"All of this is entirely preventable if the Senate chooses..."

This is political theater with people's lives. The Senate has always had an out, one they have used before. This time they hope to drag it out trying to make the Dems pay for the audacity of refusing to go along with status quo and get the public's ire against them. They have always had the nuclear option available to them at anytime they so chose to use it. So far they've chosen to leave things right where they are.

It tells you right away where the problem is all over again. That is to say, the Repubs are right where they want to be and won't be changing things until it's so bad they have to do something. It is highly unlikely they'll go along with extending ACA credits unless forced to by public opinion against them.

With control of all three sections of the government there is only one party at fault here, the Repubs.

"Trump is barely in the files ... "

Actually this was a sticking point in Pam Bondi appearing before a congress investigation. She was asked if the FBI (which had to return to get the contents of the safe they missed) had found the photos of Trump with two young women bare to the waist was found and if she'd personally viewed them. The first time she was asked, she attacked the questioner, the second time she was asked she refused to answer so she wouldn't perjure herself.

So Trump is definitely in more than just barely.

According to one article I read, it was artillery fired over I-5. As long as you can hear them going over, you're great. It's the ones you don't hear and short rounds do occur. Got a bunch once, that were undersized and did not meet military standards. We found out they didn't meet those standards when they were fired. In a fire for effect, maybe 20 rounds from the battery were lost between 200 feet out and the impact area.

Those airports airing this nonsense, are subject to the Hatch Act. Penalties can include, removable from job for employees involved, if federal employee reduction in pay grade, barred from federal service for 5 years, suspension, reprimand, and up to $1000. All because the Republicans want to try and hang their albatross around the Democrats necks.

The government shutdown is wholly owned by the Republicans having majority in all three branches of government. The Republicans can end the shutdown anytime they so desire, the nuclear option is there to be used. This shut down they want.

If this was anything other than political gamemanship, the senate has long had the ability to end the government shutdown at any time they desired. All that needs happen is for the Republicans to use the nuclear option to end it. It would remove the 60 vote requirement down to 50 votes.

This tells you it is nothing more than another way to extend the cruelty that has marked this administration while it seeks to establish a reason to give Trump his excuse to use the insurrection act at best or martial law at worst.

When viewed with this in mind, it reveals all the lying the Republicans are doing to keep things right where they are.

Johnson will not call the house back until they can manage some way to get around having to face the Epstein vote.

I can't believe we'll have another election until Trump is sure the fix is in. He'll do whatever to create the need for the Insurrection Act, including lying to justify it. Once it is activated, you can kiss elections goodbye. He'll move heaven and earth to keep the Epstein files buried. According to some reports, he's in photos with two naked to the waist young girls, which were in Epstein's safe. The FBI had to go back and retrieve them.

Pam Bondi refused to answer if the FBI had found those photos or if she had seen them. In otherwords, she didn't perjure herself. She just refused to answer the question and tried attacking the questioners to avoid the question the first time she was asked, the second time she just looked at them without response. While not admission, it's a strong hint as to why Trump doesn't want the Epstein files to surface.

You mean he didn't chose an enema of bleach or a UV light up the butt?

You mean the media is just now figuring this out?

All you need do is look for where Trump has had his fingers in deals to see, it is to line his family and his own pockets. It's consistent.

why is Pres Trump so focused upon invoking the Insurrection Act without any real reason to do so?

That's an easy one to answer. If he can claim Insurrection, he can delay or eliminate the upcoming vote. Because if he doesn't delay it the writing is on the wall, that he will lose the majority in the two branches he needs to back him up on his insane actions.

Democrats can end the shut-down at any time they want.

So can the Republicans. As it is the Republicans can't be trusted. They've had two years to straighten it out but instead have ignored Democrats input totally. Now they can't ignore it.

The Republicans have lied, stolen funds that were already allocated for projects by denying the spending, and put tons of misdirections out, like the idea that the Democrats want to include immigrants in the social security and medicare. That's a bald faced lie as they can not get that without being a citizen across the nation with the exception of California who does not use national funds but rather state funds.

By the polls the Republicans are on the losing end of this by voter opinions. The only way Trump will be able to keep a majority in all three branches is by activating the troops to guard the polls, allowing only his people to count the votes.

Of course the Republicans are all for shutting off funding. That's the point of this administration. Cruelty is their game. However they can create more problems for the middle and lower class, the better they like it.

Trump is trying to create the need to use the Insurrection Act. He needs this done before November 4 when the elections happen. He knows he'll lose the majority of Congress if he doesn't. Most likely his idea will be for his people to count the ballots, with a thumb on the scale, of course.

Both the history of voting which usually goes against the party in power as well as the majority of the polls indicate he won't have the majority after the election, meaning that he'll have far more trouble doing whatever he wants to do unchecked.

Hence the reason he is preparing the public with the announcement he's considering the Insurrection Act. Facts haven't mattered so much with Trump. He has no troubles with lying and it seems the party supporting him has no troubles with it either.

Likely this will be the reason that puts enough pressure on politicians to discover something called compromise. It used to be on display a lot in the halls of congress but in today's world, it's a rare critter to find.

Corporations will dislike the ability to move their people across the nation to do the business they need done. Through the back doors of communications the congress critters will receive notices that their campaign contributions will be in danger if they don't get their act together and restore the government's budget. It was the spur that provided the necessity to cure this problem last time the government was shut down.

Trump has been well known for lying and misdirection. His first term raised employment by all mass media needing fact checkers that had to be hired. Between lies and misleading claims, his first term was peppered by 30,573 by some accounts. He's not changed and he isn't tracking any better this term.

Project 2025 tracker website has been keeping track of what he's accomplished during this term. You can go see for yourself, it's not been a one day effort to set up this website. The goals are pretty much right down the line as to what has been done and what's left to be done, and how much towards fulfillment each has progressed.

If you are just waking up to this then you owe it to yourself to go look. Trump has been following it all along.

As usual, those that buy his talk and not his actions, continue to be fooled.

Trump has them pretty much all the main stream media cowed. Even if they win a $15 billon dollar law suit, it puts their finances in jeopardy just to fight off the government prosecutors/lawyers.

Have you not noticed how MSM dances around the Trump issues? Their wording is very careful. Then there is the Colbert and Kendal affairs. Both owners trying to obtain merger approval, knowing they have to kiss the butt of Trump for the ok.

These are reasons I no longer trust MSM. They've rolled over just like big law firms did. If they won't stand up for themselves, how can I believe them?

The answer is, I don't.

Not there any more, it was removed this morning.

Trump is back to putting targets on the back of our military personnel, this won't end well. I'd be willing to bet, were it his butt there, he'd likely be wanting to leave it behind. As long as it is what he considers losers, he doesn't mind. This again speaks tons of his mentality and mental illness.

It's never really planned, it's pretty much always on the spur of the moment with no consideration of how it effects the future.

Let me make this plain. I hate a commercial. When one makes it through my blockers, when I go to the store, I will not buy that product. Anything but that product. The exact opposite of what a commercial is supposed to do.

You can't go anywhere in the modern world it seems you aren't exposed to this mess. To me, it says something is wrong with the product that they have to pay someone to trumpet their qualities. Your neighbor will for free tell you what works for him or is a good product without pay.

As soon as I saw this product on the sales floor, if I were looking for one to buy, I'd walk away and not consider it.

The big cover up that won't go away. Trump has tried time and again to use misdirection to get it attention on something else. Nothing has worked for him, it's like the faithful puppy that won't go away. He's been backed by the congress critters for near anything he's pushed for. It only serves to draw more attention from the public on what is being hidden that they don't want to see the light of day on.

Trump's name you can be sure is there, heck we've been told it was there. If all those names are exposed, bye bye campaign donors. They'll have other things occupying their time and money.

Boaz you seem to forget people like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, or Mark Levin, all of who were right wing commentators. The left didn't call for their dismissible because they didn't like the message. My point being there were two sides of an issue and it was discussed over the public air waves. When there is only one side, it's no longer news, it becomes propaganda.

That's not the case now is it, with the firing of Stephen Colbert or Jimmy Kimmel? Both had government pressure plus hidden agendas by their parent companies to get mergers or buyouts approved.

What I know is that ticket prices have become far too expensive and seem to always be unavailable, unless you go pay through the nose. I've long refused to pay the sort of prices demanded.

I have noticed more and more the major network news sections are very carefully choosing how they word their reports so as not to upset Trump. I no longer trust them to give news and will hunt the independent news sites for daily information. You can not get the gist of what is happening in the world when you are only presented one side. At present we no longer have free speech. In his latest bout with networks he's told them to get rid of all their late night hosts and shows. Comedy is usually about people but Trump can't stand anything that puts him in a negative light. Threatening networks with the FCC cancelling their broadcast license is really bad news. The networks will cave to protect their income and that is why they can no longer be trusted anymore than the major lawyer houses that bowed to his demands to give him free legal representation or go to court over slander and the like. Democracy is a whimper to what it once was.

Eric Coomer, an executive at Dominion Voting systems was forced into hiding after false accusations that Dominion had switched votes in favor of Bidon. His home address had been published.

Untold number of election officials have received threats over the election and many have left their duties over those threats, coming from rightwing threats.

There was a plot to kidnap Michigan's governor, a democrat.

There was 1/6/2021, where the US Capitol was under threat.

President Trump later pardoned those that participated in it, meaning that violence was ok as long as it was for him. He was also the one who told the Proud Boys to back away and stand by.

With the assassination of Kirk, one after another has called for 'getting even' to the left, who have called for violence not being the answer.

Bill Clinton, George W Bush, and Barack Obama have all made speeches where they condemned violence, yet Trump claims to care less about it.

Melissa Hortman (D Minnesota) and her husband were both murdered in June by a right wing nut, who also managed to wound another D. lawmaker.

An arson attack was made on the home of Josh Shapiro in April, the Dem governor of Pennsylvania.

Yet none of this is recognized when the Republican claim all the violence is coming from the left.

The Republicans have dug their own hole following Trump. As enablers, if left alone, they aren't going to fair so well. It's midseason elections and typically, what ever party is in power, loses. Trump is desperate to change this so he can have his way of doing things continue.

Hot wheels is a politician and you know what they say about politician's mouths moving.