that’s, apparently, close to Thai?
I had a genuine solid case of vertigo while sitting at the piano in Denver this one time…….this new bass player did it to me…..swear to god the man was so damn fine and precise and perfect he straightened out the drummer and sent me into vertigo.
He is since deceased and left all his bass and music gear to one Rocky Ramjet of “The Fabulous Boogienauts” of Denver.
How is your hearing after all of that music? My dad is a musician and his hearing is gone, but he can tune his guitar by the way the strings feel, or so it seems.
After living and working at the White House for nearly four years and 10 months in total, one might assume President Donald Trump can find his way to his office without getting lost.
As Trump prepared to depart the White House en route to a speech in Miami, Florida, reporters waiting for him noticed an addition to the exterior of the building — a sign in gilded script indicating the entrance to the Oval Office as seen from the White House Rose Garden.
The sign, which appeared to be a temporary placeholder to show where to add the planned lettering, used a cursive font that strongly resembles the typeface used in the logo of his Mar-a-Lago club.
*Start referring to the West Wing as the Presidential Dementia Unit.
(Of course, dementia is nothing to be laughed at; I’m totally laughing at the orange monster who is robbing the entire country and trying to drag us into multiple wars.)
The Federal Aviation Administration will reduce flights at dozens of major airports as early as Friday if no shutdown deal is reached, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced at a news conference Wednesday.
Ten percent of air traffic at 40 busy airports would be cut, potentially impacting thousands of flights, though the details of how many and which specific airports will be cut was not announced.
“As we start to implement this draw down in service, it will be restricted to these 40 high volume traffic markets,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said. “We’re going to ask the airlines to work with us collaboratively to reduce their schedules.”
Matt Van Epps, a former state official who earned an endorsement from President Donald Trump last week, won the Republican nomination Tuesday in the special election for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District House seat, NBC News projects.
Van Epps bested 10 other Republican candidates after a primary in which all of them campaigned on their support for Trump.
State Rep. Aftyn Behn, a community organizer and licensed social worker, won the Democratic primary in a close contest against two other state lawmakers and a businessman. She represents a deep-blue seat including downtown and east Nashville.
Democrats hope to compete in the heavily Republican seat during the special general election on Dec. 2, which is likely to see lower voter turnout than a regular election.
*They had better be getting Dems to get out the vote. It sounds like MAGAt Mike won’t open the House until December. If Van Epps wins, he offsets the Rep from AZ Mike refuses to swear in so the EPSTEIN discharge petition is probably dead. If Van Epps loses, Mike may never gavel in…which is why it’s time to kick out MIKE; vacate his seat since it’s already vacant.
Trump has not publicly issued an order for flags to be flown at half-staff for Cheney’s death, but Leavitt said they were lowered at the White House “in accordance with statutory law.”
The federal law about the position and manner of display of the American flag says that it must be flown at half-staff until a former vice president’s day of interment.
Traditionally, past presidents have issued proclamations ordering flags to be flown at half-staff across the U.S. to symbolically mourn the deaths of a former president or vice president.
Trump directed that flags be lowered most recently after the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk in September.
*It seems like Orange Adolf is still pissed off at Liz.
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from sea to shining sea
California Governor Gavin Newsom makes remarks on the passage of Proposition 50 by a wide margin, allowing the redrawing of the state’s congressional district lines with an eye toward bolstering Democratic power in Congress.
From our chatroom…
Was this Newsom 2028, the soft launch? (Today’s Chat 10am ET, Supreme Court mystery theater).
Newsom on GOP’s bad night: “Voters feel poorer & sicker — that’s why they lost.”
Full chat replay → https://youtube.com/live/PAJjj_ExE-E
I do think Newsome was the night’s big winner. Will Pritzker and Shapiro be close behind? I hope so. Who knew that people maybe don’t like to feel poorer and sicker and don’t like soldiers and masked agents in tactical gear roaming through their neighborhood asking to see their papers and abducting brown people.
And looks to me that the biggest loser last night was D,OA – he appears to have lost the young male and Latino voters he picked up in 2024. Hard to say that with any confidence, but let’s look at that in a year.
“First woman governor”? Jamie’s not calling it equality yet.
Half the seats, not half the headlines.
🎥 From last night’s chat — Next chat 10am ET: Supreme Court Oral Arguments On Tariffs (Bring Your Own Spitballs)
Stephen Miller will cost Republicans another midterm — Kids in cages won 40 House seats for Dems in Trump’s first midterm (2018).
It was quite an interesting election day. The total impact of what happened is rapidly showing itself, hour after hour. There were few battles requiring a recount. The blue wave really was. The top level seats were solid wins. No doubts or second guessing.
What I am looking at are the odd year elections results. One in particular is my old home town, Aurora, Colorado. The two at-large seats were on the ballot and two wards. One of the at-large seats was held by the nut who saw huge gangs and other garbage, which was picked up by sfb to use to attack non-white people of Aurora. I read a few of the media columnists prognostications for election results. Although non-partisan city council, candidates were well known for their positions. The reporters all stated that Aurora was moving conservative and would continue that course. The results are serving a lot of crow this morning. It was a blue sweep, not a red sweep. Solid blue, with the result of kicking a loud mouth liar out of office.
This action was repeated around the country. Ballot issues that were tax increases passed with ease, the opposite of what was expected. Election after election went Progressive, or liberal or left were the results. Quite exciting.
concluding words from BBC’s https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/what-to-know-about-zohran-mamdani-and-what-he-wants-to-do-in-nyc/
No countries legally mandate that women must hold a certain number of political offices, but some have gender quotas in place to encourage representation. Rwanda, for example, has the highest percentage of women in its parliament globally, largely due to a quota system enshrined in its constitution. Other countries with high levels of female political representation, though not through mandated quotas, include Sweden, Cuba, Finland, and Argentina.
Rwanda: Rwanda’s constitution requires that at least 30% of parliamentary seats be held by women, and it currently has the highest percentage of female parliamentarians in the world.
Cuba: Cuba has a high percentage of women in its national assembly, a result of both a constitutional quota and a strong emphasis on gender equality in politics.
Sweden and Finland: While they don’t have specific quotas, these Nordic countries are known for high female representation in politics due to various policies and cultural factors that encourage gender equality.
Other countries with high representation: Some countries, such as Mexico and Nicaragua, have also achieved high levels of female political participation through a combination of quotas and other initiatives.
The Supreme Court hears arguments today on whether a president can unilaterally slap tariffs on half the planet — all in the name of “national security.”
We’re live at 10 a.m. ET with the audio feed and real-time analysis in our famed Mystery Science Theater format.
Join the chat —Bring Your Own Spitballs.
Guests: Tulane finance professor Peter Ricchiuti and construction law attorney Luis Prats.
Google News Front Page — Enjoy while supplies last
What a night!!
DEMOCRATIC VICTORIES:
• Abigail Spanberger (Governor of VA)
• Mikie Sherrill (Governor of NJ)
• Zohran Mamdani (Mayor of NYC)
• Aftab Pureval (Mayor of Cincinnati)
• Ghazala Hashmi (Lt Governor of VA)
• Jay Jones (Attorney General of VA)
• 60-seat+ majority VA House of Delegates
• Alicia Johnson (Public Service Commissioner GA)
• Peter Hubbard (Public Service Commissioner GA)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court
*Probably ketchup on the WH walls today
It’s a good time to call your Republicans in Congress to tell them to wake up because the tide is turning & it’s BLUE! Call your Dems in Congress and tell them to hang tough.
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/morgan-stanley-ceo-warns-market-heading-towards-correction-2025-11-04/
Nov 4 (Reuters) – CEOs of Wall Street heavyweights Morgan Stanley (MS.N), opens new tab and Goldman Sachs (GS.N), opens new tab on Tuesday cautioned that equity markets could be heading toward a drawdown, underscoring growing concerns over sky-high valuations.
Fears of a market bubble come as the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab continues its meteoric climb, repeatedly hitting record highs and evoking memories of the dot-com boom.
“We should welcome the possibility that there would be drawdowns, 10% to 15%, that are not driven by some sort of macro cliff effect,” Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick said at the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit in Hong Kong.
Last month, banking giant JPMorgan Chase’s (JPM.N), opens new tab CEO Jamie Dimon had warned of a heightened risk of a significant correction in the U.S. stock market within the next six months to two years.
“I am far more worried about that than others,” Dimon said, according to the BBC, adding there were a “lot of things out there” creating an atmosphere of uncertainty, pointing to risk factors, including geopolitical tensions, fiscal spending and global remilitarization.
We are live in five.. room is open now — Hop In Here
today’s meme…
meme #2…
Renee
Yah know, you would think it would be difficult to kick ass in high heels. but not for some folks I guess.
Jack
It is that time of the year when Required Minimum Distributions RMD, need attention. Sigh. It would be nice to be rich enough to not have to deal with these.
Could US Marshals arrest MAGAt Mike for not doing his job? Could House Dems + some Republicans be enough to censure or impeach and remove him?
Now Spanberger has to strut around like Youngkin did and act like Virginia spoke for all of America
Craig,
Here is the original ball room plans before Trump wiped out the East wing to increase the size to serve over 900 instead of the original 650.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_State_Ballroom#/media/File:White_House_ballroom_plan,_October_2025.svg
I hate it when they crow.
JD is so unlikable, he couldn’t even influence a city in his home state to elect his half-brother to the mayor’s office
👍
🚨Trail Mix Live Chat: Attorney Luis Prats on the Supreme Court’s tariff arguments.
His take: the same “major questions” doctrine that sank Biden’s loan plan could sink Trump’s tariff power.
Watch →
https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/james-comey-grand-jury-transcript-lindsey-halligan-rcna241879
Judge says DOJ failed to give full transcripts of Halligan’s Comey grand jury proceedings
Currie had ordered that by Monday, Nov. 3, the DOJ was to provide her with “all documents relating to the indictment signer’s participation in the grand jury proceedings, along with complete grand jury transcripts.”
But on Tuesday, Currie issued a new order that said the material she received “fails to include remarks made by the indictment signer both before and after the testimony of the sole witness, which remarks were referenced by the indictment signer during the witness’s testimony.” The judge gave the government until Wednesday to comply.
*So, it sounds like Halligan is in trouble, having given only partial info twice; once after having been warned.
Anti-Trump Protest in DC Wednesday Is Expected to Draw Up to 20,000 People
Led by the activist group Refuse Fascism, the “Trump Must Go Now& #8221; & nbsp; rally intends to “flood DC” with waves of protesters over the coming days.
Handmaid Army DC will lead pre-programming actions beginning at Columbus Circle and Union Station at 7:30 AM.
Another partner group, FLARE USA, will host the procession at their ongoing anti-Trump encampment at Union Station, located at 50 Massachusetts Ave., NE, for a 9 AM rally.
The collective also plans to march to Congress with the Removal Coalition to speak with representatives and their staffs.
Some of the speakers expected to appear onstage at the Sylvan Theater include Michael Fanone, a former DC police officer who was assaulted at the January 6 insurrection; Sunsara Taylor of Refuse Fascism; Handmaid DC organizer Ashley Cash; and Kim Villanueva from the National Organization for Women (NOW).
*Bigger protests to come Nov 20 – 22. This is a great day to show Republicans that they NEVER had a tRUMPsky mandate.
Any Goopers in town to talk to?
My main takeaway from yesterday:
MAGA’s Mojo Fades: Off-Year Votes Hint Trump’s Base Is Losing Its Charge
By every early indicator the Trump base looks like it’s leaking power at the edges. The 2025 off-year elections in Virginia and New Jersey gave Democrats stronger-than-expected results in places that usually swing red when his voters turn out in force.
Exit-poll data show only about 40 percent of voters in those states now approve of Trump, far below the mid-40s to low-50s range he typically drew in those regions during the 2024 election.
Even more telling: many Republican-leaning counties showed flat or lower turnout, while anti-Trump sentiment was unusually intense among independents.
None of this means his core faithful have vanished, but it does suggest they’re less motivated when he isn’t on the ballot — and that the once-formidable MAGA turnout machine may be losing its voltage.
Zohran Mamdani’s big ideas have transformed other cities
The City Where All the Buses Are Free
When Covid hit, Alexandria, Virginia saw an opportunity to make its residents fall in love with the least-loved transit option of all.
***
The Supermarket That Seeks No Profits
Jubilee Market in Waco, Texas exists for one reason only: to provide quality food in a neighborhood that lacks it.
At This Grocery Store, Shoppers Pay What They Wish. In St. Louis, a pay-what-you-can grocery store stays in business thanks to some customers voluntarily paying more than the price on the sticker.
***
100 Years of Urban Housing Success
As cities around the world confront an affordability crisis, a few have spent a century perfecting the art of subsidized housing for the masses.
*Links to the sub-headings in the main story link.
You know who else speaks to the struggling, white folks? Bernie & AOC. Sure, they are afraid of labels, many of which they do not understand, but when a policy is explained to them, they like it.
It will probably need to come from a white, straight, Christian, male in 2026 and 2028, but they like the idea of the tax dollars going back to them, their family, their community. They don’t like the idea of billionaires sponging off of everyone else.
When you win: Can the smiles, laughter, and canned jubilation…..instead present only a face of grim determination for the task ahead.
You didn’t “win”you were given a grave and serious duty.
Now that the tariff hearing is over and I’ve read a couple sources about it, it sounds like Coney-Barrett, Roberts and Gorsuch may indeed rule against Trump. Gorsuch’s comment about it’s different when you’re talking about Americans paying and has been since the founding is particularly telling.
they get one day to celebrate, morale is important
otherwise i agree
one day
Not that it couldn’t happen, but it’s hard to see NYC foregoing $5B in fare revenue for the NYC Transit/Staten Island Railroad – 1/4 of the system operating budget – to provide free bus rides. Hard to say what the revenue loss would be if only busses were free – the MTA 2024 Report and Budget doesn’t break busses out separately. What’s the old Dirksen saying? Something like, a billion here, a billion there, before long you’re talking about real money?
Legal legerdemain: WaPo
Sauer’s the guy you send out to make an offer you can’t understand.
https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2025/11/04/running-unopposed-michelle-wu-secures-second-term-as-her-national-profile-grows/
Running unopposed, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu officially secured her second term Tuesday night as she continues to dominate city politics and gain national prominence.
Wu, a 40-year-old mother of three, handily defeated opponent Josh Kraft in September by nearly 50 points, and he dropped out shortly after. She ran unopposed in November’s election. <- (Because she was just that popular.)
Her four years as mayor have seen some return on her lofty campaign proposals from 2021. She has made some of the busiest bus lines in the city, mostly in Dorchester, fare-free through 2026. <-
A promise to pursue rent stabilization turned into a home-rule petition in 2023 that the mayor and the City Council sent to the legislature in 2023.
Wu maintained her popularity as well, holding a 66 percent favorability rating in July amid back-and-forth jabs between her and Kraft. The poll showed that 65 percent approved of the job she has done as mayor.
Throughout her campaign, Wu has emerged as a national Democratic voice against the Trump administration – including as a “young-ish” new Democrat to watch, per New York Magazine on Monday, with the magazine citing her municipal Green New Deal.
https://www.wbur.org/news/2025/04/28/massachusetts-millionaires-tax-institute-policy-studies-newsletter
Not fleeing: New report shows more wealthy residents in Mass., 2 years into ‘millionaire’s tax’
Staying and paying: It’s been about two years since Massachusetts voters approved a “millionaire’s tax” on wealthy residents in the state. But despite previous concerns, the tax hasn’t seemed to deter high-earners from continuing to live here, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive research group. Using data from Wealth-X, researchers found the number of residents making $1 million or more per year has increased by nearly 40% since the tax went into effect.
Remind me again, what’s this tax? Voters narrowly approved a 4% surtax on incomes over $1 million in a statewide ballot referendum in November 2022. Advocates pushed, saying the new tax would bring in over $1 billion a year in new revenue to fund programs like free school lunches for students and free community college for state residents. But critics said it would likely force millionaires to leave the state.
The verdict: The new report found the number of ultra-wealthy residents in Massachusetts — those with at least $50 million or more — has actually grown since 2022, from 1,954 to 2,642 in 2024. The millionaires’ tax also greatly surpassed its projections in the first year, generating S2.46 billion for the state in 2023 alone. State officials expect it to haul in the same amount of revenue annually. “This is further evidence that multi-millionaires are not fleeing the state in response to the new tax,” said Shanique Rodriguez, executive director of the Massachusetts Voter Table.
Omar Ocampo, a researcher on the study, told WBUR’s Amy Sokolow that anyone who has left to avoid the tax does not highlight the bigger picture. Those being taxed are a “very small minority” of the population, said Ocampo. “This is not to deny that there will be people who move. It’s inevitable,” said Ocampo. “But I would argue that it’s very statistically insignificant.”
*For the Professor.
https://www.masslive.com/politics/2023/12/no-the-millionaires-tax-has-not-been-a-disaster-in-mass-analysis.html
Free school lunches. Road and bridge repairs. New bicycle lanes. Free community college for thousands of students. Expanded financial assistance for public college and university students.
Those are just some of the initiatives that have gone from drawing board to reality since Massachusetts voters approved the commonwealth’s Fair Share Amendment, a 4% tax on Bay State residents who earn more than $1 million a year.
Popularly referred to as the “Millionaires’ Tax” the levy is expected to pump as much as $1.5 billion into the commonwealth’s coffers in its first year, according to advocates and Gov. Maura Healey’s administration.
Revenue from the tax provides $524 million in funding for education, including $71 million for early education and care; $224 million for K-12 education, and $229 million for higher education, Healey’s office said in an email.
A further $477 million for transportation funding will provide a shot in the arm to the MBTA and regional transit agencies, and more money for road and bridge repairs, according to the administration.
*There has been no massive “exodus of residents” triggered by the wealth tax, although high profile departures gain headlines.
i’m not going to pooh-pooh progressive innovation, if people like Mamdani can figure out how to make it work, more power to them
✊
The alternative is watching the billionaire class loot our society, no one’s telling them that they can’t because they are (actively doing so)
https://www.euronews.com/2025/11/05/government-shutdown-us-army-tells-soldiers-in-germany-to-go-to-the-food-bank
Government shutdown: US Army tells soldiers in Germany to go to the food bank
Approximately 37,000 US soldiers stationed in Germany face uncertainty over November salary payments as the United States enters its longest-ever government shutdown, with the Pentagon warning troops may not receive mid-month wages despite last-minute funding for October.
The US Army published guidance on its website directing soldiers in Germany to emergency social benefits, loans, food banks and food sharing organisations where volunteers provide leftover food through public fridges.
German social benefits remain largely unavailable to US troops, meaning that the soldiers will invariably be left to their own devices.
Unlike Germany’s monthly payment system, US service members receive wages fortnightly, intensifying cash flow pressures during payment gaps.
https://www.stripes.com/branches/army/2025-11-05/government-shutdown-food-assistance-19663106.html
German food resources list that appeared on US garrison’s website wasn’t for Americans, Army says
*OK, then.
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — A listing of German food aid services included on a U.S. Army garrison page of resources available during the government shutdown was intended for local national employees rather than American troops, U.S. Army Europe and Africa said Wednesday.
The list of five German support organizations appeared on the “shutdown guidance” web page of U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria but was removed sometime Wednesday. Before it was taken down, an image of the listings was posted on a handful of Reddit pages.
US troops go hungry so Republicans can cover for pedophiles
A Democratic member of Congress interrupted Speaker Mike Johnson during his outdoor press conference on Wednesday, denouncing his “lies” and demanding that he bring House and Senate leaders together to try to end the federal government shutdown.
NEWSDemocratic Rep. Interrupts Speaker Johnson — Accuses Him of ‘Lies’Published on November 5, 2025 at 12:46 PM ET By David Badash
“I am part of the American people, and I believe that —” U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) told the Speaker.
“You should respect free speech,” she continued, in response to him chastising her for interrupting him.
“I’m asking you a question, if you’re ready to have a conversation with the other side,” Houlahan said. “You represent all of us. You are the Speaker for all of us, sir. You have an obligation not just to speak lies to the American people.”
“You have an obligation to call the leadership of both parties and bring us together and solve this problem together, Mr. Speaker,” she declared.
I’m certainly hoping our service members aren’t buying D,OA’s “Democrat shutdown” bullshit.
Anon, its a little long, but that would look great on a bumper sticker.
i’m trying to be a better person, but i’m going to enjoy Nancy Mace’s extended public mental-breakdown regardless 🍿
https://www.nj.com/politics/2025/11/gop-congresswoman-throws-massive-meltdown-after-republicans-dont-defend-her-real-men-protect-women.html
kooks, cranks, and crooks- today’s GOP 🇺🇸
Conversely, i sincerely appreciate that Georgia congressperson’s intellectual and emotional growth, hopefully it culminates in her dumping that tool of a “boyfriend” and apologizing for platforming him and his embarrassing disrespect of Zelenskyy
Slava Ukraine
My new ACA premium (which is a terrible, highest-deductible plan/think it’s gone from $9,600 to $9,800 and a RX deductible of several thousand dollars before UHC kicks in) for 2026 is $1,165/month. Nope!
I’ll have to be half-deaf and off balance if this doesn’t get fixed before the end of the year.
Nancy don’t-you-know-who-I-am Mace seems to need a mental health professional…or maybe just some attention.
if you wanna discuss vertigo at the bluescrab, i can, or here if you don’t care
I took a laissez faire approach this season, and I’m doing much better
So Dodo the Dodderer can find his way.
The Mass. Millionaire’s tax amounts to $40,000 per million on taxable income above $1M. While that’s certainly something, if your wealth is generated in Massachusetts through taxable income, and you want to keep earning that kind of money in Mass, the expenses incurred in relocating may or may not be worth it to those high earners, besides, moving is a royal pain in the ass.
BID, what was your premium this year?
https://www.rawstory.com/trump-cognitive-questions-2674268912/
President Donald Trump appeared “exhausted” and made a number of gaffes during his speech to the America Business Forum in Miami, Florida, on Wednesday, his critics said.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-confuses-south-africa-south-america_n_690bc1eee4b0f73c45ec315f
“For generations, Miami has been a haven for those fleeing communist tyranny in South Africa,” Trump said. “If you take a look at what is going on in parts of South Africa. Look at what is going on in South Africa. Look at South America, what’s going on. We have a G20 meeting in South Africa. South Africa shouldn’t even be in the Gs anymore.”
South Africa has never had a communist government, so its citizens have never had to “flee communist tyranny” for Miami.
In fact, South Africans make up less than 0.03% of Miami’s population.
However, Miami has long been a port-of-call for people fleeing countries like Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, which have had socialist governments in the past.
Trump’s diatribe against South Africa comes just days after his administration restricted the number of refugees admitted annually to the United States to 7,500, and most of those are white South Africans.
Last month, Trump was ridiculed for falsely claiming Qatar and Iran are close neighbors when they are actually 500 miles from each other.
In August, he claimed he was meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in his home country, when the meeting actually took place in Alaska.
The dodderer. That’s perfect. Being one who’s got enough knee problems going on to be careful on stairs, I have watched D,OA negotiate steps, and he ain’t right. I generally look to make sure I get the first one right, but after that, it’s just walk down them. Now I don’t have the same spring in my step I had even a couple of years ago, but I do alright.
Only President who has openly copped to being a Sock Puppet.
My teeny tiny Post Office no bigger than a cowboy boot box in a teeny tiny farm town not far from the Wyoming border had its flags at half-staff today. Not sure who gave the order.
Out Gatsby the Fatsby. She be getting heat for this.
His [JD’s] half-brother, Cory Bowman, suffered a significant loss in his bid to become Cincinnati’s next mayor during the city’s recent municipal elections. Bowman, who’s a Republican, lost against Aftab Pureval, who won reelection as mayor of Cincinnati on November 5, 2025.
The 36-year-old pastor launched his campaign in February, shortly after attending JD Vance’s inauguration as the VP in January 2025.
For those unfamiliar, Cory Bowman and JD Vance share the same father, named Donald Bowman. They both grew up differently and connected much later in life. Bowman grew up on a farm near Hamilton, Ohio, before earning a degree in economics from Miami University and later completing a ministry degree in Florida…
According to The Daily Beast, Bowman’s campaign faced controversy in its final days.
As reported by The Rooster, he was accused of voter fraud after questions arose over whether his listed addresses were actually in Cincinnati’s West End, where he claimed to have moved following the primary. Yet, he did not respond to any of the allegations.
Mostly all good news in yesterday’s exit polls, but perhaps most encouraging is Dems won over young men, who were a big factor in Trump’s victory.
Among men under age 30 Spanberger led by 17 points, Sherrill by 14 points.
Last year young men were close to evenly split.
Young men are pissed off by their puny paychecks while fat pigs wallow.
Ivy, Dick Cheney.
Poge, I can see him doing that. From the grave.
Ivy – Their paychecks were already puny but post-election, Joe Rogan & Nick Fuentes started to have problems with tRUMP. Honestly, I think Talarico being on Rogan’s show may have helped.
Also, AI has eaten up white color, entry-level jobs (like legal raccoon Sam, who moonlights as a free coder), and some have realized crypto is just gambling and they’ll never be big players.
Did you know there’s a language called KAREN that’s, apparently, close to Thai?
I had a genuine solid case of vertigo while sitting at the piano in Denver this one time…….this new bass player did it to me…..swear to god the man was so damn fine and precise and perfect he straightened out the drummer and sent me into vertigo.
He is since deceased and left all his bass and music gear to one Rocky Ramjet of “The Fabulous Boogienauts” of Denver.
How is your hearing after all of that music? My dad is a musician and his hearing is gone, but he can tune his guitar by the way the strings feel, or so it seems.
Beautiful moon.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-oval-office-sign-white-house-b2859455.html
After living and working at the White House for nearly four years and 10 months in total, one might assume President Donald Trump can find his way to his office without getting lost.
As Trump prepared to depart the White House en route to a speech in Miami, Florida, reporters waiting for him noticed an addition to the exterior of the building — a sign in gilded script indicating the entrance to the Oval Office as seen from the White House Rose Garden.
The sign, which appeared to be a temporary placeholder to show where to add the planned lettering, used a cursive font that strongly resembles the typeface used in the logo of his Mar-a-Lago club.
*Start referring to the West Wing as the Presidential Dementia Unit.
(Of course, dementia is nothing to be laughed at; I’m totally laughing at the orange monster who is robbing the entire country and trying to drag us into multiple wars.)
https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/us/airport-traffic-cuts-government-shutdown?cid=external-feeds_iluminar_msn
The Federal Aviation Administration will reduce flights at dozens of major airports as early as Friday if no shutdown deal is reached, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced at a news conference Wednesday.
Ten percent of air traffic at 40 busy airports would be cut, potentially impacting thousands of flights, though the details of how many and which specific airports will be cut was not announced.
“As we start to implement this draw down in service, it will be restricted to these 40 high volume traffic markets,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said. “We’re going to ask the airlines to work with us collaboratively to reduce their schedules.”
*No food. No flights. Happy Thanksgiving!
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/trump-endorsed-matt-van-epps-wins-gop-primary-vacant-house-seat-tennes-rcna235651
Matt Van Epps, a former state official who earned an endorsement from President Donald Trump last week, won the Republican nomination Tuesday in the special election for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District House seat, NBC News projects.
Van Epps bested 10 other Republican candidates after a primary in which all of them campaigned on their support for Trump.
State Rep. Aftyn Behn, a community organizer and licensed social worker, won the Democratic primary in a close contest against two other state lawmakers and a businessman. She represents a deep-blue seat including downtown and east Nashville.
Democrats hope to compete in the heavily Republican seat during the special general election on Dec. 2, which is likely to see lower voter turnout than a regular election.
*They had better be getting Dems to get out the vote. It sounds like MAGAt Mike won’t open the House until December. If Van Epps wins, he offsets the Rep from AZ Mike refuses to swear in so the EPSTEIN discharge petition is probably dead. If Van Epps loses, Mike may never gavel in…which is why it’s time to kick out MIKE; vacate his seat since it’s already vacant.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/11/04/flags-half-staff-dick-cheney-death/87086018007/
Trump has not publicly issued an order for flags to be flown at half-staff for Cheney’s death, but Leavitt said they were lowered at the White House “in accordance with statutory law.”
The federal law about the position and manner of display of the American flag says that it must be flown at half-staff until a former vice president’s day of interment.
Traditionally, past presidents have issued proclamations ordering flags to be flown at half-staff across the U.S. to symbolically mourn the deaths of a former president or vice president.
Trump directed that flags be lowered most recently after the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk in September.
*It seems like Orange Adolf is still pissed off at Liz.
NEW THREAD by our fearless leader