This interview, which is also available to listen to as a podcast, provides a useful overview of some of the dangerous trends we’ve been seeing in recent months regarding federalization and militarization of state and local police functions.
The erosion of basic principles like due process and the expanding use of our military on domestic soil puts the liberties of all Americans at risk, and should concern democrats and republicans alike.
Replies
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Mr President, can't you and all of the past presidents get together and speak to the damage Trump and his administration are doing to our democracy? I don't know of any other way to get Republican Reps and Senators to finally do their jobs and hold him accountable.
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Yeah we’re past “concern”, chief
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I am very concerned that by the time republicans (or at least the voters who placed them in office) figure it all out, the guns will be pointed at them, and it will be too late. The pro-GOP news media is very, VERY good at not showing the man behind the curtain, instead putting eyes toward... logos.
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Oh didn’t you hear? Susan Collins is very concerned & disappointed.
Problems solved.
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What changed?
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Unfortunately, Obama spent 8 years serving the billionaire parasite employer class & DeepState wars, instead of Americans economic needs, which allowed Trump to con his followers. If Democrats had done anything to help Americans since Bill Clinton, they would be popular like FDR.
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Apparently it doesn't concern republicans and democratic leadership seems to be passively waiting for the backlash rather than leading the resistance from the front
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President Obama: the U.S. is a failed republic. An Authoritarian regime centered on White Christian Nationalism. Our society is now xenophobic, isolationist, racist, with an economy that is increasingly commanded by the regime. Trust, decency, and morality are supplanted by loyalty to the dictator.
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARvr...
I Have a Dream, Martin Luther King Jr. Full Speech Best Audio
YouTube video by Classical Media
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Republicans don’t seem to be concerned, they support fascism. Every single Republican in Congress supports the president. What do we do now?
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🙌🏼 please get on a stage with the entire anti- Trump coalition. Do a nationwide tour. AOC, Bernie, Stacey Abrams,Hillary, Kamala, Gavin, George w, Liz Cheney, beshear, ostroff , mayor wu, mayor Pete everyone and sell out stadiums across the country. Get Beyoncé, get Bruce, get Taylor. Solidarity.
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you dont negotiate with cancer, you kill it or it kills you
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And where are the Don’t Tread On Me Libertarians? They’ve been awfully quiet.
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Does it address what @democrats.org are going to do about it?
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You signed a law pipelining military into domestic police departments providing them hiring preferences that ensured they'd get the job over more qualified applicants.
Both parties militarized the cops, and you signed off on it.
www.justice.gov/archives/opa...
White House, Justice Department Announce Law Enforcement Grants for Hiring of Veterans
The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) today announced funding awards to over 220 cities and counties, aimed at creating or saving approximately 800 law e...
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So, what do we do now
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I’m concerned with how little you’re actually doing about this.
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Yeah what kind of monster would appoint someone like Tom Homan to oversee the border?
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As a teen & younger adult majority of LEO's were standing up to protect & serve. Obvious that's changed. The profession attracts those with severe personality deficits. Thugs that get off putting underdogs in their place & bashing the innocent. It accelerated after we got our first black President.🤔
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republicans aren't concerned in the least.
As long as they're in power, they couldn't care less.
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And then what? We're concerned alright. We need actionable ideas!
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And all other citizens of the world
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It should concern Republicans but they seem to mostly be enthusiastically embracing the fascism.
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Biden and Garland had 4 years to inoculate America against this.
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How much did AIPAC pay you to give Zionist Israel support while you were in Office? $35 billion? Meanwhile, Americans were going hungry and homeless and still are.
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Cut the crap Obama. If America was actually a proper functioning Democracy, Trump would have been Arrested straight away & held without bail on J6. You are all the same. None of you assholes care about the American people. You only care about yourselves. You selfish politicians created this mess.
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We must speak out against the tyranny of Trumpism. Hold the free press accountable for reporting facts and real consequences— not both-siding every news story.
Trump is everything our country fought against at its inception.
He conned MAGA. But America is not MAGA.
Our troops are not his toys.
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I think Trump is trying to kill us. Slowly, over time. As the Sun Tzu quote goes: An evil man will burn his own nation to the ground to rule over the ashes.
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Some days I’m fired up and ready to fight and some days I’m completely in shock and overwhelming despair at this loss of our country, as we all knew and understood our precious America, our United States. It’s like a slow train wreck that I want to look away from but can’t. My heart is broken 😥
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Be aware! They could send mask #ICE agents to you to deport you to Kenia. No one is safe anymore in the Kingdom of #Trump. You will at least believe it when his #SupremeCourt grants him the purse of the kingdom. He will personally get richer than #Putin, who is the richest person on earth today.
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Nice sentiment but we need the top dogs actually collaborating and strategising to get Trump & Co. out of office before the POTUS chair … is called a throne..🤷♀️
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So what’s next…? Y’all see it coming…? What happens next Barak…? What happens when America willingly embraces a dictator…? What happens when Americans decide they no longer want a messy democracy but would rather have a king…? Let’s hope these next elections aren’t your last🔮👀⚠️?❔❓
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More of this.
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There needs to be hangings when this is over. All the military and police who went along with it need to be hung, and all the republicans who voted for it need to be hung.
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Republicans have long ago lost their souls and integrity.
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Honestly Mr.President, I wish you would be more strident in your commentary on all this. I totally get that you don’t want to be dragged back into the mire, but not speaking out more forcefully risks greater damage to the country.
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Says the guy who drone striked a kid from the us.
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Don't expect anything from the republicans.
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Republicans have chosen Trump 3 times. Pretty obvious that that is who they are, time to stop pretending otherwise.
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Things must be bad if the reading list guy is posting politics-adjacent content.
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We had it so much better back when he was in. I love how Rucka just rips those bigots to shreds with this video. It's never gotten old. They were the same back then and they're worse now. youtu.be/mDvnZiCOPqw
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We are in the hypernormalization phase, as Adam Curtis would say.
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It's a huge concern! What can be done to stop it??? Why are the Congress and Senate so compliant and useless?
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Their test run was in 2016, they had 8 years to plan & perfect. With the house, senate & scotus under his thumb all working for the same agenda the only alternative to stop this will eventually be physical violence sadly, hope im wrong.
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You put it in a balanced way.
Shouldn't there be a call for civil resistance yet?
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Doesn't seem to concern either enough, does it
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'Should' is pulling a lot of weight there...
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Stop it. Would ya, just stop it. You know damn well it doesn't concern RusPublicans. This is all on them and you know it, this is what they want. Stop giving them a shred of decency, they have none.
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Come on Barry.
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ok but the republicans like it and think it's cool, what should we do about that?
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MORE OF THIS PLZ
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Gee, if only there had been someone in power for 8 years that could've done something.
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Can you stop using bullshit words like "dangerous", "troubling", "at risk" and so on? We're under fascism ALREADY. It's not proto-fascism or incipient fascism, it's fascism NOW. Use appropriate language!
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Lol
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Republicans aren't on our side. Not a one. Wishing more dems were doing something viable to stop this.
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Good thing Dems are doing jack shit about it. Ya'll rolled over after he won all 7 swing states with less than half the popular vote...NOT ONE QUESTION. THAT is why we're here.
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Shouldn't you be collecting Netflix checks?
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💯👹
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You Americans missed the boat in term1. Who did he have meetings with? Dictators
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at this point going back to saying nothing would be better than this crap
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Oh word?
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My guy just post your fall reading list already, you are not up for this moment.
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Time to call it what it is. This is fascism being established in America. Both the GOP (by embracing it) and the media (by looking away) are complicit.
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It's not over til it's over.
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I'll tell you what sir, do something please. Everyone talks and talks. No action happens. We are a lost country
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Ya think?
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Any chance that you will help in guiding us out of this terrible mess?
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Trump is trying to replace blue area elected officials with appointed cronies👍
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Omg…I miss you and your family and decency and civility so much. 🥰
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Ok Drone Strike in Chief. Yeah I wonder who else Eroded those liberties and Expanded the executive branches power through the abuse of executive order. And continued support for #Am #Israel #Chai .
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I so wish the so called leaders will get out on the front lines, besides pontificating from the safety of the cyberspace. Give him credit for this, the same can't be said of current and past leadership.
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Ok, but we KNOW. What the fuck do we do about it, man?
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It should concern British people too as we have a political party intending to take us down the same road
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I have to believe that the discussion about how concerned we are has been exhausted. As we sit in our assigned prisons we will have plenty of time to discuss what went wrong and how we failed our democracy. Or we move past discussion on how bad this is and move to take our country back.
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As a german I don’t understand why your military is following all of these these orders - that are obviously different to all that the US stands for - without questioning them🤔
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Republicans think they’re immune, and so surprised when this administration’s policies and actions are applied to them. I’m not counting on republicans to be concerned beyond clutching their pearls. Trump is amassing military force. It’s going to take more than just the democrats to fight it.
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Sad to say this, but
US fascism is in a stage that can not broken back with traditional elections and such
The avenues of democracy and freedom are being torn apart in front of your eyes
Looking at Fascism in history books will tell you what’s gonna happen next in the US
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Tell us something we don't already know. Actions speak louder than words.
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An OpEd by a certain 2 term President might create more of a stir than an OpEd by Ezra Klein.
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Obama on fascism: looking into it. big if true
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Our National Guard troops were ordered to DC, only to mulch and pick up trash
Our National Park Service used to do this before they were left with 20 employees to service the 1000s of acres in the capital
These men and women have to leave their jobs for this stunt @resist4harris.bsky.social
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You are a war criminal.
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Just asking: Is George W. Bush brain dead or complicit?
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Consensus? Dude you looking to build consensus? Republicans kneecapped and starved your signature ACA, Republicans made you cry over assault weapons, McConnell beat you down for a year and you lost a SCOTUS seat… and you are looking for consensus? Sling on a bandolier and break a sweat.
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Lol you’re 15 years out of date with this.
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It does not concern Republicans. You're about a decade late in letting go of that delusion.
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#WETHEPEOPLE demand a Special Presidential Election! ARTICLE 2 SECTION 4:
If the president is impeached for treason, the Vice President & Civil Officers shall be removed as well!
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THE US NOW IS A FUCKING JOKE - Stay away from there - It's a sick, twisted and dangerous place for anyone to go to.
If I were in trump's America, I'd be looking for a way out.
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Blah, blah, it's too late for interviews and conversations. Get your thumb out and actually DO something about it! Your oath to the Constitution didn't end when you left office.
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It was great. This is definitely the time to follow @radleybalko.bsky.social & read his Substack and his books.
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It’s unlikely the Republicans care about anyone being put at risk. They’ve all sold out whatever morals and ethics for an Authoritarian felon.
The hard reality is the GOP is the American Fascist Party and should be labeled as such.
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It doesn’t concern Republicans
We all know that
Been known
That’s the problem
There is NO MORE reaching across the aisle
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Concern? Mr. Obama you should be DOING something about it. We The People are way ahead of you on this. We don’t live in wealth, separated by our own private security from the world around us, from our terrified neighbors. But my border city of Tucson, you are known by many as the Deporter-in-Chief.
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People are reporting that FBI agents are showing up at their doors & questioning them regarding negative social media posts about Don the Con. They are introducing thought police!
So much for free speech.
What are Democrats doing? A few are rising to the occasion. When are the rest of you?
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Can anyone imagine, for just a moment, the apoplexy republicans would have experienced if President Obama had militarized the police in our nation’s Capital? Or Tallahassee, or Nashville?
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Just call it fascism.
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Love you Mr President, but please tell me you don't believe in the myth of the sensible Republican.
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Tell that to @schumer.senate.gov @hakeem-jeffries.bsky.social and all your other chums that keep calling this a "distraction."
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Don’t worry, you’ll get due process… You started the whole Russia collusion conspiracy against Trump and instructed people to violate the law to do it.
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It should do a hell of a lot more than “concern” people. But, I guess I’m glad you’re addressing it…
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Is Obama Bot just here to keep him in the public eye to hype his comedy show with Larry David?
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Can you please get a little more progressive?
Your messaging is just stating the obvious and isn’t really helping anyone.
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A year ago we had a functioning Federal Government. But over the last year it has been destroyed, as certainly as if Washington D.C. had been bombed by Russia. It will take decades to rebuild our position in the world, and to restore the agencies that serve all Americans.
Democrats must do more.
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Americans that see what’s happening are overwhelmed & don’t know what to do. The media mismatch from reality is disturbing & disorienting. Short fair elections what do we do? We need bold leadership and meaningful actions if we are to save ourselves from what looks like plans for Social Murder.
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Key word: should
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I like you, my dude, and you’re a lot smarter than me, but this statement is as milquetoast as your presidency turned out to be. Appealing to the GOP/MAGA and expecting them to have a revelation was your undoing then and continues to be our undoing now.
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Evil Fascist Regime, that was easy.
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Time for the US to get a taste of its own medicine, enjoy
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Republicons have wanted what trump is selling for many years. They have never wanted the constitution or ruie of law for themselves. What they fear they are actually creating. Their downfall.
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Good to see you, sir.
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But, it doesn't appear to concern Democrats or Republicans at large.
And I find that fact far MORE concerning.
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You set a dangerous precedent by extrajudicially killing an American citizen. you expanded the imperial presidency and just had a better PR machine at your fingertips. I supported you both times in spite of this but you need to acknowledge that you laid many of the bricks on this road to hell.
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Where is George W Bush in all of this. Does he have a view?
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The measured language ain’t gonna cut it rn, we’re beyond being “concerned”. That was for fall of 2015, when Trump rode down the golden escalator.
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Dude the days of measured language and searching for the “good, sensible Republican” is over…be aggressive, be bold, be combative, be unapologetic. It’s not 1998 anymore, it’s okay to speak you mind and not be above it all.
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Well it should, but no-one seems to give a damn. I guess it's not an existential crisis threatening to destroy the future of your kids / Denmark
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President Obama. It is time for you and all the other living Presidents to make a joint public statement about how the current occupier of the White House, wannabe #kingtrump is bringing disrespect to the highest office in the land and making our country a laughing stock to the world.
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Please say more. Explain why to the folks in the cheap seats who aren’t paying attention.
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Yes it does
We have a Supremacy Clause and a Vesting Clause
But they don't authorize absolute power or arbitrary rule
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"should concern democrats and republicans alike."
It SHOULD concern all of us, but the fact that almost NO GOP member is concerned should be MORE concerning to the rest of us. Republican members of Congress have foregone almost any resistance to Trump and given up on democracy writ large.
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Will the American project survive 250 years?
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Spoiler alert: they don't care about anything except their stock portfolio.
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But it doesn't concern Republicans. Many of them are embracing this because they think it hurts "liberals" and because they think they will keep power forever. We cannot join with people who are completely at odds with American democracy.
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Maybe ixnay on the domestic military stuff, President Dronestrike.
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ur so brave for tweeting this. thank u for ur service
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I wish it would concern republicans.
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Is this a law course? Cuz it sure sounds like one.
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Wannabe crime boss wants to control the cops, building a mafia state to enable kleptocracy, how very Russian of Felon Guy.
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I am just going to say this again bluntly: Blue states are going to need to become the federal government. Mutual aid compacts, mutual defense compacts, healthcare, taxes, trade the whole deal. Literally create a new system outside of the fascist federal system.
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Republicans don't give a shit Barack. Senate Republicans installed the most dangerous Cabinet in American history with their YES votes. RFK Jr. wants all of us eradicated from this earth. What the hell is wrong with you?
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Sir, I appreciate you so much, but this is fucking fight time; the time for “strongly worded letters” should’ve ended when the maga cult was born in 2015.
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You're not wrong, but I'm also concerned about how many Bush-era policies you carried forward and helped normalize. They were not all legal. They were not all moral. You did damage too, sir. Maybe everyone who takes the office does. But you did promise us something different.
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It should, but apparently ALL of the GOP, are sycophantic Orange Pedofuehrer supporters, who do not care if the country burns, as long as it "owns the libs." You gave them too much credit, when you counted on their love of country. They HATE the country.
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👍
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Concern? That’s the best you got?
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💯 Concerned!!!
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Jfc 🤦
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yeah, too bad you didn't close gitmo or shut down ice. too bad you bombed American civilians outside of war zones and normalized bombing funerals. really could have made the world a better place and instead you normalized and empowered the very fascists we're fighting today.
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Susan Collins is concerned enough for all Republicans.
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53% of Republican voters want Trump to serve a third term.
Are only 47% concerned?
Really concerned or Susan Collins "concerned"?
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Needs more hair on fire.
