By blocking the release of the Epstein files, President Donald Trump is leading a desperate effort to keep secret the facts of his involvement with convicted sexual predators Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Mike Johnson has proclaimed “calling the President of the United States a pedophile is highly disrespectful and offensive.”
Donald Trump has been found liable for sexual assault by multiple courts. He has been credibly accused of raping children. It is neither disrespectful nor offensive to challenge corrupt practices of any elected official.
Failure to demand the release of the Epstein files identifies those Republicans who are willing to ignore the damage done to the children who were raped to protect the pedophiles who raped them—i.e. Mike Johnson, the devious Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Thanks for the State of the Press in the Cloudy View of Pete Hegseth. I heard the hogwash he displayed to the Military Brass when he (blessed by DJT, of course) summoned them all to Washington for a "meeting", the purpose of which was unclear, but was laughable in the view if this everyday U.S. Citizen who has been around long enough to have heard about the WAR in Korea. We even had a T.V. by then!
Hegseth has no clout for spewing his "ideas" regarding the physical fitness of Generals or Admirals or to decide on his own that women in the Service are not able to serve alongside of men in service as they have been doing for Decades.
When Hegseth can prove he has been "UN-DRUNK" and not using other "Drugs" for an extended period, and has worked on his mental issues (whatever they are that takes him to alcohol!) THEN, maybe, those of us who see him as a Drunk, anti-women, loud mouth (and typical "Loud Mouth stumbling in his Military "Position", with Personal Issues!
Donald "The Groin Grabber" Trump, and Pete "Pass the Booze Bottle" Hegseth, and J.D. "Junkyard Dog" Vance, and Pam "Whatever You Say" Bondi, and Kristi "The Puppy Killer" Noem, and Stephen "Yes, I'm a Jewish Nazi" Miller, and Tom "Where's My Paper Money Bag" Homan, and Kash "Flash Harry" Patel, and all of the Trump sycophants in Congress, especially Speaker Mike "What Shutdown?" Johnson, the American people are really, believe it or not, Tories. They are royalists. They are not Republicans. who believe in a republic as the best form of government. Democrats, Independents, and old school GOPers, are the REAL Republicans. (How crazy is that?) The MAGA faithful believe in the primacy of the King of the United States, that king being Donald "The Groin Grabber" Trump. Sadly, approximately 30% of the American electorate go along with that.
Why?
Well, that 30% of the electorate would rather sit back on their overstuffed couches, guzzle can after can of beer, and watch some sporting event on their 56" TV sets. The preferred sport is NFL football, where people can legally cheer on muscle bound men as they pound each other's heads into the ground, thereby giving each other CTE. That 30% of the electorate prefers to go through life partly or completely inebriated. They don't like making any value judgments, they only stand up to cheer on violence in sports, and, to them all, both men and women, there is no such thing as sexual abuse or rape. Men are entitled to satisfy their sexual urges, and good women accept those abuses and rapes as their Gawd given responsibility to make human life on Earth Blessed.
I know. How crazy can you get? The MAGA women are crazier than the MAGA men. But there you are.
What this means, bottom line, is that WE, the 70% of the electorate, must step up and accept the moral responsibilities that the MAGA faithful reject. We drink beer, too, but we don't become so inebriated that we permit crimes of all kinds, whether they be sexual offenses or blowing up boats in international waters, to be committed in our name.
RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES. STOP BOMBING BOATS IN THE CARIBBEAN. SUPPORT HEALTH INSURANCE FOR ALL CITIZENS. END ALL GLORIFICATION AND JUSTIFYING OF THE INSURRECTIONISTS OF JAN. 6, 2021.
Today Louisville Public Media published what appears to be the most complete coverage of the large Louisville No Kings rally. There were 2 others (smaller) in other parts of Metro Louisville.
Chances are there will be some violence before Trump and his cronies are removed from office. It will not be our side that initiates it though, but given MAGA’s track record and the continuing dehumanization of us By Trump on down-it is inevitable- stay strong, stay vigilant and stay peaceful
I don’t know if it is available. (Perhaps not approved for public scrutiny? /s) I saw it referred to as a 17 page document. Later it appeared memos were released to explain portions. Pieces of it were implemented over several months. A portion of an earlier one was indecipherable by someone like me who has never been in the Pentagon. It referred to restricted access for specific corridors, exits, entrances etc. I think in May, Hegseth started ‘rotating’ what had been permanent workspaces for certain media. The vagueness of some items on the list were part of the complaints.
It is telling when One America News Network is the only one A-OK with it. (Also the only media notified in advance of the raid on the Chicago apartment building & who knows what else. Voices and Votes, a group led by OANN correspondents Christina Bobb and Chanel Rion, contributed $605,000 to the Cyber Ninja circus in AZ. Bobb was the only correspondent allowed to report from the floor of the faux audit. Bobb who is/was also an attorney then went to work for DJT and was the attorney who signed the papers re: the diligent search that she knew nothing about find & returning all remaining relevant documents. https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-mar-a-lago-government-and-politics-ed2cd4299059e12ee5ec076b6011fc9e
Axios gives some examples of the ‘rules’ and objections by the media. But you’ve likely seen them.
By blocking the release of the Epstein files, President Donald Trump is leading a desperate effort to keep secret the facts of his involvement with convicted sexual predators Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Mike Johnson has proclaimed “calling the President of the United States a pedophile is highly disrespectful and offensive.”
Donald Trump has been found liable for sexual assault by multiple courts. He has been credibly accused of raping children. It is neither disrespectful nor offensive to challenge corrupt practices of any elected official.
Failure to demand the release of the Epstein files identifies those Republicans who are willing to ignore the damage done to the children who were raped to protect the pedophiles who raped them—i.e. Mike Johnson, the devious Speaker of the House of Representatives.
HOLLOW man
“Not happy,” you have a gift for monumental understatement.
Leavitt comes across as self-absorbed.
I had to laugh when I saw her on TV one day, not realizing a camera was still on her, primping her hair like a teenager.
Thanks for the State of the Press in the Cloudy View of Pete Hegseth. I heard the hogwash he displayed to the Military Brass when he (blessed by DJT, of course) summoned them all to Washington for a "meeting", the purpose of which was unclear, but was laughable in the view if this everyday U.S. Citizen who has been around long enough to have heard about the WAR in Korea. We even had a T.V. by then!
Hegseth has no clout for spewing his "ideas" regarding the physical fitness of Generals or Admirals or to decide on his own that women in the Service are not able to serve alongside of men in service as they have been doing for Decades.
When Hegseth can prove he has been "UN-DRUNK" and not using other "Drugs" for an extended period, and has worked on his mental issues (whatever they are that takes him to alcohol!) THEN, maybe, those of us who see him as a Drunk, anti-women, loud mouth (and typical "Loud Mouth stumbling in his Military "Position", with Personal Issues!
Thank you, Dan.
THE Orange turd doesn’t look long for this world…. He won’t make it to 3 years let alone another 4 years! Fkn POS!!
Thank you Dan for helping to prove that the Real Voice of America is spoken by our Pro-Democracy citizens!
Donald "The Groin Grabber" Trump, and Pete "Pass the Booze Bottle" Hegseth, and J.D. "Junkyard Dog" Vance, and Pam "Whatever You Say" Bondi, and Kristi "The Puppy Killer" Noem, and Stephen "Yes, I'm a Jewish Nazi" Miller, and Tom "Where's My Paper Money Bag" Homan, and Kash "Flash Harry" Patel, and all of the Trump sycophants in Congress, especially Speaker Mike "What Shutdown?" Johnson, the American people are really, believe it or not, Tories. They are royalists. They are not Republicans. who believe in a republic as the best form of government. Democrats, Independents, and old school GOPers, are the REAL Republicans. (How crazy is that?) The MAGA faithful believe in the primacy of the King of the United States, that king being Donald "The Groin Grabber" Trump. Sadly, approximately 30% of the American electorate go along with that.
Why?
Well, that 30% of the electorate would rather sit back on their overstuffed couches, guzzle can after can of beer, and watch some sporting event on their 56" TV sets. The preferred sport is NFL football, where people can legally cheer on muscle bound men as they pound each other's heads into the ground, thereby giving each other CTE. That 30% of the electorate prefers to go through life partly or completely inebriated. They don't like making any value judgments, they only stand up to cheer on violence in sports, and, to them all, both men and women, there is no such thing as sexual abuse or rape. Men are entitled to satisfy their sexual urges, and good women accept those abuses and rapes as their Gawd given responsibility to make human life on Earth Blessed.
I know. How crazy can you get? The MAGA women are crazier than the MAGA men. But there you are.
What this means, bottom line, is that WE, the 70% of the electorate, must step up and accept the moral responsibilities that the MAGA faithful reject. We drink beer, too, but we don't become so inebriated that we permit crimes of all kinds, whether they be sexual offenses or blowing up boats in international waters, to be committed in our name.
RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES. STOP BOMBING BOATS IN THE CARIBBEAN. SUPPORT HEALTH INSURANCE FOR ALL CITIZENS. END ALL GLORIFICATION AND JUSTIFYING OF THE INSURRECTIONISTS OF JAN. 6, 2021.
AND VOTE!!!!!!!
America stood up on No Kings Day.
It was the republic’s desperate love song to itself.
In San Francisco, the fog had lifted from the hills like divine inspiration,
and rebellion smelled like espresso, sourdough, and tacos.
Here, the protests feel like a free rock concert.
Millions of Americans and like minded people across the globe showed up to protest this administration.
The No Kings demonstrations were Democracy’s hangover party.
And yes, because it’s San Francisco.
It was all very mellow with positive vibes and great posters.
There were all kinds of people joining together.
Families with strollers in the streets.
For no good reason, a few were completely bare,
wearing only a cap, sunglasses, and shoes.
The bizarre trinity of West Coast protest fashion.
Sunburned prophets of liberty, waving flags and sunscreen, everyone shouting No Kings!
Seriously, as if they thought our Founders had been waiting 250 years
for someone brave enough to show up in nothing but courage and SPF 50.
Because democracy isn’t a crown, race, or creed.
It’s a dance done in the street when the empire forgets its morals and that it’s mortal.
It’s a banana costume beside a flag, a drumbeat beside a cheer,
a naked stranger beside a cop who doesn’t make an arrest,
because somewhere deep down he remembers our bodies are not immoral.
Across the country, millions turned out.
A cosmic, ragtag spectacle of democracy,
sweating and singing and refusing to kneel before the new golden calf in the White House.
No crowns, no thrones, no orange messiahs.
Just people. Real people. Loud, imperfect, hilariously human people.
They called it a protest,
but it seemed more like an exorcism.
America is trying to purge the ghosts of fascism before they take hold too strongly.
While the regime attempted to gaslight the entire planet.
Speaking through clenched teeth, using words like fake crowds, and hate rallies.
While millions of their fellow citizens danced in the streets,
laughing as they remembered what freedom felt like.
State friendly talking heads shrieked that protesters were the pro-Hamas Antifa mob,
as if waving American flags in the streets was somehow un-American.
At least one governor deployed the National Guard, as he mugged for the cameras,
like a sheriff in a spaghetti western remake called Authoritarian Rodeo.
But nothing was burned. No stores were looted, no chaos unleashed.
Unless you count the chaos of joy.
Police from New York to San Diego reported zero protest related arrests.
The only thing being overthrown was despair.
In every city, the signs spoke in tongues,
cardboard sermons demanding truth, liberty,
and of course, the release of the Epstein files.
Lady Liberty herself showed up and got her day in public court.
It wasn’t chaos. It was harmonious.
A sweaty, absurd, irreverent revival.
The Republic stripped to its very essence,
and shouting to the heavens.
No crowns. No thrones. No kings.
Only us.
The mad and the free.
Still here. Still loud. Still beautiful.
Today Louisville Public Media published what appears to be the most complete coverage of the large Louisville No Kings rally. There were 2 others (smaller) in other parts of Metro Louisville.
https://www.lpm.org/news/2025-10-19/no-kings-draws-hundreds-to-downtown-louisville-for-peaceful-demonstration
Chances are there will be some violence before Trump and his cronies are removed from office. It will not be our side that initiates it though, but given MAGA’s track record and the continuing dehumanization of us By Trump on down-it is inevitable- stay strong, stay vigilant and stay peaceful
Mr. Rather, I am very glad you are still here and writing. Much love to you.
…and the stupid pouty face. What a ham!
Where can we read Hegeseth's list of demands for the press?
I don’t know if it is available. (Perhaps not approved for public scrutiny? /s) I saw it referred to as a 17 page document. Later it appeared memos were released to explain portions. Pieces of it were implemented over several months. A portion of an earlier one was indecipherable by someone like me who has never been in the Pentagon. It referred to restricted access for specific corridors, exits, entrances etc. I think in May, Hegseth started ‘rotating’ what had been permanent workspaces for certain media. The vagueness of some items on the list were part of the complaints.
It is telling when One America News Network is the only one A-OK with it. (Also the only media notified in advance of the raid on the Chicago apartment building & who knows what else. Voices and Votes, a group led by OANN correspondents Christina Bobb and Chanel Rion, contributed $605,000 to the Cyber Ninja circus in AZ. Bobb was the only correspondent allowed to report from the floor of the faux audit. Bobb who is/was also an attorney then went to work for DJT and was the attorney who signed the papers re: the diligent search that she knew nothing about find & returning all remaining relevant documents. https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-mar-a-lago-government-and-politics-ed2cd4299059e12ee5ec076b6011fc9e
Axios gives some examples of the ‘rules’ and objections by the media. But you’ve likely seen them.
https://www.axios.com/2025/10/16/pentagon-press-reporting-rules-restrictions-hegseth
Happy times! Thanks for all your columns and insight.