#john kelly

[myfairynuffstuff]

John Kelly (b.1965) - Dobell’s Cow - Aerial View. 1992. Oil on board.

[liberalsarecool]

Who thought after the WWII and Cold War, America would have to fight fascist Nazis again….

Thanks, Trump. 💩

[chrliekclly]

oh charlie kelly loose identity tied to emotions nd changing on a whim we're really in it now....

[oldsardens]

John Kelly - Dobell's Cow. 1992

[thunderstruck9]

John Kelly (Australian, 1965), Branding the Arts, 2003. Oil on canvas, 152.5 x 122.5 cm.

[porterdavis]

Yes, Donnie, 4-star general John Kelly (remember him? He was your chief of staff) confirmed in detail your slagging of veterans.

We see what you are.

[we-will-swallow-your-soul]

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dean Obeidallah at The Dean's Report:

In 2016, JD Vance not only called Donald Trump “reprehensible,” but raised alarm bells that Trump could be “America’s Hitler.” Vance was right on both counts—as Trump’s former chief of staff and retired four star United States Marine Corp General John Kelly made clear in two jaw-dropping interviews published this week.

Kelly raised two bright red flags that paint a dark and deeply disturbing picture for our nation if Trump were to return to office. First, there was Kelly’s comments to The Atlantic that Trump made it clear that, “I need the kind of generals that Hitler had.”   Kelly had in the past explained to Trump that in reality German generals “tried to kill Hitler three times and almost pulled it off.” But “this correction did not move Trump to reconsider his view: “No, no, no, they were totally loyal to him, the president responded.” Kelly confirmed that past conversation with Trump to The Atlantic in this new article. The Atlantic continued with this concerning passage, “Trump has responded incredulously when told that American military personnel swear an oath to the Constitution, not to the president.” That was backed up Kelly who told the NY Times in an article published Tuesday about Trump, “That was a big surprise to him that the generals were not loyal to the boss, in this case him.”

While Trump may not be well read in history, he instinctively understood that Hitler--after he became the chancellor of Germany in 1933--required the military swear an oath to him personally. As the US Holocaust Memorial Museum’s online encyclopedia explains, “The oath was no longer one of allegiance to the Constitution or its institutions, but one of binding loyalty to Hitler himself.” That oath--quoted below--demanded unconditional loyalty to Hitler: “I swear by God this holy oath, that I will render to Adolf Hitler, Führer of the German Reich and People, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, unconditional obedience, and that I am ready, as a brave soldier, to risk my life at any time for this oath.” The Holocaust Encyclopedia notes this “oath represented the beginning of a process of politicization, or Nazification, of the German military.” The result was, “The distinction between loyalty to the state and loyalty to Hitler—and the Nazi Party—swiftly eroded.”  That meant if you defied an order of Hitler, you were a traitor to the nation: “Refusal now represented a high crime against not only Germany, but also the Führer himself.” By 1935, the loyalty oath to Hitler was also mandated for civilian officials working in the German government. That meant like the military, the entire government workforce had to be loyal to Hitler above the constitution of Germany.

That’s exactly what Trump has always sought and would demand if he won this election.  As a reminder, Project 2025 contemplates a federal workforce loyal to Trump. Thus, if Trump wins, he and his allies would usher in the Trumpification of every aspect of our institutions by demanding absolute loyalty from military leaders to those working in the federal government. We know from Nazi history what that type of blind loyalty led to from carrying out a “blood purge” where German citizens viewed as Hitler’s political critics/rivals were arrested and murdered to the evils of The Holocaust. But Kelly was not done warning America. He told the NY Times something we all know but needs to be said by someone like Kelly: Trump not only rejects our Constitution and American values—but has embraced fascism. Kelly first put it this way about Trump, “He’s certainly the only president that has all but rejected what America is all about, and what makes America, America, in terms of our Constitution, in terms of our values, the way we look at everything, to include family and government.” Adding, “He’s certainly the only president that I know of, certainly in my lifetime, that was like that.” Then Kelly went further. Kelly noted that Trump “met the definition of a fascist, would govern like a dictator if allowed, and had no understanding of the Constitution or the concept of rule of law.”

As Kelly explained, “Well, looking at the definition of fascism: It’s a far-right authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy,” he said. Adding, “So certainly, in my experience, those are the kinds of things that he thinks would work better in terms of running America.” (This echoes the recent comments of Retired Gen. Mark A. Milley who warned that Trump is a “fascist to the core” and “the most dangerous person to this country.”)

Former Trump Chief of Staff John Kelly rightly warns that Donald Trump “met the definition of a fascist”. Kelly’s warning to the American people should serve as a reminder that voting for Kamala Harris is best for keeping America free.

See Also:

NBC News: Former White House chief of staff John Kelly says Trump praised Hitler while in office

The Week: Trump aims to be a fascist dictator, John Kelly says

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

[Amy Siskind]

* * * *

Harris/Walz campaign in overdrive!

October 23, 2024

Robert B. Hubbell

The Harris-Walz campaign is in overdrive. On Tuesday, Vice President Harris sat for interviews with NBC and Telemundo. Tim Walz condemned Trump's “open promise of corruption” by appointing Elon Musk to oversee federal regulations that apply to Musk’s companies. Former President Barack Obama and rap star Eminem rallied for Harris in Detroit, and Kamala Harris is headed to Texas to campaign for Colin Allred.

As shown in the clips below, the Walz, Obama, and Harris rallies are stepping up already high levels of enthusiasm as Trump drones on for hours in his stream of unconsciousness manner.

The NBC interview followed the typical “gotcha” style of questioning from Hallie Jackson, who asked about Joe Biden’s debate performance, polls showing voters’ concerns about the economy, and Harris’s decision not to highlight the historic nature of her campaign to be the first woman president. See The Independent, Four takeaways from Kamala Harris' NBC interview.

In the Telemundo interview, Kamala Harris focused on economic opportunity for Latino men:

I am a capitalist. I am a pragmatic capitalist. I believe that we need a new generation of leadership in America that actively works with the private sector to build up the new industries of America, to build up small business owners, to allow us to increase home ownership. I am very aware how it would affect Latino men. I know that Latino men often have a more difficult time having access to the big loans from the big banks because of relationships, because of things that are not necessarily grounded in their qualifications. So I’m focused on what we can do to bring more capital to community banks that will understand the community and being able to give those kinds of loans.

See NBC News, Harris says she's 'a pragmatic capitalist' in pitch to Latino voters.

At campaign rallies on Tuesday, Tim Walz has stepped up the aggressiveness of his attacks on Trump and his running mate—“Elon Musk.” Per Walz, Musk’s “bouncing around the stage” makes him look like a “dipsh*t”—a description that echoes the widespread mocking of Musk’s stage performance on social media. Walz also noted the “open corruption” of Musk’s funding of Trump's campaign while Trump promised to put Musk in charge of a government commission reviewing federal regulations that apply to Musk’s companies.

Tim Walz’s entire speech is here, Walz delivers campaign remarks with Barack Obama in Madison, Wis. And in this clip, Walz addresses the corruption of Musk’s dual role as a campaign funder and potential government oversight maven: Tim Walz calls Elon Musk Trump's running mate and condemns "open corruption".

Apart from the substance of Walz’s speech, it is clear that he has been assigned the role of aggressively attacking Trump, Vance, and Musk. That is good because it relieves some of the pressure from Kamala Harris, and creates content for television and social media ads. And Tim Walz is very good on offense!

The joint appearance by Barack Obama and Eminem also deserves your attention. The Eminem walk-on is here: Eminem campaigns for Kamala Harris. But no one is as good as Barack Obama. His entire Detroit speech is here, Barack Obama in Detroit. Watch the first minute to see Obama rap the opening lines from Eminem’s “Lose Yourself.”

Obama also directly attacked Trump while promoting Harris, saying:

The good news is Kamala Harris is ready for the job. This is a leader who has been fighting on behalf of people who need a voice. This is somebody who believes in the values of this country. [Trump claims he is tough.] That is not what real strength is — real strength is about working hard, showing up on the factory floor. . . . That is real strength and real strength is taking responsibility for your actions and telling the truth even when it's inconvenient, and helping people when they need it.

As Walz, Obama, and Eminem were turning up the intensity and enthusiasm, Trump was trying to drum up support among Latino voters by putting them to sleep in a two-hour speech. Rather than junk up this newsletter with an example of Trump's incomprehensible speech, see this example, linked in separate document.

As noted in the Washington Post, Trump's verbal mistakes and confusion are “more frequent . . . as he increases the pace of campaigning.” “More frequent” is code for “incessant.”

Trump's outreach to Latino voters comes as Jeff Goldberg writes in The Atlantic that Trump complained about the cost of a funeral for a female soldier murdered on a military base. See The Atlantic, Trump: ‘I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had’

Per Goldberg in The Atlantic, Trump reacted to the cost of the funeral as follows:

Trump became angry. “It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a f*cking Mexican!” He turned to his chief of staff, Mark Meadows, and issued an order: “Don’t pay it!” Later that day, he was still agitated. “Can you believe it?” he said, according to a witness. “F*cking people, trying to rip me off.”

Trump's spokesperson denied the report, as did Kash Patel. But Goldberg cites two people in the room as his source for the statement by Trump.

Also on Monday, Trump's Chief of Staff, former General John Kelly, described Trump as a fascist and said that Trump wants to be a dictator. See CNN Politics, Trump’s former chief of staff says he fits ‘fascist’ definition and prefers ‘dictator approach’.

Of course, to state the obvious (again), any of the above revelations would spell the end of the candidacy of any other presidential contender. The fact that the Republican Party continues to ignore the blaring warning signals is a sign that it no longer exists as a political party with an ideology or purpose. It is an empty husk that has been occupied by a parasite using the host for grifting and corruption.

The mystery that will provide full employment for generations of historians is why so many Americans willingly embraced the con and spread the hate that fuels Trump's campaign. For now, we should take confidence from the fact that Kamala Harris is running to promote freedom and prevent tyranny—while news anchors ask “gotcha” questions that no one cares about. Ah, well! It is up to us! It always is!

Watch Jess Piper’s interview with Tom Vilsack.

Jess Piper interviews Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture, about the Harris/Walz plan for rural America. See Jess Piper in The View from Rural Missouri, The Official Harris/Walz Plan for Rural America.

If you are working to motivate voters in rural America, this is a must-watch video that makes a compelling case for the Harris/Walz plan for rural America. I was shocked about the amount of information I did not know about how Harris/Walz would improve the lives of Americans in rural areas. Help spread the word to others while there is still time to move the needle.

The interview covers issues that affect rural America differently than urban areas, such as home ownership, land costs driving young adults away, school closures and mergers due to population declines, healthcare access, pheasant hunting and gun ownership, availability of childcare, volunteer fire departments, and access to groceries.

If you don’t subscribe to Jess Piper, I recommend that you check out her Substack, The View from Rural Missouri. Hers is in important voice both for rural America and for women. (See this moving essay, Red State Fear, about the special fear of being a woman in a red state.)

More good news in the election litigation front

The Georgia Supreme Court refused to grant expedited review of a lower court ruling blocking a rule that would have required a hand-count of all ballots. See Reuters, Georgia's top court will not fast-track appeal of US ballot hand-count rule.

Although the ruling does not dispose of the legal challenge to the hand-count rule, it effectively blocks implementation of the rule for the November election. While an appeal to the US Supreme Court is possible, it would be astonishing for the Court to intervene in a question of state law, especially two weeks before an election.

As Marc Elias of Democracy Docket has noted, we must distinguish between the ability of Republicans to file frivolous lawsuits and the likelihood of success of those lawsuits. The mere fact that MAGA extremists harbor “suspicions” about voter fraud is not sufficient to invalidate the outcome of elections in a county or state. The remedy for fraud relating to specific votes is invalidating those votes—and no others.

Sadly, news media report new lawsuits with ominous overtones suggesting chaos but rarely note the dismissal of those same lawsuits. The fact is that voter fraud is vanishingly rare in America—despite the proliferating number of lawsuits filed by Republicans. The fact that fraud is vanishingly rare means that virtually all of those lawsuits will be disposed of quickly.

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

[the-potus-is-a-russian-asset]

These are direct quotes from Trump’s longest serving Chief of Staff during his presidency. Also, John Kelly is a highly documented former general in the U.S.M.C. Yet tens of millions of Americans still believe a draft dodging Billionaire over a true Patriot. Unbelievable!!

[gracie-bird]

[tomorrowusa]

Memorial Day is next Monday. Trump is already making plans. No president have ever shown such disrespect for veterans.

‘God help us’: Former chief of staff says Trump insulted wounded veterans, called dead soldiers 'suckers'

Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly confirmed for the first time the accuracy of reports that his old boss, former President Donald Trump, repeatedly insulted wounded veterans, dead American soldiers who fought in World War I and U.S. service members killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. Kelly’s statement backed up years of reporting in outlets like The Atlantic and books by New Yorker and New York Times journalists. One story, reported by The Atlantic in 2020, described an incident in 2018 when Trump, while visiting France, said he didn’t want to visit the graves of American soldiers buried outside Paris because they were ‘losers.’ Kelly’s statement confirmed the reporting on Monday. “Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers,” Trump reportedly said according to The Atlantic, later calling the 1,800 Marines killed during the bloody Battle of Belleau Wood “suckers” for dying in action. Before serving in the Trump administration, Kelly was a general in the Marine Corps. The Battle of Belleau Wood is considered to be a foundational chapter in Marine mythology.

The real suckers are those veterans who foolishly support Trump.

I hope Biden asks Trump at the debates whether his bone spur has been acting up lately.

[quo-usque-tandem]

Harp by John Kelly

[babsi-and-stella]

Marianne Faithfull photographed by John Kelly, 1967.

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]

[mariapaperplanes]

you can't convince me he is not their son