Say this for the ongoing criminal enterprise that is the Trump presidency: nothing is beneath them. When they find their way to one morally reprehensible bottom and you think they cannot go lower, they find a way to keep digging in order to achieve a greater depth of lawlessness and repellent behavior.
Last night’s shitshow featured a sitting Secretary of State, Mike “Porky Pig” Pompeo, abandoning all State Department protocols and giving a political endorsement, while on a diplomatic mission to Jerusalem, no less. No Secretary of State has done that in modern times. At the very least, it is a lawless abuse of the office, a probable violation of the Hatch Act. When asked about this, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said he would have never even thought of doing something so nakedly partisan while occupying a cabinet position. It is the first time since World War II a Secretary of State has stooped to pimping for votes for a sitting president.
Throughout the night, the Trump testimonials inevitably played the anti-abortion-rights card. From the lobster guy, Jason Joyce, to a grisly creature named Abby Johnson—more on her later. I’m also comforted that the lobster guy approves of the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem embassy switch. I was waiting with bated breath for a guy who chokes oversized crayfish to weigh in on Israel. Wow, am I relieved. I wouldn’t have been able to sleep.
The president made a callous and cynical exhibition of issuing a pardon to Jon Ponder, which was actually done months ago. By all accounts, Mr. Ponder deserved to be pardoned as he has done much good in helping other inmates re-enter society in productive ways. One has no quibble with this. One must take issue with the use of a profound moment in an American citizen’s life being used for a cheap parlor trick in order to achieve some political currency. It is not merely inappropriate. It is the kind of “white savior” behavior that Black Americans are appalled by. I have no doubt Mr. Ponder is a worthy and changed man—he just deserves a better ally than the cynical man who is exploiting him.
Amid the virtue-signaling and faux-religious invocation, Cissie Graham Lynch—the granddaughter of the original Jesus-snake-oil salesman, Billy Graham, showed up to moralize and push for tolerance of “all religions” and is quite frankly perplexed about boys and girls using each other’s locker rooms!!! (she has no truck with gay or trans people). “Religious freedom” is the dog-whistle way to discriminate against LGBTQ citizens—this is the dodge Mike Pence used as governor of Indiana when he legislated his bigotry into law in 2016.
I guess Jerry Falwell Jr. could not make it last night. He has other things going on. It was revealed yesterday that Mr. Falwell and his wife Becki were allegedly involved, sexually, with a pool boy for seven years. Apparently Mr. Falwell liked to watch while the pool boy railed his wife. Who knows, maybe last night, the pool needed to be… serviced. The pipes needed to be tightened or something.
The next hateful troll in the RNC geek show was one Abby Johnson, who was brought out to slime Planned Parenthood and a woman’s right to choose. She went on and on, in graphic detail about a late-term abortion she witnessed, relishing every detail.
Look, I know more than a few women who’ve been faced with this decision; and NONE of them come to this lightly. It is sad. It is arduous. It is heartbreaking, and yes, it is necessary.
Xerox this to your brain: ONLY WOMEN DECIDE WHAT IS BEST FOR THEIR OWN BODY. Make a note of it, motherfucker.
What is so ugly about the Trumps and the GOP is how they want, with one hand, to wave the flag, and with the other hand shake a crucifix at the rest of us while they are hip-deep in criminality and moral cowardice.
Trump also made a parlor trick of the swearing in of new citizens. He and the nefarious and shadowy Chad Wolf swore in five new American citizens—during the convention. Not only is this exploitive and cheaply theatrical, it is also, I believe, yet another violation of the Hatch Act, which was designed to keep policy and politics separate.
The Trump junta could not let another night go by without re-litigating his impeachment, and this time providing a different villain to lead the charge. Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, delivered a frothing-at-the-mouth litany of allegations against Hunter Biden, the former vice president’s son, for alleged wrongdoing in Ukraine. She hurled this slop like a shit-throwing spider monkey while not offering a shred of anything like proof. Again, right out of the Trump playbook—accuse your opponent of crimes that you, yourself, are actually guilty of. Gaslighting 101.
Earlier, Eric “Beavis” Trump proved that he could read a Teleprompter; which I guess, in the Trump gene pool, passes for a triumph. Tiffany Trump ditto. Never have I heard so much vacuous, uninformed la-la from two alleged college graduates. They, like their father, talk like a roll of toilet paper.
There were more verbal assaults on Obama-Biden from a bunch of angry morons who I didn’t bother to listen to. Like the night before, my brain began to glaze over from banalities, outright lies and feigned piety.
The night’s crowning moment was the first lady Melania Trump who, like her stepchildren, proved she’s become proficient at reading a prompter. Her comments were banal, referring to the president as “my husband” as she mouthed platitude after platitude designed to make her, and by extension him, look warm. These two have all of the warmth of a couple of eels. The body language alone underlines the mutual contempt. She also chose an odd outfit for the evening—the Generalissimo Francisco Franco, minus the medals, look.
Thankfully the thing was over. I wanted to give my brain a Silkwood shower.
I fear for the future of my country. Two more nights of this shit. I’d rather pick up hot coals with my ass-cheeks.
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