View this post on the web at [link removed]
You’ve probably already heard about the fight between Donald Trump and federal Judge James Boasberg over the weekend. Boasberg blocked Trump from using the Alien Enemies Act [ [link removed] ] to deport undocumented Venezuelans, who allegedly belong to a criminal gang, to El Salvador. Trump deported [ [link removed] ] them anyway. Then, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele [ [link removed] ] taunted the judge on X/Twitter when he unsuccessfully ordered the flights turned around. Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared the video Bukele posted, as did Elon Musk. And Trump thanked him, saying, “We will not forget!” Really classy stuff.
Do I think criminal gang members here illegally should be deported? Absolutely. Get them the hell out. But here is the issue: in America, we have a process for this. Why does that matter? Because shit happens. And with this administration, a lot of shit is happening. Green card holders [ [link removed] ], visa holders [ [link removed] ], tourists [ [link removed] ], even U.S. citizens [ [link removed] ] are getting nabbed by ICE; detained for long stretches of time, often in undisclosed locations; subjected to harsh conditions [ [link removed] ]; and deported without due process.
The men sent to do hard labor in a Salvadoran prison [ [link removed] ] with no due process include a tattoo artist seeking asylum who entered legally, a teen who got a tattoo in Dallas because he thought it “looked cool,” and a 26-year-old whose tattoos his wife says are unrelated to a gang. Are they undocumented? Are they involved in gang activity? We have no idea. They never got to make their case. Next time, your son or nephew or friend’s kid could be disappeared [ [link removed] ] because he posted a picture of his tattoo online. That’s not fearmongering. It’s just the sickening new reality we’re in where nothing matters anymore.
Check out my podcast from earlier today! Simple Question: Should Trump Be Able To Do WHATEVER He Wants? Even If A Judge Says It's Unconstitutional? [ [link removed] ]
I’ll be LIVE on Substack this week on Thursday at 8pm ET. See you then!
TAKE OUR READER SURVEY! [ [link removed] ] Just 5 quick questions!
UNCONSTITUTIONAL AF. Trump called for Judge Boasberg to be impeached [ [link removed] ], and the sackless GOP [ [link removed] ] immediately introduced a measure to do just that. Why? Because they are authoritarians and patently un-American. A president can’t demand a judge be “impeached” simply because he doesn’t like a ruling the judge issued. Again, there is a process: You appeal the ruling. That’s how our system of checks and balances works. And in a rare rebuke today, Chief Justice John Roberts [ [link removed] ] said the same thing.
But Trump hates the Constitution. He hates freedom of the press [ [link removed] ], he hates birthright citizenship [ [link removed] ], he hates the separation of powers [ [link removed] ]. And he hates Voice of America [ [link removed] ], too, which he just shut down. By silencing our voice and cutting off our charitable arm [ [link removed] ] to the world (USAID), Trump is literally killing America’s global brand.
A judge today found that the shutdown of USAID—and specifically Elon Musk’s role in it—is likely unconstitutional [ [link removed] ]. Well, no shit. But it’s nice to hear someone in an official role say it in a courtroom, rather than on Bluesky. (Btw, Musk’s “DOGE” gangsters also broke into [ [link removed] ] the U.S. Institute of Peace. They were unauthorized. They had no reason or right to be there. The DC Metropolitan police were even called. But this is what happens when you elect a lawless president. Lawlessness pervades.)
FOR WHO? FOR WHAT? So why is Trump actively neutering us as the voice of democracy around the globe? C’mon, do I even have to spell it out? It’s all for Vladimir Putin, of course. He and Trump are “very good friends,” [ [link removed] ] according to Trump’s Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard.
And remember, Trump👏🏻 is👏🏻 a👏🏻 Russian👏🏻 asset.👏🏻
I cannot say that forcefully enough.
For all the Code Pink conservatives out there who think Putin is honorable, and Trump is a man of peace, listen up. Putin wants everything he can get out of a Trump-brokered ceasefire [ [link removed] ]. And Trump is prepared to give it to him [ [link removed] ]: no NATO membership for Ukraine, no U.S. peacekeeping force, eased sanctions for Russia, a terminated DOJ program targeting oligarchs, a disbanded Foreign Influence Task Force intended to keep Russia from meddling in our elections, the withdrawal of the U.S. from of the international body investigating the Ukraine invasion [ [link removed] ], a nixed contract to help kidnapped Ukrainian kids [ [link removed] ], even possibly recognizing Crimea [ [link removed] ] as Russian territory. And naturally, Trump is making up bullshit about Ukrainian soldiers [ [link removed] ], so he can come off looking like a hero. To reiterate, Donald Trump = Russian asset.
DOJ? LOL. More like DODJT. It’s wrong for any American president to give a political speech [ [link removed] ] in the Department of Justice’s Great Hall, as Trump did on Friday. It contaminates the independence of the institution. It’s also wrong for any American president to call himself the “chief law enforcement officer.” Because he’s not. And it’s fucking psychotic for Donald Trump (or anyone) to say this [ [link removed] ]: “I was attacked more than anybody in the history of our country. Alphonse Capone—the great Alphonse Capone, legendary Scarface—was attacked only a tiny fraction of what Trump was attacked.” Shame on this country for electing a mobster-admiring perpetual victim, who not only believes he is above the law, but also that he should have complete power over the system of justice.
ONE MORE THING. I hope those on the “anti-woke” left are proud of themselves. Their woke derangement syndrome, which led them to sit home on Election Day or even vote for Trump, has given us an administration that removes references [ [link removed] ] to Black, Hispanic, and women veterans; holds disaster relief assistance [ [link removed] ] back from towns in need over DEI policies and language; investigates universities [ [link removed] ]; brings rapists [ [link removed] ] into the White House; and hires people who absolve Hitler, Stalin, and Mao [ [link removed] ] of genocide. It’s a slippery slope, folks. Next thing you know, you’ll have lawmakers saying people should be imprisoned for their gender identity. Oh wait…that already happened [ [link removed] ].
Well done, guys. Really.
So what can you do? Here are some ideas…
Join the growing #NOKINGS community! Let’s build a community right now of Americans who rally around and identify with that basic truth: we don’t have kings in America. We’re figuring out in real time where we go from here. I’ve changed all my profile pictures to #NOKINGS, and you can too. Grab the #NOKINGS graphic below and go to www.oneflaginitiative.org [ [link removed] ] for instructions on how to change your profile pics.
Post this on your social media! We are building the fiery, grassroots resistance to King Donald right here at the Social Contract. We are open to everyone and welcome diverse viewpoints. Please let your network know we’re here!
Give The Washington Post a hand if you can…
The rest of the good stuff—including an exclusive video from yours truly, available only here!—is for paid subscribers only. Give it a shot with a 7-day free trial. I think you’ll enjoy it. And you’ll keep my independent, hardworking, and fiercely pro-democracy staff fed! There are no big donors behind this Substack—it’s just you and me, kid (kind of like in America right now).
Unsubscribe [link removed]?
