Tidbits And Cat Treats: Counting The Wins Edition

By Baxter

It might be time to tally up a few recent victories. So put your feet up, pop a cool one and read on.

Lawyer and independent journalist Katie Phang is making life difficult for the Trump DOJ and for Todd Blanche in particular. Phang filed a lawsuit claiming that Blanche's non-cooperation with the Epstein Transparency Act impeded her professional ability to report the news. She's trying to get the courts to force Blanche to comply with the law, and the judge on the case, Emmet Sullivan, seems sympathetic to her cause. He agreed she had standing, and he ordered Blanche to produce the redacted files or explain why he cannot, no later than 3 PM Eastern time on Thursday, July 30. Great job, Katie!

The Warner Bros.-Paramount Skydance merger may not happen. Wouldn't that be loverly?

Republicans in Florida have been desperately trying to push extreme right-wing nutcase James Fishback off the ballot for the gubernatorial primary on August 18. Welp, too bad for them: A circuit court judge has ruled that candidate Jay Collins's claims that Fishback doesn't meet residency requirements were unproven. Fishback stays on. Gee, Trumpsters can't succeed anywhere in court, can they?

Lots of reassuring stories are surfacing about people rescuing cats, dogs, horses, and even hedgehogs from the fires in France and Spain. And aid workers are, believe it or not, finding pets who survived the Venezuelan earthquake, a whole month later. Those amazing animals!

Finally, Benedict Donald tried to rally what's left of the campaign faithful in Michigan today. From the coverage, it looks like his performance was weak, his speech rambling, and the crowd tepid. As if that weren't special enough, some fabulous dude shouted "Pedophile protector!" at him. We cats love it, and we PURR.

All Fouled Up

By Sniffles

When we look back on the nightmare that was Trump 2.0, we'll be grateful for their incompetence.

There are too many examples of Trump ineptitude to cite, so let's just focus on the one from this past Thursday, when federal prosecutors were embarrassed into withdrawing the subpoenas they inflicted on three New York Times reporters for writing about Trump's Air Force One clusterfuck. Here's hoping that the attorneys involved get referred for disciplinary action and/or disbarment.

The Trumpsters also are still hell-bent on bringing ridiculous charges like the ones against David Hearn for allegedly vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. It's idiotic — the Sandwich Guy case all over again. Are we really doing this? Yes, apparently we are.

We can also be thankful that the White House staff was stupid enough to advise Benedict Donald to speak at last night's White House Correspondents Dinner, which its organizers really need to rethink, by the way. The event has long outlived its usefulness — but in the meantime, how cringey was it that Trump tried to joke his way through a mean-spirited and pointless hour-long speech to dead silence? The attendees should have stood up and walked out, but making Donald endure endless minutes of flop-sweat does have its appeal.

Nevertheless, the hell with all of them: Trump, the worst person to have ever walked the face of the earth, and the inside-the-Beltway journalists who enable him. They are equally despicable. We cats HISS.

Making America Explode In Diarrhea

By Hubie and Bertie

In case you were poised to celebrate the "IT'S FINALLY HAPPENED" event — and you all know what that means — please be informed that the video of Benedict Donald collapsing at the open door of the Presidential limo today is AI. Sorry, kids. (And if you think "IT'S FINALLY HAPPENED" referred to LeBron James: He just signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. Josh Shapiro is very happy.)

This is how the news unrolls these days. You really have to be on your toes when it comes to discerning real from fake. Sadly, in a time when most people fail a basic citizenship test, we don't have a lot of confidence that consumers of current events can tell the truth from lies. Still, the Democrats have an 11-point lead on the general Congressional ballot, so things can't be all bad, right?

On the bad side, the Trumpsters have clearly destroyed public health. Or at least they're working at it. Measles cases are the highest they've been since 2000, and the cyclosporiasis outbreak keeps getting worse. It's expanded to nine states, and even though New York is not one of them, we cats are avoiding salads for the foreseeable future. What we don't like is that Taylor Farms, a likely cyclosporiasis source whose CEO is a big Trump donor, reportedly begged the White House for a delay in implementing a recall. Are we surprised? Will anyone tell the Trumpsters? Because Fox News won't.

This administration doesn't give a damn about you and your family — not your grocery bills or the price you pay at the pump, but also, and most importantly, your health. They've driven the cost of coverage into the stratosphere, and have cut back on the regulations that protect us from malign actors like Taylor Farms. There's a reason we Democrats are in favor of keeping government on the backs of corporations — it's because we support the well-being of the American public. We cats HISS.

Oliver! 1934-2026

By Hubie and Bertie

This is not a music blog, but we cats would be remiss if we didn't note the passing today of the great Oliver Jones, Montreal jazz pianist, composer, and arranger.

He was taught piano by Oscar Peterson's sister. And he learned it well — Jones's touch on the keyboard was so delicate and beautiful that it was recognizable to those with a sensitive ear. We flatter ourselves that we could pick him out on a jazz recording, if we didn't already know.

Jones was born in Montreal's Little Burgundy neighborhood. Murals honoring him already abound there. We hope that city flags fly at half-staff, and that the lights at Place des Arts and other downtown locations dim in his honor. It's the least Montreal can do. We cats PURR.

The Show That Should Not Go On

By Miss Kubelik

Remember those subpoenas that Todd Blanche and the Department of Justice sent to New York Times reporters and their families? As Gilda Radner would say, never mind. They've been withdrawn.

That's because US District Judge Arun Subramanian raked prosecutors over the coals today, telling them that if they didn't take the subpoenas back, he would quash them. Team Blanche bleated and moaned for an hour or so, but finally cried uncle and withdrew.

The Times's sin? Reporting on a matter of national security. That is, that Trump had been flying around on a Qatari "Air Force One" that was seriously lacking in defensive capabilities. Don't get us wrong — we couldn't care less about Benedict Donald's safety and well-being. We just believe that the President of the United States should be protected when he flies. It's the patriotic way to be. 

And clearly, the Trumpsters agreed, because they quickly flew the old, non-Qatari Air Force One overseas to fetch Trump back from his foreign travels, making up a lame story about how "the troops" wanted to see the new jet, and you know, he just couldn't deny them. What a crock. And now, Trump says the Qatari jet is going to be "maxed out." What, like a credit card? We don't get it.

Anyway. It's still ironic that the DOJ took such umbrage, subpoenaing not only the Times journalists but their spouses. Richard Nixon and John Mitchell must be spinning in hell in jealousy. And please note that the person who signed the subpoenas was Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton — you know, that DNI nominee whom Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff destroyed in a hearing last week?

Sickeningly, it appears that the "replacement" White House Correspondents Dinner, which was arranged after the original one erupted in gunfire or something, is still set for tomorrow night, with Benedict Donald as the "honored guest." God help us. One WHCD a year is bad enough, but two — and for someone like Trump? Ugh.

A group of 500 journalists has sent a letter to the Correspondents Association, urging everyone to get into Donald's face and defend press freedom, and not just spend the dinner twiddling their forks and pretending that Trump is normal. Yeah, like that will happen. The dinner is being run by Weijia Jang, White House correspondent for — wait for it — CBS News, so it's unlikely that she'll want to annoy her boss, the notoriously Donald-friendly Bari Weiss.

The rescheduled White House Correspondents Dinner, like the DOJ New York Times subpoenas, is a deception and a Trump-era sham. We cats won't be watching, and we HISS.

(IMAGE: The scene at the WHCD in April. Looks like fun, doesn't it?)

Photobomb

IYKYK. We cats PURR.

MAGAts In A Muddle

By Zamboni

Republicans are quickly appropriating the tired old saw, "Democrats in disarray." But do folks in the media realize it? Or are they just unwilling to tell the truth about the GOP because it isn't alliterative?

If Democrats are in disarray, please explain why they were able to resolve a huge mess in Maine in less than two weeks. (Troy Jackson sewed up Graham Platner's former Senate nomination over the weekend, as potential challengers Nirav Shah, Shenna Bellows, Jordan Wood, and Dan Kleban dropped out.)

And if Republicans are not in disarray, how do you excuse what's going on in South Carolina? 

Lindsey Graham suddenly dies on July 11, and Benedict Donald commands the Governor to appoint Graham's sister, an inexperienced, toothless puppet. Less than a week later, Trump instructs her to not just serve as caretaker in the seat but run for a full term. But two already-announced Trump loyalists are refusing to drop their bids. In fact, they may be joined tomorrow (it's filing day) by local luminaries like Mark "Appalachian Trail" Sanford and Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette. 

Right, everything is going to plan here (not).

But it's our party that's the mess? We cats HISS.

Andrew Tate's "Fashion Don't." Trump's "Get The Hook" Moment.

By Baxter

You know it's a pretty okay weekend when these two things happen:

Andrew and Tristan Tate were arrested in Miami yesterday on new charges of rape, sex trafficking, and possession of child pornography. Decent people everywhere are rooting for their extradition to the UK. Meanwhile, social media relentlessly mocked Andrew's attire.

As if that weren't delicious enough, Spain won the World Cup today, denying Donald Trump an opportunity to present the Cup to the country of one of his favorite dictators. Then, "when the US president and Gianni Infantino came on to the field for the presentation after Spain clinched victory, boos rang out around the stadium," The Guardian said. "The White House pool report said that ambient crowd noise, which had been sitting at approximately 78 decibels before their introduction, rose to 84 decibels when Trump entered the field.

"Then, after Trump presented Spain with the World Cup trophy, he attempted to stand with the team at the side of the podium as they celebrated before Infantino quietly ushered him away." We cats PURR.

Tweets We Wish We'd Written

Oh, this is so good. We cats PURR.

Smoke Gets In Our Eyes

By Sniffles

Before we get into tonight's topic, let's just back up one second to observe that wildfires are burning not just in Ontario, but in Michigan, too. The problem is that it's kind of hard to tell Canadian wildfire smoke from American wildfire smoke. But Benedict Donald doesn't care.

"The United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air," Trump bleated (when he wasn't indulging in endless whines about the 2020 election — which means we now should mention that NBC, ABC, and CNN declined to air him last night).

Trump has latched on to the wildfires as another excuse to threaten tariffs against our Neighbor to the North. Canadians must be awfully tired of all this. After all, they're dealing with the smoke, too (see above). Let's just say that, if they're drowning their sorrows in their air-conditioned homes, they're not doing it with American spirits and wines — since Trump has given them absolutely no reason to abandon their boycotts of US goods.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, who's been running rings around Benedict Donald recently on trade matters, had a mild but firm response to Washington's bluster. "Climate change is the responsibility of everyone," he said, after drily noting that the US has reduced its investment in clean energy. "Truly everyone — including the United States."

Donald is looking awfully tired and limp these days. During his little-watched "election fraud" speech last night, he sounded raspy and unfocused, as if he'd spent an afternoon breathing in Ontario smoke. People have speculated that his lungs are filling with fluid from CHF. We have no idea, but we're less worried about Trump than about his true-believers who will try to enforce his fascism after he is gone.

It'll take a lot to recover from the damage of Trump 2.0, but it will all start this November. In the words of Joyce White Vance, "Your vote matters. Prepare to do whatever it takes this fall to cast it. Let’s put a stop to the lies once and for all." We cats PURR.

(PHOTO: Evan Buhler, Montreal Gazette)

Target: Jon (And You)

By Hubie and Bertie

So Trump is speaking to the nation tomorrow night about — what, exactly? Iran? Greenland? Election security? A "potpourri"? We have no idea. But rumor has it that he's going to "reveal declassified intelligence" on 2020 "election fraud" in Georgia, and call duly elected US Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff "illegitimate."

This will be Trump's newest salvo in his war against the 2026 midterms, which he knows he's going to lose. But it's not going to work, for lots of reasons. One, for us, sticks out.

First, for a little refresher course, let's step back a few years to the resignation of Georgia Senator Johnny Isakson, who stepped down in late 2019 due to health reasons. Governor Brian Kemp then appointed Kelly Loeffler to serve the remainder of Isakson's term. Loeffler was an ineffective doofus who was primarily known for her good hair. (She's head of the SBA now, and is currently stinking up the place with her performance there, too, as you'd expect.)

Anyway, Raphael Warnock beat Loeffler in the special election runoff on January 5, 2021 — the same day that Jon Ossoff beat Georgia's other Senator, David Perdue. That election flipped the Senate to the Democrats. (And we all know what happened on January 6.)

The thing is, though, after that, Warnock ran for a full term in 2022, and he won — so how by any logic could he possibly be "illegitimate"? It also means he won't be up for re-election again until 2028. By our way of thinking, then, Trump's targeting of Warnock and Ossoff is really mostly about Ossoff, who is on the ballot this fall. 

Despite Kellyanne Conway's mocking tweet back in 2017, Trump and the Republicans are scared of Ossoff — big time. And Ossoff's masterful performance during the Jay Clayton/DNI hearing today will only increase their fear (that, and the margin by which Ossoff leads the hapless, election-denying fool Mike Collins in recent polls).

Here's a swell idea that applies to both Georgia Senators: The moment Trump starts speaking tomorrow night, go to Ossoff's site (and Warnock's site) and send each of them a few bucks. Make a statement. Tell Trump you won't let him deny Georgians' votes — and yours. We cats PURR.

Cartography

  

The photo that Benedict Donald shared earlier on social media was AI-generated, and, as you can imagine, ridiculous. We won't repost it here, but it involved a nonexistent meeting in the Oval Office and a silly map. In short, he's back on that annexation train again, which means Jon Ossoff is right: Trump is spiraling. Here's a map that's much more accurate. We cats PURR.

Keep Cool

Benedict Donald is descending into new levels of madness (how scared is he of Warnock and Ossoff?), but you don't have to care. It's too hot, anyway. So put the phone down, fix a cold drink, and put on some music. The news will still be there when you get back. We cats PURR.

Let The Combat Begin

By Miss Kubelik

One thing is certain: There is no shortage of awful people in South Carolina jockeying for Lindsey Graham's Senate seat.

Nancy Mace, surely, has been working the phones since midnight. Others in the mix include Pamela Evette, Nikki Haley, Joe Wilson, Ralph Norman, Russell Fry... the list goes on. All possibilities. All gross.

The good news is that they are so many, because the best outcome would be a knock-'em-sock-'em, dirty-double-crossing cat fight of a special primary that will kick off with filing day, July 21. The primary itself could take place in mid-August. Then we'll see what happens on Election Day, November 3.

Meanwhile, the governor will no doubt appoint a fill-in Senator, who could then also compete in the primary, or just be a caretaker until whoever wins in November takes over. We don't care — as long as the candidates rip each other to shreds over the next few weeks.

One thing we don't want is for Benedict Donald to put his thumb on the scale and clear the field. But even if he does that (and he's threatening to), the Democratic candidate, Dr. Annie Andrews, would be handed an excellent talking point — something like "First, Republicans try to pick their voters by gerrymandering. Now, they're trying to pick South Carolina's possible next Senator. Dictator Donald is denying you a choice." (Team Andrews, please wordsmith it.)

Speaking of Dr. Andrews, today would be an excellent day to send her a campaign contribution. Do it for Lindsey! We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: This Lindsey Laff is being shared on social media and is AI-generated. As for the newspaper... well, IYKYK. We cats PURR.)

Time For Some Serious Bunny Butt

By Zamboni

The "sudden passing" of Lady Lindsey Graham calls for some down-the-rabbit-hole time, folks. Get ready.

For all his (many) faults, Graham was a firm supporter of Ukraine, and often served as the designated hoser-down on Benedict Donald's love for Putin (and contempt for Zelenskyy). In fact, he had just gotten back from Ukraine yesterday — Margaret Brennan of CBS reports that she spoke to him on Friday before he left Kyiv.

"He was excited to share the news that the Trump White House had finally given him the green light for Congress to move his long-sought bill to put significant financial penalties on Russia by punishing buyers of Russian oil," Brennan said. Hmmm... that doesn't sound like something Vlad would like, does it?

Now, check out this tweet by Sir William Browder, author of the Magnitsky Act.

"Not to be a conspiracy theorist," he said, "but Lindsey Graham was the leading driver of the devastating sanctions bill against Russia... he had just returned from Ukraine, where it's not unknown for Russian agents to operate. Russians are expert at administration of poisons that look like heart attacks. All tests should be done immediately to rule out foul play. I've seen enough Russian-related suspicious deaths to know this is the only course of action."

Oh, Bill, do please indulge in conspiracies. We're already awash in them with Mitch McConnell. (And here's the kicker: If Putin decided to off Lindsey, that means Benedict Donald knew. Prove us wrong.)

With Lindsey, as with Mitch, social media is the place to be for ghoulish grins today. MAGA might be appalled, but their behavior is hardly exemplary (see: Trump's tweet on the death of Robert Mueller), and besides, it's so much fun to mock the newly deceased when it's someone like Graham. As the old saying goes, the dead should make it harder for us to speak ill of them. Stay tuned for our comments on the South Carolina Senate race. In the meantime, we cats PURR.

Mitch, Still Missing

By Baxter

It's been a month, and still no explanation from Mitch McConnell's Senate office or from Senate Republicans about his current medical condition and his prolonged absence from Capitol Hill. And since we have a yawning vacuum, people (especially online) have rushed to fill it. This is no way to run a railroad.

We couldn't care less about Mitch McConnell, but we do care about transparency. Is this a dry run for the day that Benedict Donald checks out? Surely this White House would never, ever, be honest with the American people if Trump keeled over one night. We cats HISS.

(IMAGE: Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Tidbits And Cat Treats: Mitch, Est-il Mort? Edition

By Sniffles

It's been a really weird week, but there's much to feel positive about (despite what the MSM may be feeding you). Here are a few reasons why we cats are feeling optimistic in the wilting summer weather.

Despite his threats to wait until 5 PM on Monday, Graham Platner has formally withdrawn from the Maine Senate race today. For those of us used to a measure of graciousness from politicians (and yes, we realize that was a long time ago, or, at least, prior to Trump), this was a breath-exhale moment. The last thing we needed was for Platner to act like an entitled white Bernie Bro, and we're glad he didn't.

So the good Democrats of Maine can get on with nominating a new candidate to run against Susan Collins. As long as the special convention doesn't turn out to be a bloodbath, we cats think this is a good thing. It can only help gin up media coverage and enthusiasm — and of course we know now that Team Collins is disappointed (or is that "concerned"?) that they won't have the checkered Platner to run against.

The Cook Political Report updated its Governor Ratings to label four currently held GOP-held seats — Ohio, Nevada, Georgia, and Iowa — as toss-ups. (Of the four, Fox News polling has Keisha Lance Bottoms leading 52-47 in Georgia, Rob Sand leading 53-44 in Iowa, and Amy Acton leading Vivek Ramaswamy 50-49 in Ohio. The Cook ratings are subscriber-only, or we'd link to them, sorry about that.)

Meanwhile, Benedict Donald is refusing to sign the housing bill — allowing it to become law without his signature at midnight, and without any of the hoopla that Republicans had hoped would buy them good feelings with the voters come November. Sad!

The Gordie Howe Bridge between Detroit and Windsor is set to finally open July 27, after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney — the newly acknowledged leader of the free world by no less than The Wall Street Journal — got Team Trump to agree to a deal on toll revenues. Wow, folks, this is a really beautiful bridge (see above).

Finally, OMG, L'Affaire Mitch. Est-ce-qu'il est mort, ou vivant?

Nobody seems to know. What we can report per our research is that according to DC law, the next of kin (or designated surrogate) does not have to be physically present at the bedside to direct that life support be withdrawn. However, a witness must be there with the healthcare provider when the direction is given. So, Elaine Chao's presence is not required, but a witness's is? Film at eleven.

Not much is certain right now, except for this: 1) McConnell's staff is stonewalling. 2) Senate Republicans who say they've talked to Mitch are lying. 3) The EMT team rolled him into the ambulance with "no urgency." Live your life in such a way that all this doesn't happen to you, and that people don't make fun of you when it does. We cats HISS.

The View From The Other Side

"Susan Collins's fight to hold onto her seat just got messier.

"Republicans had welcomed Graham Platner as a foil to Collins, who is trying to win a sixth Senate term in a state that voted for Kamala Harris in 2024. But now, while Maine Democrats prepare for an intense two-week sprint to replace Platner, Collins's team will have to start from scratch in their strategy against a new nominee — who may not be known until close to the party's July 27 deadline to declare one.

"And according to a person familiar with the campaign's thinking, Collins's team had viewed Platner as a uniquely vulnerable opponent whose personal controversies could help offset a big challenge in 2026: running as a Republican in the era of President Donald Trump.

"Polling published in late June showed Collins and Platner in an extremely close race.

"'She can certainly win, but they didn’t want to change candidates,' the person familiar with the campaign's thinking said. 'The stuff we already knew about Platner was going to propel Collins to overcome the Trump anchor. Now it’s going to be a Democrat with a cleaner record, presumably.'"

—POLITICO, July 9, 2026

Time To Show Maine Some Love

Graham Platner has (finally) dropped out of the Maine Senate race.

Feeling relief mixed with rage? Here's how you can send Platner a message: Make a contribution to the Maine Democratic Party. They'll be holding a special nominating convention over the next couple of weeks and could use the support. Click here. We cats PURR.

PS: While you're there, you can also sign up for the Muskie Lobster Bake on July 19! We cats PURR again.

L'Affaire Platner: Red Cards All Around

By Hubie and Bertie

What a long time ago early June seems. Back then, as Mainers were going to the polls in the Democratic primary for Senate, we cats speculated that if we were in line to vote, we'd most likely support Graham Platner. He seemed like the candidate with the best chance to beat Susan Collins, which we have to do to win the Senate.

All we can say now is, thank goodness we live and vote in New York. Ugh. Mainers, you have our condolences. And Mitch McConnell must be so mad that he's dead and missing all this. (Yeah, he's dead.)

But back to Platner. There's plenty of blame to go around, and most of it is Inside Baseball — the kind of stuff that party people argue and point fingers about. Chuck Schumer did not recruit Platner to run, but he did throw his weight behind a 77-year-old soon-to-be-former Governor for the seat when the vibe of 2026 was clearly skewing younger and non-establishment. A truly tone-deaf move.

At the same time, though, Bernie Sanders has to take responsibility for elevating Platner as a pushback against Mills. Platner, Sanders said last summer, is "a Mainer through and through, and he is building a movement strong enough to take on the oligarchy," blah, blah, blah. (Ye gods, lefties — please find a different word. Most voters don't know what an oligarchy is.)

This hamfisted own goal by Schumer and Sanders is doubly unforgivable when you review the list of possible candidates to replace Platner. They all seem credible and acceptable: Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, former Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav Shah, and former state Senate President Troy Jackson. With folks like that around and available, how did we end up in this mess?

Never mind, we know how. Meanwhile, people are getting impatient as the clock ticks down to 5 PM on July 13. Platner needs to stop dilly-dallying — Maine Democrats have a candidate to pick, and we have an election to win. We cats HISS. 

(IMAGE: Nick Anderson, Tribune Content Agency)

Well, All Right / Okay / You Win / We're In Love With You

 

The Mamdani Administration just budgeted $750,000 for New York City's first-ever pet food pantry — and another $750,000 for affordable spay and neuter services. Nicely done, Your Honor! We cats PURR.

Maybe We Want Hercule Poirot To Win

By Miss Kubelik

We cats spent the last 10 days in Montreàl, and vis-à-vis the World Cup, it was an interesting experience. Montreàl said "non" to being a host city, and therefore escaped being fleeced by the ever-corrupt organization known as FIFA. But there was still a lot of buzz around the games, and we had to be careful about choosing restaurants since so many either had screens, or set up screens to watch.

No worries. We didn't even have a problem when Morocco fans turned out onto the sidewalks to dance and celebrate after their team beat Canada. (Even though, ugh, too bad.) The city was alive with small demonstrations like that, and with cars flying flags of Argentina, Colombia, Norway, and everything in between.

We figured we'd pay attention until we returned to the US. After all, watching the matches in Canada meant that we saw them on TSN, RDS or CTV, so we weren't putting money in Fox's pocket. Now that we're back in the US, something else is on our TV. We'll track the World Cup through other venues, thank you.

But we still heard about Benedict Donald getting FIFA to reverse the red card on US star player Folarin Balogun so he can play against Belgium tomorrow. Is there any more proof that FIFA is corrupt? Nah.

Aside from the outrage from the rest of the world, two thoughts here:

If Balogun had any integrity, he would say, thank you, but I received the red card, and I will sit this one out.

Two, does Donald realize that Balogun is a so-called anchor baby? He was born in Brooklyn to immigrant parents from Nigeria — just the kind of person that Trump, Stephen Miller, and one-third of the Supreme Court would like to outlaw and deport. It all makes us sick, and ready to root for the Belgians tomorrow. We cats HISS.

So Much Is Different. So Little Is Different.

When historians write about Trump 2.0, this image will take a prominent place in the narrative. It ranks right up there with Rosa Parks getting fingerprinted, MLK at the Lincoln Memorial, and the shooting of James Meredith on the 1966 March Against Fear. But maybe Rosa Parks most of all. We cats salute whoever this woman is, and we PURR.

(PHOTO: Cheney Orr @orr_photo)

"They Saw New York City. They Saw America."

By Zamboni

Since our previous post about the bigots who own A Taste of Italy in Latham, we've learned that the restaurant reopened after 24 hours. Well! So much for "until further notice."

But on this conflicted Fourth of July, let's savor this photo of construction worker Anthony Soraci instead.

Grandson of Italian immigrants, as Sen. Amy Klobuchar ID'd him in her tweet, Soraci is leaning in to kiss the Statue of Liberty during restoration work on her back in 1984.

So, yeah, 40+ years ago. Let's hope that Trump giving people permission to be their worst selves will not, in the end, erase images like this. Because this is what America 250 is all about. We cats PURR.

E Pluribus Not Unum

By Baxter

A Muslim family visiting the New York Capital Region is holding a funeral today for their seven-year-old son who drowned in a neighbor's pool. The boy's body wasn't found for a couple of days, but in the meantime, hundreds of people from the area dropped their holiday-week plans and helped search for him — a true caring community in action.

Except, as you might expect, in this Time of Trump, somebody had to be an asshole.

"Let's not forget if that boy lived in a Muslim country his Muslim family would have killed him a long time ago," one owner of the Latham restaurant A Taste of Italy wrote on her business account. She continued by calling Islam "a horrific fake religion" and a "terrorist organization," and said, "No Muslim should be in any place of Authority in America." (Trumpy capitalization hers.)

Disgusting. But the good news is that protesters showed up after the owner's comments went viral, creating such a brouhaha that the restaurant had to close its doors "until further notice," the other owner stated. "In no way, shape or form am I prejudiced against Muslims, Blacks, gays or any of that stuff," he bleated. ("Stuff"?)

You'll also be unsurprised that A Taste of Italy's owners, who don't deserve to be named, have turned out to be sales-tax scofflaws who owe the state of New York $366,000 and who have been in hot water for racist, homophobic and other trashy online comments in the past. They were planning to open another Italian restaurant in Albany next week, but oops! — maybe that won't happen now.

Mr. Rogers famously said that when upsetting things happen, look for the helpers. We should all focus on the goodness of the neighbors who joined the search and try not to think about the people who, during a week that's supposed to celebrate the goodness of America, jumped at the opportunity to milk a seven-year-old's death for hate. Let's hope that A Taste of Italy has to shut its doors forever. We cats HISS.

(PHOTO: The Times-Union)

Bonne Fete Du Canada

Fed up with Trump's endless grifting and unseemly appropriation of America's 250th? Take a moment to appreciate our Neighbors to the North, who are celebrating 159 years of Confederation. They're looking awfully sane compared to how things are going for us these days. Happy Canada Day! We cats PURR.

Very Red, Hot, And Blue From Randy Rainbow (Thanks, Cole)

 

Benedict Donald thinks his second act means Anything Goes — he can trash monuments and memorials, the rule of law, and the Constitution in equal measure. But Randy Rainbow has a delightful, delicious, delectable, delirious, de-lovely response. We cats PURR.

A Hot Take On July 4

By Sniffles

We're about to observe the 250th anniversary of the American colonies' Declaration of Independence from England, but we might have to admit that sometimes the British have a good idea or two. As in, if you have a King, maybe celebrate his birthday when the weather is good.

Charles III, for example, just presided over that grand spectacle, the Trooping of the Colour, as his mum did before him. Elizabeth II was actually born in April, a month that can be unreliable and squally, and Charles made his first appearance in dreary late November. June can more easily promise sunshine and warmth.

Conversely, if you want cooler temperatures, perhaps it would be better for some national observances to move to earlier or later in the year — rather than in, say, early July when everything is beastly hot.

Especially this year. Thanks to a summer supercharged by climate change and a strong El Niño, North America and Europe are baking in unbearable heat waves this week. But we're stuck with the fact that the founders signed the Declaration on the Fourth. So even if Benedict Donald's offensive "Freedom 250 state fair" was appealing, well-managed, and in good taste, 105-degree temperatures in DC will keep the already-sparse crowds down even more. Sad!

Here's a suggestion for when sane people return to power in Washington: Global warming ain't going away. Let's follow the example of the Britons, and move our Independence Day celebrations to a different, potentially more temperate, date. In fact, why not center them around the Constitution instead? We could mark the anniversary of its framing (September 17, 1787) or the day it took effect (March 4, 1789).

After all, since Trump has been violating the damn thing every day since he got back into office, our poor, abused Supreme Law of the Land could maybe use a little love. Just a thought. We cats PURR.

Don't Tell Donald

 

Who had a bigger crowd this weekend? The Montreal Alouettes in their game tonight against Ottawa? Or Benedict Donald's mishap-laden "Great State Fair" in Washington? You be the judge! We cats PURR.

A Bad Case Of Gas

By Hubie and Bertie

Another not-so-stellar week for Benedict Donald and his Nazi storm troopers, despite multiple Supreme Court decisions in their favor. In the lower courts, they keep losing and losing: either in voting-rights suits or, amazingly, in one Jeffrey-Epstein-related suit that promises a lot of good grins going forward. And of course the algae in the reflecting pool is still going strong, not that anyone attending the lackluster "Freedom 250" events on the Mall could tell. (Fencing and tarp, ya know.)

And speaking of tarp, the Trumpsters have been ordered to explain why it's still up at the Kennedy Center. What will they say? "Because, Your Honor, our client is a whiny man baby"? There can't be any other reason. It's not as if Donald's name is still up and crossed off. It's not there.

And if you can tell us what, exactly, is going on with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, we'll shake your hand and give you a Daniel Webster cigar. In short, Trumpian chaos continues to reign, and we haven't even mentioned the Republican-controlled Congress yet. What a mess.

To keep himself busy, Donald is apparently fretting about gas prices. Not that he cares they're doing to your pocketbook, but maybe because he recognizes how much trouble he and the GOP will be in this fall because of them. The price of crude oil declined, he bleats — why don't prices at the pump go down faster? As numerous experts have explained, it doesn't necessarily work that way.

Donald Trump, the champion of the resentful white working class, hasn't a clue about how regular people live. Has he ever filled a gas tank in his life? Shopped for groceries? Taken a suit to the dry cleaner? Bought anything at Home Depot? The answer is no.

Kind of takes you back to the days of George H.W. Bush's amazement at a supermarket scanner, doesn't it? Republicans have always been disconnected from everyday reality. We cats HISS.

Schadenfreude In NY-21

By Miss Kubelik

We cats no longer live in New York's 21st Congressional District, thank goodness. We were recently redistricted in NY-20, but the border between being represented by MAGAt Elise "Elsie" Stefanik and Democrat Paul Tonko is maybe a block away. If someone opens a can of tuna in a house in the 21st, we hear it.

Which means that we drive around NY-21 a lot. Before yesterday's primary, we couldn't help noticing the dearth of yard signs for Republican Congressional candidate Robert Smullen — among many, many (ugly) ones at the side of the road for his Trump-endorsed opponent, Anthony Constantino.

 This was strange. Smullen was officially endorsed by the New York Republican Party (hi, Ed Cox!). Surely that meant he had the full weight of county parties' organizing muscle behind him... right?

Another oddity: Constantino supporters far outnumbered Smullen stans at a candidates' forum in Saratoga Springs last week. Although bad behavior by both Constantino and his fans caused the event to spiral into chaos (see above), Smullen's lack of visibility in the crowd was campaign malpractice. If you can't turn your people out to a candidate Q&A, you won't be able to turn them out on Election Day.

Spoiler: He didn't. Smullen was crushed by Constantino by 19 points.

We cats are enjoying this very much. Smullen will be listed on the Conservative Party line on the November ballot, and now he has to figure out if he's going to stay there and fight, or throw in the towel to a guy whose hand he refused to shake after a debate in May. And while party leaders in the 21st district are grudgingly endorsing Constantino (even though he didn't meet with many of them during the primary to ask for their support), the state GOP has a conundrum on its hands — thanks to New York's weird multi-party ballot and Benedict Donald throwing a monkey wrench into everything.

(And what will "Elsie" do? Will she finally get off her ass the fence and endorse Constantino? All she's done so far is tweet an anodyne statement, saying the primary was a "hard-fought election and the voters have spoken loudly." How bold! How trenchant!)

Take heart, New York Republicans. You're not the only ones suffering from Trump wreaking havoc in your party. Look what happened on Capitol Hill today: a canceled bill signing, a shouting match at lunch. The GOP is such a bunch of happy campers right now. We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Alexander MacDougall, The Times-Union)

"There May Be Trouble Ahead"

By Zamboni

We all know by now that Benedict Donald is a malignant narcissist, right? Heck, way back in 2019, someone who knew him well wrote a whole article on it. "Trump's ingrained and extreme behavioral characteristics make it impossible for him to carry out the duties of the presidency in the way the Constitution requires," said George Conway.

Since then, things have gotten worse — much worse. Donald's tendencies are showing themselves more and more, past his handlers' ability to contain. The most recent ones are almost too numerous to list. But check out this description and see if it doesn't fit Trump to a tee:

"Malignant narcissists are driven by an underlying sense of profound inadequacy, shame, and a desperate need to avoid being perceived as weak. Because their ego is entirely reliant on maintaining an illusion of superiority, they fear humiliation above all else."

Why? "Beneath their grandiose and often ruthless exterior lies a deeply insecure core. To compensate for their fragile self-worth, they utilize control and dominance. Humiliation strips away the power and leverage they use to manipulate others."

Wow. We can all marvel at how millions of people could look at someone like Trump and say, yeah, I want that guy in the Oval Office instead of the smart Black lady. (Or the smart white lady eight years ago.) But the bit about humiliation is worth worrying about. Because Donald has had a lot of it lately. Reflecting pool, anyone?

And tonight, there's more: The Senate has passed the Iran War Powers Act, 50 to 48. (Cassidy, Collins, Murkowski, and Paul voted "yes." McConnell and McCormick were absent.) With the House having passed it already, it heads to Trump's desk. He'll veto it, of course — reminding zillions of midterm voters how much they hate the stupid war and what it's done to their pocketbooks. Tomorrow's Senate luncheon should be mighty interesting, yes? (Trump is planning to attend.) In the meantime, though, his behavior is concerning: A cornered narcissist is capable of just about anything. We cats HISS.

(IMAGE: The reflecting pool at the Obama Presidential Center, Chicago. This is how you do it.)

Destined For Memedom

By Baxter

What was the best thing about the Obama Presidential Center opening? That it birthed a new Barack-and-Hillary meme?

Well, maybe it wasn't the best thing — it was a wonderful, uplifting event — but it's still pretty darn good. In fact, the entire last week has been a veritable meme factory, what with Benedict Donald stinking up the joint at the G7, his Iran MOU getting trashed left and right, and the ongoing disaster at the Reflecting Pool. Quick: Any guesses as to whether the Strait of Hormuz is open right now? Don't ask JD Vance — he's busy getting ignored by the Iranian delegation in Switzerland.

That's the second time a US leader has appeared isolated in a week. Here are two viral shots of Trump looking forlorn while the G7 leaders talk animatedly with each other (i.e., with anybody but him).

Since we're mostly on social media for the memes and grins, we're looking forward to seeing what all the creative people out in Blueskyland do with these two gems. But there's a sober side to all this, too: Getting frozen out/laughed at/disrespected is what Trump and Vance richly deserve, but it's obviously terrible for the country, and potentially disastrous for the world.

We don't blame our allies. We don't even blame the Iranians. We just hope that America can survive until we kick these knaves and fools out of office. Paws crossed. We cats HISS and PURR at the same time.

Thought For The Day: Juneteenth Gives Us All An Opportunity To Pause And Learn

 
"Join me on the journey to freedom," says the Harriet Tubman mural in Cambridge, Maryland. You can learn more about the Harriet Tubman Underground Railway here. We cats PURR.

The Event In Chicago Today Felt Like The *Real* Celebration Of America 250

And here's a wickedly good cartoon to go along with it. We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

De Adder Du Jour (Plus Some Simpletons, Fools, And Lunatics)

By Sniffles

The Reflecting Pool's icky algae seems symbolic of the mess the next President will have to clean up after Trump/Vance and their storm troopers leave office. (Yes, we assume a Democrat wins next time.)

This "mop-up-after-Republican-disasters" phenomenon isn't just a case of FDR having to save the country from Herbert Hoover's Depression-era fecklessness. It happens all the time. Bill Clinton had to come in and fix the lousy economy that George H.W. Bush left behind. Later, Barack Obama inherited a financial meltdown from Bush's smirky son that made Daddy's fiasco pale in comparison. Then Joe Biden had to pull us all out of the COVID pandemic that Benedict Donald screwed up so royally.

But now, things are even worse. President Ossoff will have a real clusterf*ck on his hands when he takes over, won't he? On top of all the terrible things Trump has done, his Iran disaster will haunt our foreign policy and standing in the world for decades. And our allies won't forgive and forget easily — if ever.

Here's just one example from today's Globe & Mail (Canada) — "Trump's Iran Deal Is a National Humiliation":

"If you're looking for the silver lining [in the deal], the 'yes, but,' you can stop looking. This is Trump, after all. He is a simpleton, surrounded by fools and lunatics. They had no idea of what they were getting into with this war, no plan to prosecute it, and no clue as to what would come after. A few days' bombing, a decapitated leadership, and they'd leave everyone else to clean up the mess."

Good grief. It looks like Ossoff will need to take a page from Obama's book and pick a superstar to serve as Secretary of State — somebody who can speak with absolute authority and assuage lots of bad feelings abroad — while he attends to things at home. And we know the perfect person for the job. Brush up your résumé, former Vice President Kamala Harris, your country will need you. We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Michael de Adder, deadder.net)

"Contractions Are Painful But They Are Necessary For New Birth"

We don't know about you, but we're rushing out to buy Raphael Warnock's book. Thank you, Senator Reverend! We cats PURR.

Work Of Art

 

Njideka Akunyili Crosby's official portrait of Barack and Michelle Obama was unveiled at the Obama Presidential Center yesterday, and — coming on the same day as that tacky event at the White House — it was a cleansing bit of good news. We cats like the painting very much. It's especially interesting to us that its dominant figure is not the President but the First Lady — a brilliant, accomplished, commanding, beautiful Black woman. Take that, Josh Hokit. We cats PURR.

Oh, Lordy, As They Say

By Hubie and Bertie

How many individual scandals can you roll into one big, fat, ugly, stinky, scary scandal? By our count, it's three.

The "Somebody In The White House Gave Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan Recordings from the Situation Room" Scandal — It was bad enough that Regime Change authors Haberman and Swan had a blow-by-blow of the Sit Room Epstein confab in the first place. But tapes? OMG. "Such a taped leak would be a shocking breach of one of the most secure settings on Earth," Axios reports. "Independent recording devices in the Situation Room are forbidden."

The "Republicans Will Excuse Serious Breaches in National Security As Long As They're the Ones Doing It" Scandal — That scrambling sound you hear is Lindsey Graham frantically trying to concoct a defense of the indefensible that he can then parrot on TV and social media.

The "My Book Is More Important Than Your Right to Know" Scandal — Reporters like Haberman and Swan sitting on alarmingly massive scoops just so they can write and sell books months later is everything (well, nearly everything) that's wrong with journalism today.

Finally, not a scandal, but a haunting refrain: Can you imagine the reaction if something like this happened under Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, or Joe Biden? Every one if them would be impeached, tarred and feathered, drawn and quartered, and then shot. But Donald and the Trumpsters? Don't hold your breath. We cats HISS.

Return To Normalcy

 

We realize that to erase the stain of Donald going forward, we will have to endure all sorts of last-minute, emergency-stay, please-don't shenanigans — but, if we persevere, we will succeed. We cats PURR.

(UPDATE, June 14: Looks like the curtain has not fallen. In fact, it looks pretty permanent. Apparently Donald doesn't want anyone to see that his name is no longer there. What a child. We cats HISS.)

No Kings, Just Presidents

This is just a reminder that tomorrow, if you're on social media, you need to post something complimentary about this man, accompanied by a stunning photo (like this one). Because it will drive You-Know-Who crazy. Thank you for your attention to this matter! We cats PURR.

Oy!

By Miss Kubelik

We cats don't make it there very often because it's so popular (and crowded), but we enjoy breakfast at Arthur's Nosh Bar in the historic St.-Henri neighborhood of Montréal. It's got great comfort food — the kind your bubbe would serve with love. But now Arthurs in the crosshairs of the Quebec language police.

If you look closely at the photo above, you'll see "Nosh Bar" stenciled on its window. Big no-no and a grave threat to the French language, apparently. This is a pain in the ass for the owners, who have been in business for 10 years and who have taken the trouble to trademark the name. They're trying to figure out a work-around.

There's no solving the idiocy of the current provincial government and the majority party, the Coalition Avenir du Quebec, but we have a possible solution for Arthurs. The French word for "nosh" (at least, according to our iPad translator, LOL) is "bouffe." If they just stencil in "Bouffe Bar" on the window below "Nosh Bar," they can maybe satisfy the gendarmes and enjoy some alliteration at the same time.

It's all so ridiculous. We look forward to the CAQ getting booted out of power in this fall's election. Meanwhile, we cats HISS.