Politics

A hilarious video explaining how not to look like a Not-So nice guy if you're giving a speech to many people!

Archived

[...]

Mexico refused a U.S. military plane access to its airspace when flying migrants to Guatemala. And as American Immigration Council senior fellow Aaron Reichlin-Melnick noted, another Central American country appears to have also not allowed the United States to fly over its airspace, given the flight's unusually circuitous route.

"This deportation flight had to go all the way around the Yucatan first, and then it went through Costa Rica, suggesting Honduras may also have denied permission," Reichlin-Melnick posted to Bluesky. He observed that countries declining to accommodate the U.S. by granting it access to its airspace could be a result of them perceiving his use of military C-130 planes "as an insult."

As Virginia Commonwealth University associate political science professor Michael Paarlberg wrote [...], carrying out deportations requires both the country deporting migrants and the country accepting them to coordinate.

[...]

"It should be obvious, but doesn’t seem widely understood that the US can’t unilaterally deport people," Paarlberg explained. "This gives those countries a degree of leverage over the US if they simply refuse, as Mexico just did."

[...]

TikTok earmuffs and MAGA hats adorned partygoers at Sunday's inauguration celebration for the incoming President Donald Trump and the video-sharing platform he once tried to ban.

Called the Power 30 Awards, the party occurred hours after TikTok began restoring services, and honored social media influencers who had helped most with Trump's re-election.

At the party, TikTok influencers recorded moments on small cameras and mingled over an open bar at Sax Restaurant and Lounge in downtown Washington. Free swag flowed: TikTok beanies, shot glasses and Trump merchandise.

The party was hosted by Raquel Debono, known for organizing "Make America Hot Again" conservative dating events, and CJ Pearson, co-chair of the Republican National Committee Youth Advisory Council.

"2024 was the first influencer election," Pearson told Reuters at the party. "When we look at the mandate that President Trump was given, it was because of young voters, and young voters were reached uniquely because of TikTok."

[...]

We've all seen the clip of the last few grafs of Budde's speech, but this is the full text, and it's outstanding. This is the sort of rational, reasoned discourse so crucial to an enlightened society. I am not religious but stand in awe of the quality of her persuasive prose.

She would have made quite the columnist had she decided not to help others even more broadly.

President Donald Trump on Friday said he plans to take executive action to overhaul — or possibly end — the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, slamming the agency for its response to historic floods in North Carolina.

In my recently published book, Dignity Not Debt, I argue that when it comes to debt, policymakers should turn away from the free-market framework and toward the principle of human dignity. The free market approach, which is grounded in an ideal of efficiency, has been effective in large part because it purports to offer a clear and universal north star to guide debt policy. Therefore, if we are to replace it, we must choose a new guiding principle that is equally clear and universally understood. The principle of human dignity is the best candidate because it captures our shared understanding that everyone possesses an inherent dignity which others must respect. At its core, the principle of human dignity recognizes the intrinsic worth of every person. A foundational concept in human rights law, the principle is already deployed around the globe and codified in dozens of human rights instruments. It carries substantive human rights obligations, including rights to privacy and due process, rights to be free from discrimination, and rights to housing, education, and water, among others.

What would America’s household debt landscape look like with human dignity as our north star? How would we decide what credit to encourage and what to discourage or abolish? I offer three tenets, based on the overarching principle of human dignity, that are applicable to debt policy. These tenets serve as a foundation for a new taxonomy that reflects the reality of household debt and provides policymakers with tools for crafting just and sensible debt policy. First, respect for human dignity requires that each person be able to meet their needs and enjoy life without degradation and fear. Second, respect for human dignity requires that no person be treated as a means to another’s end. Third, respect for human dignity requires true equality—not just equal treatment, but a redistribution of power, wealth, and resources to ensure equal dignity for all.

Archived

Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde delivered a sermon calling for mercy on people who are scared. The new president was in the audience.

Here’s what she said:

“Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put their trust in you, and as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families — some who fear for their lives. The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals — they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, gurdwara, and temples.

I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear their parents will be taken away, and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land. May God grant us the strength and courage to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love, and walk humbly with each other and our God, for the good of all people — the good of all people in this nation and the world. Amen.”

Adm. Linda Fagan is the first top military officer to be terminated under the new administration.

Once again, Aileen Cannon demonstrates her fealty to Trump.