10/04/2025

'general hospital' ronnie and sonny talk monica and nathan's back

this post is going to be mainly about 'general hospital,' but i want to note a column about project 2025 before i get to that.  so michael tomasky ('the new republic') notes:

President Donald Trump has finally told the truth about something. He’s embraced Project 2025. Anyone who believed his disavowals last year during the campaign is, of course, a fool. And the media, reporting those disavowals, looked foolish. Trump knew, as he has known all his life, that all you have to do is lie about something, and the press, following the rules of objectivity, will report straightforwardly what you said. So he largely got away with it. The Kamala Harris campaign tried to tie Trump to the project, as in this ad; but it didn’t manage to convey the project’s extremism with any force.

And now? The Democrats have another huge opportunity to hang Project 2025 around Trump’s neck. It should be easier now, for two reasons. One, it’s not purely hypothetical anymore. According to the Project 2025 Tracker, a community-driven initiative, the Trump administration has already checked off 48 percent of the project’s goals. Two, Trump and OMB Director Russell Vought’s open promises to shred the federal bureaucracy give Democrats a huge target. The question is, do they have the skill—and the guts—to hit it?

Alas, that question, as usual with the Democrats, should have a clear answer but doesn’t. The obvious strategy is to call all hands on deck and, now that Trump has said what he said, make this shutdown about not only Obamacare subsidies but two other things: about the looming job cuts themselves and about Vought personally because his name and his extremist, un-American goals to remake the United States as a Christian nation should be known to every American.

The first message should be simple: What Trump and Vought are about to do here is the second coming of Elon Musk and DOGE. The DOGE effort was not exactly popular: Last spring, poll after poll, like this one, showed that while the general concept of cutting the size of the federal government had appeal, people really didn’t like the way Musk and his minions were going about it. This time around, Democrats can plausibly say that it’s going to be worse. DOGE staffing cuts came to around 300,000. An estimated 750,000 federal employees are being furloughed due to the shutdown. Vought probably thinks most of them are expendable. It shouldn’t be hard to make these cuts deeply unpopular.

Second, tell Americans who Vought is, what he believes, the things he has said. He’s a Christian nationalist who believes Trump is “God’s gift” to America and wants the U.S. to be “a nation under God.” These are of course completely un-American ideas. Article 6 of the Constitution contains the “no religious test clause,” which applies to holding a public office or trust in the U.S.; but beyond that, the Founders were crystal clear that American citizenship and civil rights were open to all—as Thomas Jefferson once put it, citing John Locke, neither “Pagan nor Mohametan [Muslim] nor Jew ought to be excluded from the civil rights of the Commonwealth [of Virginia] because of his religion.” George Washington said that “religious controversies are always more productive of acrimony and irreconcilable hatreds than those which spring from any other cause,” and therefore each should be left to worship (or not) as he or she saw fit. I could go on and on and on.


'general hospital' was back with a new episode friday.  i don't plan on blogging about it every day.  but i did say i'd watch and note it while erika slezak was on as ronnie - monica quartermaine's sister. 

ronnie was at the hospital looking at a photo on a bulletin board of monica.  sonny came up.  


sonny? i've never known what to think of the actor who plays him.  with erika, he hit all the right notes.  makes me think he's carried a lot of bad actors.  by that i mean, his own talent's been lowed in a lot of scenes.  paired with a talented performer, he can shine.  too often, he's with some 1 underwhelming who pulls him down.

i do not mean the actress who plays carly, by the way.  their scenes have always worked.


so sonny tells her some about monica and about tracy.  she loves that he doesn't care for tracy either - both find tracy to be a snob.  she explains about monica's letter writing that started about a year ago.  he takes her to bobby's - the diner carly runs. he tells her about being able to reunite with his father at the end.  they talk about his adopted son michael - who ronnie knows from monica's letters.  as some 1 who's waited tables for most of her life, she praises bobby's as a diner run by some 1 who obviously cares.  

she goes back to her hotel room and her cell phone rings.  she's been invited to the reading of monica's will.


michael is a boring actor no matter who he's paired with.  he's paired with jane elliott this episode and she does all the acting telling him that she doesn't care whether or not he shot the congressman, she's not letting him go to jail, not because she cares about him, she doesn't.  but she has a duty to monica to protect him.

anna devane was on.  thank goodness.  with anna, carly, alexis and ava there was some actual acting going on.  

let's go to ava and alexis.  rick? don't know him.  but for some reason, alexis , carly and i hink a 3rd person have been imprisoning him in alexis' basement.  it's kind of like '9 to5' i guess.  alexis is transferring money back into  cassedine account.  he almost escapes, holding alexis at knife point but ave throws hot water from a coffee pot on him - or maybe a coffee cup, can't remember. they overpower him and lock him back in the basement.  they have to keep him 10 more days.  by then, the money will be back in the cassadine account.  

alexis has a daughter.  haven't seen the show in a little over year probably but tht actress still hasn't learned how to act.  its hilarious when she and her sister or half-sister or step-sister talk because neither comes off as human or adults.  the sister - who looks to be 19 - is also a district attorney.  

anna questions carly.  carly thinks it's to frame michael (carly's son) for the shooting.  she doesn't realize that she's also a suspect.  or that the bullet's are supposed to have come from edward quartermaine's gun. edward's been dead for years.  anna gets carly recorded saying that, since her grandchildren are being raised at the quartermaine mansion, she can enter and leave anytime she likes.  they're getting a warrent for the gun and think carly and michael could have both had access.


i don't get how they think the gun's there.  edward's been dead for years - maybe a decade.  lila dies after him and only because the actress died in real life.  

when carly talks to sonny later, he makes it clear that she's probably a suspect as well in the shooting of the congressman.


the other good news is that nathan's back and played by original actor ryan paevey.  i thought that was him but it wasn't until his scenes with james - nathan's son he's never met before - on friday's show that he smiled - and that's ryan paevey's smile.  he's just returned from the dead, his face all cut up and lying in a hospital bed.  so last week there wasn't reason for him to smile.  i'm glad he's back. i can see checking in after erika slezak's gone for him.


but these young characters?   boring as hell.

i can't wait until the reading of the will.  as i noted earlier this week:

 it would be really funny if it turned out that monica left ronnie the quartermaine mansion in her will.  


tracy thinks monica's left it to michael and she's already told michael  she hopes he will always have a room for her the way that his mother did.


let's close with c.i.'s 'The Snapshot:'


Friday, October 3, 2025.  The Donald Chump Shutdown continues, Howard Lutnick gives an interview about Chump's pal Jeffrey Epstein and how a trade probably took place for a sweetheart deal -- videos for easy jail time, ICE continues lying and abusing people -- including children -- across the country, the arrested by ICE continue to be predominately people who've committed no violent crimes, Junior missed the memo -- and the US federal law -- about not being able to fire a whistle-blower for whistle-blowing, and much more.


In the latest corporate cave to Donald Chump, Chris Cameron (NEW YORK TIMES) notes, "Apple has removed from its App Store several programs that alert users to sightings of immigration agents amid a furious pushback from the Trump administration over the services. Most prominently, ICEBlock, a free app with hundreds of thousands of users, was no longer available as of Thursday evening to download on the App Store." Dan Mangan (CNBC) quotes Attorney General Pam daBimbo Bondi stating, "We reached out to Apple today demanding they remove the ICEBlock app from their App Store -- and Apple did so. ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line that cannot be crossed."  No, idiot, ICE is designed to put people at risk.  ICEBLOCK is just a tool not unlike radar and laser detectors to avoid speed traps or CB radios in earlier times for the same purupose.

ICE?  They're the ones designed to put people at risk.  Chris Hayes did a segment on that last night on MSNBC.  



Chris Hayes:  You know there's a reason the American founders put the right to be free from unlawful searches and seizures in the Bill of Rights from the start.  Masked secret police profiling people and now targeting entire apartment buildings and making everyone prove that they're not guilty of something is the province of tyrants.  It is the opposite of America.  And I don't think Americans will stand for it.  Nor should they.


In Minnesota, ICE is saving us all from . . . roofers.  WCCO reports:

Witnesses say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents showed up to St. Paul's North End neighborhood in unmarked cars Thursday morning and arrested an entire roofing crew.

An ICE spokesperson confirmed four men were arrested, saying three of the men had criminal convictions and orders for removal. The fourth man will be placed in immigration proceedings.

At a vigil Thursday night, advocates for immigrant rights called for neighbors to fight back against the immigration crackdown.

"Our families deserve to go to work, come home and spend time with our loved ones. I also want to be clear: Minnesota depends on us," a speaker at the vigil said.


Protests have followed the action as they should. People know these roofers.  They're part of a community.  They're contributing to the community.



The whole lie of only violent criminals would be targeted imploded long ago.  THE VIRGINIA MERCURY has a report noting 4,264 arrests by ICE in Virginia so far this year and "Notably, most people arrested by ICE in Virginia had no criminal record. Only about 29% had prior convictions, and fewer than 16% had pending charges. Some lawful permanent residents and even U.S. citizens were among those detained and later released."  I'm guessing so few criminals are in the streets because so many are serving in the administration. 

It's the same story over and over in state after state across the country.  Henry Redman (WISCONSIN EXAMINER) reports this morning: 


The morning of Sept. 25, federal agents and immigration authorities swept into Manitowoc to arrest people alleged to be in the country without proper documentation. Agents first went to a Walmart parking lot where dairy workers are known to meet up before driving to the farms where they work. The action then moved on to private residences, where migrants were arrested as they left the house. 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security claims the ICE raid in Manitowoc was aimed at dismantling an international sex and drug trafficking ring, but has so far provided little evidence to support that claim. Federal authorities initially said 21 migrants had been arrested in the raid, before later saying 24 had been picked up. 

On Tuesday, DHS released the names of six of the 24. Only one individual named in the release has been charged with a sex crime — Jose Hilario Moreno Portillo, who was charged in Manitowoc County court in May with the 2nd degree sexual assault of a child. However, Moreno Portillo has not yet been convicted and court records show he’s been in ICE custody since July. 


Pamela Price (DAVIS VANGUARD) covers the impact of ICE on Los Angeles in a podcast here.


daBimbo Bondi has a great deal to answer for.  Including what ICE is really doing with children.  Having them stand undressed in Chicago -- see Chris Hayes' earlier noted video report.  And grabbing them off the streets in Virginia?  Please note:


ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Today the ACLU of Virginia filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of four young people and a class of those in similar circumstances who Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) are unlawfully holding in Virginia detention centers, flagrantly ignoring federal laws that give these young immigrants a legal right to be in the United States.

“Our clients are young people whose parents abused, neglected, or abandoned them,” said ACLU-VA Legal Director Eden Heilman. “Federal law says that because they cannot safely return to their home countries and have nowhere else to go, they have every legal right to be in the United States. How could ICE possibly justify picking up young people who were orphaned children and then warehousing them in a detention center?”

Almost 40 years ago, Congress established a pathway to citizenship for vulnerable minors who entered the U.S. and were abused, neglected or abandoned, a legal designation called Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS).

The process for such children to become U.S. citizens is not easy. First, the Office of Refugee Resettlement must release the minor to the care of a sponsor. The sponsor then must get custody from a state judge, who must determine the child cannot go back to their country of origin. Only then can the minor even apply for SIJS, and the wait for a visa to become available usually takes years – after which the person must still apply to become a U.S. citizen.

All four named plaintiffs in today’s class action successfully applied for or were granted SIJS, yet are now being held at Farmville or Caroline Detention Facility in Virginia. Unlike other noncitizens who enter the U.S., people who came to the U.S. as unaccompanied minors are not typically subject to detention. But under the Trump administration, the Department of Homeland Security is now unlawfully treating people with SIJS as arriving noncitizens who are subject to mandatory detention, and denying them bond hearings before an immigration judge – despite clear protections granted to them not only through SIJS, but also by anti-trafficking laws, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the United States Constitution.

"Our clients are following the rules they’ve been given to obtain citizenship. Unfortunately, ICE is not,” said ACLU-VA Senior Immigrants’ Rights Attorney Sophia Gregg. “Anti-trafficking laws and SIJS both protect people who came to the U.S. as unaccompanied minors from being held without access to bond in immigration detention centers. But ICE is ignoring the process – ultimately causing the very chaos and confusion the Trump administration claims it’s working to fix.”

The amended petition and class action complaint in Sarmiento et al. v. Crawford et al., was filed in the Alexandria division of the Eastern District of Virginia. Today’s class action lawsuit argues that all four plaintiffs and a proposed class of others similarly situated are entitled to bond hearings and should be released from detention because they have sought or been granted SIJ status. The ACLU-VA is co-counseling this case with attorneys Taniska Cruz of Cruz Law, PLLC and Patrice Kopistanky.


daBimbo Bondi, this keeps up and QAnon is going to have to accuse you and Chump of running pedophile ring and using ICE as a cover.  In the meantime, more horrors.    Isabella Aldrete (NEVADA INDEPENDENT) reports:


U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in three unmarked SUVs surrounded 56-year-old Rafael Lopez Gomez in a Las Vegas neighborhood and arrested him at what appeared to be gunpoint last month. Afterwards, his family struggled to locate him for days — calling ICE repeatedly without answer. 

About a week later, his daughter found him in a hospital room barely able to breathe.

“I got to see my dad handcuffed to the hospital bed. His feet were swollen. He was in tears, and could barely speak,” his daughter, Diana Lopez, said in an interview with The Nevada Independent. 

As ICE arrests skyrocket across Nevada and nationwide, aggressive encounters with ICE such as Lopez Gomez’s have become increasingly visible to the public. Late last week, an ICE officer was “relieved of his duties” after he pushed a woman to the floor at an immigration courthouse, and earlier this month, a man was fatally shot by immigration agents after dropping his children off at elementary school. 

The family — as well as some legal experts — contend that Lopez Gomez’s case highlights ICE’s lack of transparency on detainee whereabouts and their safety. Although many aspects about his case are not atypical — such as the manner of his arrest — the rare video footage and his daughter’s testimony shed light on what conditions can be like for ICE detainees in an increasingly tense political landscape.


But, hey, ICE never lies, right?  Oh.  Wait  They lie all the time.

Sayed Naser?  They lied about him repeatedly.  We've been covering him for a few months.  Let's drop back to July 19th for this:

Also being targeted are immigrants who were being thanked for their assistance to US troops during the Afghan War and the Iraq War.   Sayed Naser is one such person.  And we've covered him here many times.  Joey Safchik (NBC7) reported in June


Just over two weeks after Sayed Naser was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, the Afghan national was placed into expedited removal Thursday night, meaning Naser's case was dismissed by a judge.

Expedited removal is a tactic the Trump administration is using to speed up deportations.

 A video of Naser being detained outside a San Diego immigration courtroom went viral, wracking up millions of views on social media, playing out on television and catching the attention of congressmembers. In the video, Naser tells the officers handcuffing him that he aided U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

NBC 7 has reviewed documents that support Naser's claims and has spoken to experts who say they are credible. However, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement, "There is nothing in his immigration records indicating that he assisted the U.S. government in any capacity. All of his claims will be heard by a judge. Any Afghan who fears persecution is able to request asylum.” 


Madeleine May and Hannah Marr (CBS NEWS) have quoted #AfghanEvac's executive director Shawn VanDiver stating, "A bureaucratic technically just stripped a wartime ally of his legal protections and fast-tracked him for deportation.  Sayed stood with U.S. forces in combat. Now he faces removal without a lawyer, without a hearing and possibly without a country. This isn't just cruel, it's cowardly." June 19th, NPR's MORNING EDITION reported on Sayed's arrest:


 QUIL LAWRENCE, BYLINE: The scene of ICE agents arresting immigrants at courthouses has become common in the past few months, but this one played out a bit differently last week in San Diego.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED ICE AGENT #1: Yeah, yeah, go ahead. We're going to take him.

LAWRENCE: Bystanders filmed as Sayed Naser was approached by two masked ICE agents after a routine immigration hearing. They don't show a warrant, and they don't even seem to be sure they have the right person.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED ICE AGENT #2: What's your name?

LAWRENCE: As they handcuff him, he starts to tell the onlookers that he's a former interpreter for the U.S. Army.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

SAYED NASER: I worked with the U.S. military back in my home country, Afghanistan.

LAWRENCE: Sayed Naser asked to withhold his family name because he fears for their safety in Afghanistan. And that's the whole point, says his lawyer, Brian McGoldrick.

BRIAN MCGOLDRICK: He spent three years working with the U.S. military at great risk to himself. And they've already killed part of his family.

LAWRENCE: Sayed Naser fled Afghanistan after the Taliban showed up at a family wedding and killed one of his brothers. He made a journey from Afghanistan to Brazil and then, sometimes on foot, traveled north to the U.S. border, where he was admitted legally last year. But McGoldrick says ICE agents took none of that under consideration.

MCGOLDRICK: Was all about filling their quota of 3,000 a day. They didn't care that, you know, he was really our ally. I don't think anybody took the time to even go through that.

LAWRENCE: ICE confirmed to NPR that Sayed Naser is in custody but didn't answer other questions. Sarah Verardo is with the advocacy group Save Our Allies. Her husband, Mike, was severely wounded in Afghanistan. In fact, President Trump hosted the Verardos at the White House just this April to honor that. But Sarah Verardo says seeing Afghans like Sayed Naser arrested is another wound.

SARAH VERARDO: And so much of the moral injury that we see among veterans now has really resurfaced with these issues of how we've abandoned our Afghan allies. And the Trump administration has an opportunity, while they do pursue strong immigration reform, to also say that as a nation, we stand with those who stood with us.


Even with the supporting US government documents and even with strong support from US veterans, Sayed has been falsely targeted and imprisoned by ICE.  Yesterday,  Sophia Sleap (TIMES OF SAN DIEGO) provided an update:


An ally of the U.S. Army in Afghanistan on Thursday shared his thoughts on being free after spending months in immigration detention. For one, it gave him a new perspective.

“I can say that freedom is the most beautiful feeling,” the man identified only as Sayed Naser said during a morning press conference at the Veterans Museum at Balboa Park with his brother, attorney and advocates alongside him. 

For another, recalling the day in June when he was first surrounded by immigration officers, he said he did not believe he was truly being detained until he met others in the same situation. 

One day in detention, he said, felt like an entire month, and among the most difficult trials he experienced was finding himself wearing prison garb. In all, he called his three-plus months in custody the “hardest days of my life”.

“I never expected to be detained in the United States of America because I was a U.S. government ally back in my home country,” Sayed said. 

His attorney and supporters asked that Sayed’s full name be withheld for security reasons while standing with him Thursday. They gave him almost a week to recuperate from his time in detention before he appeared to offer his first detailed public comments about his ordeal, but his case has attracted substantial attention since the summer.

He is aware of that support and spoke of the large number of people in this country who disapproved of his detention.

“They stand with me,” Sayed said. “It shows that the Americans are there with their allies, they support us.” 


I'm seeing a lot in the article but I'm not seeing an apology or even an acknowledgement of wrong doing.  Not from daBimbo Bondi or Kristi Noem or Tom Homan or any of the government officials responsible for persecuting Sayed.  Those three have done nothing in their life of value.  Sayed risked his life to help US troops.  Maybe it's time for Homan, Noem and daBimbo Bondi to be detained behind bars for a little bit?  Maybe that would enlighten them?  Make them be a little more careful in their actions?

Sadly, those three will never develop compassion and they've been reading at a second grade level since at least senior year.


In other bad news, Malcolm Ferguson (THE NEW REPUBLIC) informs, "Free-speech grifter Bari Weiss will soon be named editor-in-chief of CBS News, multiple outlets reported Thursday, and her right-wing, genocide-denying blog The Free Press will be acquired by Paramount Skydance for about $150 million. Paramount will make the official announcement in the coming days."  We addressed the freak show possibly joining CBS at the start of last month with "As ugly as she is stupid," "Barely Bari can't wait to destroy CBS NEWS," "An idiot named Bari Weiss," "Crazy Karens named Bari Weiss," "What Bari Weiss wants to (mis)teach the world" and "THIS JUST IN! BARI WEISS GROWLS NEXT TO HER FOOD BOWL!"



FUGLY CRACKPOT FREAK BARI WEISS IS SAID TO BE TRYING TO SQUEEZE INTO THE ROLE OF OMBUDSPERSON AT CBS NEWS -- IF SHE CAN LOSE FORTY OR FIFTY POUNDS AND SOMEONE CAN CUT THE POOP OUT OF HER ASS HAIR.  THE WALKING DISASTER HAS NEVER PLAYED WELL WITH OTHERS AND IS KNOWN TO BITE ANY CANINE  WHO COMES NEAR HER BOWL OF PURINA PRO PLAN SENIOR DOG FOOD.  

BUT WHEN THESE REPORTERS MET WITH HER FOR A SCHEDULED Q.&A., WEISS WAS SURPRSINGLY CHIPPER HAVING JUST TAKEN A DUMP ON A NEWSPAPER BESIDE HER DESK.

Q: DONALD CHUMP BASICALLY CREATED THIS JOB FOR YOU -- DOES THAT MEAN YOU'RE ON WELFARE?

BW: I'M A HAPPY CAMPER BECAUSE, DESPITE MY FACE, I MAY GET ON TV.  I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO DO TV BUT NEVER HAD ENOUGH MONEY FOR PLASTIC SURGERY.  THE RISE OF CHUMP MEANS ALL THE UGLY PEOPLE FINALLY GET A SHOT AT HIGH PROFILE MEDIOCRITY.  

Q: AND WHAT WILL YOU BRING TO CBS?

BW: DIVERSITY.  DIVERSITY'S REALLY IMPORTANT.

Q: BUT CHUMP GOT CBS TO AGREE TO KILL ALL DIVERSITY INITIATIVES.

BW: NO, NO AND NO.  WHAT WE DON'T WANT IS EQUALITY.  DIVERSITY -- AS WE DEFINE IT -- MEANS DIVERSITY OF OPINION.  FOR TOO LONG, MAINSTREAM MEDIA HAS STRESSED CONFORMITY WITH NO REAL DIVERSITY.  THANKS TO ME, CBS WILL NOW BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE TRUE DIVERSITY.  FOR EXAMPLE, THERE ARE A LOT OF MURDERS IN THIS COUNTRY.  MAINSTREAM MEDIA COVERAGE ALWAYS TREATS THIS AS A BAD THING.  DIVERSITY OF OPINION MEANS I CAN GO ON TV AND TALK ABOUT THE MANY GOOD PARTS OF MURDER.  OR ELDERLY ABUSE!  I WON'T BE PART OF THE ECHO CHAMBER CONDEMING IT.  I'LL POINT OUT THAT SOME ELDERLY PEOPLE DON'T HAVE MUCH TO DO AND ELDERLY ABUSE ACTUALLY BRINGS SOME EXCITEMENT INTO THEIR LIVES.  IT'S ABOUT PRETENDING YOU HAVE A BRAIN AND PRETENDING YOU'RE USING IT.  I'VE DONE THAT FOR MANY YEARS NOW.  LIKE WHO SAYS RACISM IS WRONG?  I NEVER HAVE!  DIVERSITY OF OPINION IS SO VERY IMPORTANT TO ME.  UNLESS WE'RE TALKING HIRING PEOPLE OF COLOR.  THEN YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT DIVERSITY.  DIVERSITY IS MY RIGHT TO ARGUE THAT THE EARTH IS FLAT WITHOUT BEING CANCELLED!  YES, I KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO BE CANCELLED!  YES, I DO!


IN OTHER NEWS, OLD YELLOW TEETH RONNIE JACKSON HAS HAD HIS 2022 DEMOTION OVERTURNED.  REACHED FOR COMMENT BY THESE REPORTERS, JACKSON RESPONDED, "CAN'T TALK NOW, I'M OFF TO CVS FOR CREST WHITE STRIPS!"


The Epstein and Maxwell scandal is not going away no matter how Chump tries to pretend.  Yesterday, MSNBC had four strong segments on it -- sadly, they only posted three.  Jen Psaki's strong interview with US House Rep Robert Garcia has not posted.  



US House Rep Eric Swalwell rightly notes that one effect of Chump's shutdown is to try to slow the release of the government's Epstein files.  


But guess what?  It's the administration bringing the story back into the news.  Specifically, it's Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.  THE NEW YORK POST notes:


Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a notable break with the Department of Justice, claimed late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was “the greatest blackmailer ever” — and may have traded the feds video of his rich and well-connected associates getting massages from young women in exchange for a controversial 2008 plea deal.

Lutnick made the shocking allegations to The Post’s Miranda Devine on the latest episode of “Pod Force One,” out now.

The 64-year-old cabinet secretary said Epstein himself showed off his notorious “massage room” while giving Lutnick and his wife a tour of the infamous East 71st Street townhouse after the couple moved in next door to the since-disgraced financier in 2005.

“I say to him, ‘Massage table in the middle of your house? How often do you have a massage?'” Lutnick recalled. “And he says, ‘Every day.’ And then he gets, like weirdly close to me, and he says, ‘And the right kind of massage.'”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in a notable break with the Department of Justice, claimed late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was “the greatest blackmailer ever” — and may have traded the feds video of his rich and well-connected associates getting massages from young women in exchange for a controversial 2008 plea deal.

Lutnick made the shocking allegations to The Post’s Miranda Devine on the latest episode of “Pod Force One,” out now.

The 64-year-old cabinet secretary said Epstein himself showed off his notorious “massage room” while giving Lutnick and his wife a tour of the infamous East 71st Street townhouse after the couple moved in next door to the since-disgraced financier in 2005.

“I say to him, ‘Massage table in the middle of your house? How often do you have a massage?'” Lutnick recalled. “And he says, ‘Every day.’ And then he gets, like weirdly close to me, and he says, ‘And the right kind of massage.'”

In the interview, Lutnick notes, "He's a serial sex offender.  How could he get 18 months and be able to go to his office during the day and have visitors?  Must have been a trade.  I have no knowledge but my assumption is there was a trade for the videos because there were people on those videos." 

Howard Lutnick's interview is explosive.  And US House Rep Robert Garcia realizes that.  He addressed it with Jen Psaki but MSNBC hasn't posted that segment to YOUTUBE.  They do have this report on Lutnick's statements. 



The fourth segment was on Lawrence O'Donnell's program last night.  Though the segment's not posted, audio for the entire show is.  The segment starts 16 minutes in.



Lawrence provides the most straight forward breakdown and then brings on Senator Adam Schiff for the two to discuss the meaning of Lutnick's comments.

Okay, a friend at MSNBC just called, the segment is here.  You can watch that segment at the link of Lawrence.  It's not on YOUTUBE and I'm dictating this so I don't have time to play around and figure out how to embed using DOS.  But the video it up at the MSNBC site, just not on YOUTUBE.  I was not aware until the phone call that happened.  And I never check the MSNBC page for videos -- only their YOUTUBE page.


---------------

ADDED 15 minutes after this posted: MSNBC friend just called again.  There was a segment that Tim Miller did with Nicole Wallace on her MSNBC show yesterday.  It's not at YOUTUBE for MSNBC so we'll post it from THE BULWORK.  


So there were at least five strong segments on Epstein yesterday on MSNBC. 

-------------

Remember how the government isn't supposed to retaliate against people for whistleblowing?  No surprise, Robert Kennedy Junior doesn't.  Junior blew his mind on drugs decades ago.  THE NEW YORK TIMES' Benjamin Mueller reports:


Three weeks after a leading scientist at the National Institutes of Health filed a whistle-blower complaint against the Trump administration, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy fired her, according to her lawyer and a copy of the termination letter.

Her dismissal was the latest in a series of steps the Trump administration has taken against government scientists and environmental experts after they warned that administration policies were endangering public health and safety.

That scientist, Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, who had directed the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases before being demoted in March, was one of several senior N.I.H. officials who said that their tenures at the agency had ended in recent days.

Dr. Eliseo Pérez-Stable, who had directed the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, told the publication Science that he received a letter from the N.I.H. director, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, stating that his appointment was ending this week.


Let's wind down with this from THE BLACK COMMENTATOR:


The Black Commentator

 Issue #1057

 is now Online

September 25, 2025

     

Read issue 1057

Our email address is BlackCommentator@gmail.com

Our voicemail number is 856.823.1739

The Black Commentator | P.O. Box 2635A weekly publication dedicated to economic justice, social justice and peace.,
Tarpon Springs, FL 34688-2635



The following sites updated:


  •  
  • 10/03/2025

    general hospital thoughts

    last week on 'general hospital' we had monica quartermaine's funeral.  bryan beckley ('soap hub') compiles a list of monica's best storylines:


    Beloved daytime star Leslie Charleson, who portrayed Dr. Monica Bard Webber Quartermaine on General Hospital for more than 45 years, passed away at the age of 79 on January 12, 2025. Her powerful performances made Monica one of the most unforgettable characters in soap opera history. From scandalous affairs to heartbreaking losses, Monica’s storylines delivered some of the most iconic and emotional moments in Port Charles. Here’s a look back at five of Monica Quartermaine’s most memorable moments that defined both the character and the actress who brought her to life.

    Monica and Alan’s Love Story

    In 1977, General Hospital introduced Dr. Alan Quartermaine (Stuart Damon), a wealthy physician whose powerful family used their resources to fund a new cardiac wing at the hospital. During this time, Alan fell in love with Dr. Monica Bard, even though Monica’s heart was still pulled toward Dr. Rick Webber (first played by Michael Gregory and later Chris Robinson). Despite her complicated feelings, Monica married Alan, and he presented her with the grand Quartermaine mansion as a wedding gift. That decision would later set up one of the soap’s longest-running jokes. When Alan discovered Monica’s affair with Rick, he tried to throw her out of the house, only for Monica to remind him that the deed was in her name.

    Monica’s passion for Rick—and at times other men—sparked plenty of drama, but in the end, Alan was the love of her life. Their volatile but enduring relationship cemented Monica as a true Quartermaine. She developed close ties with her powerful father-in-law, Edward (David Lewis, later John Ingle), and her gracious mother-in-law, Lila (Anna Lee), but not every family member welcomed her so warmly. Alan’s sister, Tracy Quartermaine (Jane Elliot), sparred with Monica for years, determined to prove her infidelity and even questioning Alan’s paternity of Monica’s son, A.J. Although Tracy’s schemes caused endless conflict, she eventually had to admit that Monica’s devotion to the Quartermaine family was undeniable. The two characters grew a strong bond towards the end of Monica’s life, and Tracy has been taking Monica’s death very hard.

    Monica and Gail Baldwin’s Complicated Bond

    For years, Monica Quartermaine’s true origins were shrouded in mystery. Growing up in an orphanage with no knowledge of her birth parents, Monica was given a second chance at family when she was adopted by Dr. Gail Adamson (Susan Brown). Gail became both a maternal figure and a trusted friend, providing Monica with the stability she had long craved.

    But beneath the surface of their close bond was a devastating secret. As a teenager, Monica was assaulted by Gail’s husband, Greg, an ordeal she carried in silence for years out of fear of hurting the woman who had taken her in. Monica and Gail’s relationship was further tested later in life when Gail discovered a series of letters that painted Greg’s side of the story. The revelation nearly destroyed their bond, with Monica tearfully pleading for Gail to believe that she would never betray her trust. After heartbreak and distance, the two women eventually reconciled, reaffirming their deep connection.

    Despite the painful past, Gail stood by Monica through some of her most difficult battles. She was there during a snowstorm when Monica went into labor, offering strength and guidance alongside Lesley (Denise Alexander). She also remained by Monica’s side during the breast cancer storyline, offering unwavering support as Monica faced both fear and uncertainty. Gail often reminded Monica that the line between love and hate was razor-thin, particularly when it came to her fiery marriage with Alan Quartermaine. Just how much of this history stays intact about Monica’s origins now that Erika Slezak is rumored to be coming on board as Monica’s sister?


    i would pick the 3rd storyline - i stopped the excerpt before we got to it - as monica's best.  i did like the 2nd 1 above.  i never, however, bought monica and alan as a love couple.  they were more real when they were fighting.

    not on the list?  monica and susan moore.  she was alan's mistress and they tangled quite a bit.  i thought leslie charleson (who played monica) had great chemistry with steve bond who played jimmy lee (edward quartermaine's extra-marital son, brother of alan).  

    michael maloney ('tv insider') notes of the funeral:

    The memorial for Dr. Monica Quartermaine, played by the late Leslie Charleson, on General Hospital would not have been complete without the presence of Genie Francis, whose character, Laura Webber Collins, has a rich and loving history with Monica.

    Francis combined Laura’s roles as both the mayor of Port Charles and her being Monica’s dear pal and delivered a poignant performance that has earned the Daytime Emmy winner this week’s TV Insider Performer of the Week honors.

    Prior to the service beginning, Laura greeted Jason (Steve Burton), Monica’s son, and not only gave him her personal condolences, but she also noted that Monica’s role at General Hospital made her a respected figure in Port Charles.

    “It’s impossible to overstate how important a pillar of this community your mother was,” Laura said. “She was right at the heart of it all. I respected her more than I can say. She’s also a friend of mine. I’ll miss her a lot.”

    Laura let Jason know that her mother, Lesley (Denise Alexander), wasn’t able to be at the memorial because she’d caught a bug and couldn’t travel. The legendary rivalry between Monica and Lesley was instrumental in propelling the serial to the top spot in the ratings. The dynamic deserved to be acknowledged, and kudos to GH for doing so. Francis was tasked with playing on-screen that Lesley is still with us, but sadly, Alexander also passed away this year.

    i agree with that.  she really did a great job as i noted in 'general hospital bids farewell to monica and glen powell continues to kill his own career' last week.


    i wish they would bring back bianca ferguson.  remember claudia?  i loved her.  i always felt like the writers strike killed her off.  she continued on the show for years after - sammy davis jr came on and played her father-in-law.  but it was never the same.  

    it was summer which meant trying to match the previous summer of luke & laura on the run.  scorpio had just been added to the cast.  laura knew he was stalking her and had to get away from him.  she and claudia are at the campus disco and go to the ladies' room and make a plan for how laura can get out without scorpio seeing her.  and it's about their friendship and about luke and scotty - claudia really wants laura back with scotty baldwin.  and it's just so many textures in those scenes.


    then the writer's strike comes about and you've got the cassadine's island and all these new characters - tiffany, delfina, and so many others.  and there's no claudia.  even when luke, laura, scorpio, tiffany and delfina come back to port charles, there's still no claudia.  it's like every 1 who remembered the friendship between claudia and laura was forgotten.  :(

    let's close with c.i.'s 'The Snapshot:'


    Thursday, October 2, 2025.  Chump's shutdown continues, new figures also demonstrate how he's destroyed the economy, ICE physically attacks reporters, the ICE agent suspended last week for assaulting a woman -- the one Homeland Security insisted had exhibited unacceptable behavior -- is back in the streets of America because there is no oversight, Senator Tammy Duckworth calls out Pete Hegseth's lies and nonsense, and much, much more.


    Let's start with Chump.  The government shuts down and so does Chump's mouth?  He goes into hiding?  He has nothing to say and avoids the cameras?  What?  He couldn't find enough orange foundation and other make up to slather on as he primps and preens like an aging drag queen before the public?  Lawrence O'Donnell explained on his show last night that the GOP sent everyone out to face the press Wednesday -- everyone except Chump.


     



    Pete Hegseth has long been a controversial member of Donald Trump's second administration, but with a number of reports claiming others in the military have raised concerns about his plans (and that his behavior is becoming increasingly erratic), we can't help but wonder if there's another Musk-Trump-esque breakup looming. Sips tea. 

    ICYMI, the last few days of September 2025 weren't great for the Secretary of Defense, er, War. For one, a report from The Washington Post claimed that a number of military leaders were apprehensive about his proposed new National Defense Strategy, regarding which General Dan Caine was said to have "[given] Hegseth very frank feedback." Okay, so that's not exactly the end of the world — after all, there's always bound to be some debate when drafting a strategy. However, the insider further hinted that there was more to Caine's intervention. "I don't know if Hegseth even understands the magnitude of the NDS, which is why I think Caine tried so hard," they claimed. Ouch. 

    Caine's criticism of Hegseth is interesting to note, given the general's closeness to Trump. In fact, Trump has long gushed over Caine, even lauding his appearance (obvs), referring to him as "right out of central casting" (via The Atlantic). Caine is also one of Trump's few appointees to have been widely accepted, thanks to his years on the job. With all that said, we couldn't not notice the parallels between the last days of the president's bromance with Elon Musk, who also butted heads with one of Trump's trusted appointees, Peter Navarro. Ofc, Musk ended up coming last in that particular love triangle, and their explosive bromance breakup came just months later. Screen goes black as "To be continued ..." fades in slowly. 
    As some will know, the rumored tension between Pete Hegseth and Dan Caine isn't the only drama surrounding the Secretary of War to have come to light. Au contraire, just over a month prior to that particular story being published, The Washington Post had also shared insider claims that Hegseth seemed to be panicked over his personal security. One unnamed source from the Army's Criminal Investigations Division told the outlet of the protection surrounding Hegseth and his family, "I've never seen this many security teams for one guy. Nobody has." Others added that the budget for all that security was chipping away at the CID's funds, so much so, they claimed, that "we have complete inability to achieve our most basic missions." Unsurprisingly, backlash from MAGA-land was swift, with Florida congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna accusing The Washington Post of treason on X and calling for investigations into both the writer and their sources. This, despite the outlet specifying that they'd omitted any sensitive information in their write-up. 


    This morning, Ben (MEIDASTOUCH NEWS) nots Chump's hide and seek efforts.




    Ben references a NEW YORK TIMES article on Chump's showdown, its reported by Tony Romm:

    The Trump administration took steps on Wednesday to maximize the pain of the government shutdown, halting billions of dollars in funds for Democratic-led states while readying a plan to lay off potentially droves of civil servants imminently.

    The moves by the White House appeared both unprecedented and punitive, underscoring the risks of a fiscal stalemate that had no end in sight. It also evinced how President Trump might try to leverage the governmentwide closure to achieve his agenda, slash the budget and exact revenge on his political enemies.

    In a series of social media posts, Russell T. Vought, the White House budget director, said the administration had paused or moved to cancel the delivery of about $26 billion in previously approved funds across a range of programs, describing the money as wasteful or in need of further review.

    The timing seemed to be no mere coincidence, nor were Mr. Vought’s choices of location. He said the administration was terminating one tranche of funds, totaling about $8 billion, because it was “Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda,” a move that affected projects in 16 states, most of which are led by Democrats.


    He is hurting Americans.  US House Rep Mikie Sherrill is running for governor of New Jersey and, last night on Lawrence's show, she explained perfectly how Chump (and her Republican rival for the office of governor who backs Chump on everything) are harming New Jersey.  She did a brilliant walk through but the idiots in charge of MSNC's YOUTUBE page don't have it posted..



    That's audio of Lawrence's full show.  Fifteen minutes in, Miki joins him.  The topic that they're discussing is one her campaign issued a release on yesterday:


    BLOOMFIELD — Today, Mikie Sherrill pledged once again to “fight tooth and nail” to complete the Gateway Tunnel Project, the nation’s most important infrastructure project that is crucial to fixing New Jersey’s broken transit system. 

    Jack Ciattarelli knows this project is critical. But, he is squirming and refusing to fight these attacks on New Jersey. Because, as always, Jack’s focused on serving Donald Trump, not New Jersey.
     

    • When asked who is to blame for the shutdown, Jack said “I don’t know enough about the details.” News flash — it’s his boss, Donald Trump. 
       

    • When asked about the Trump administration’s move to pause the project, Jack said “it doesn’t stop what’s going on” How does Jack expect the project to continue after Trump ripped away the funding? (You would think a CPA could figure that out) 

    Jack has no interest in serving New Jerseyans — as a candidate or as governor. On the debate stage last week, he promised Trump he won’t sue him on anything. This comes after Jack has said his job as governor would be “to help Trump” and refuses to name a single thing he disagrees with Trump on.

    Mikie is running to take on anyone — including her own party — to fix New Jersey’s broken transit system, build the Gateway Tunnel, and deliver for working families.

    ###



    Mikie Sherrill's campaign or MSNBC needs to immediately post a video of the discussion on YOUTUBE.  She talks about how her rival in the race is backing Chump, not New Jersey.  Mikie notes, "He refuses to lead on this effort nd is kowtowing to Donald Trump."  She talks about how the project Chump is trying to destroy would bring in around 100,000 jobs in New Jersey.  It's very clear that one side is attempting to provide for citizens and the other side isn't interested in serving the people of New Jersey because he would rather kiss Chump's sweaty ass. 


    Mikie also spoke to Pete Loose Lips Hegseth's awful remarks on Tuesday.  Senator Tammy Duckworth has also called him out on that:


    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] — Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement lambasting President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s unprecedented, wasteful and insulting speeches to many of our nation’s military leaders at great cost to American taxpayers and our national security:

    “As Trump pushes our nation to the brink of another Republican shutdown, Cadet Bone Spurs and the least qualified Defense Secretary in history decided to waste millions of taxpayer dollars—and our top military leaders’ time and attention—to force them to fly thousands of miles to listen to a partisan diatribe unbecoming of our nation’s leaders, all while Americans face real threats from adversaries that wish to do us harm.

    “The nation’s top defense leader encouraging hazing troops who answered the call to fight and die for us is utterly appalling, especially from someone who should know that American troops have died from hazing. He also claimed that weakening rules of engagement strengthens our warfighters, when in reality it will simply create more enemies of America and make it more likely those enemies would torture captured American troops. And his claim that diversity is ‘debris’ erases the valor shown by women, people of color and many others who’ve served in uniform since this country’s founding and makes a mockery of our Veterans. Meanwhile, Trump’s distressing desire to use American cities as ‘training grounds for our military’ isn’t just intrinsically un-American, it’s unconstitutional and is the sort of misuse of the military that tin-pot dictators—not Presidents—are known for.

    “None of the ideas presented this morning make our military stronger or our nation safer. They are dangerous actions that threaten our national security and undermine the Constitutional rights of all Americans that our troops—as well as Trump and Hegseth—have sworn an oath to support and defend. If this PR stunt proved anything, it’s that the best thing Pete Hegseth can do to strengthen our military is resign in disgrace immediately.”

    -30-



    MORNING JOE has a strong segment on the shutdown this morning.  Mika notes how the vice president continues to lie about the shutdown. 




    As Mika notes, this has nothing to do with immigrants.  This lie has been called out repeatedly this week including by Tom Lachman (DAILY BEAST):

    Donald Trump’s claim that Democrats want undocumented immigrants to get “free health care” has been exposed as false.

    The questionable talking point originated with Vice President JD Vance—who said Dems were holding government funding “hostage” for immigrant health benefits—and was repeated by the official X account of Senate Republicans and Speaker Mike Johnson.

    However, the claim is downright bogus, according to a fact-check by The New York Times.
    Ahead of Tuesday night’s looming government closure, the line was amplified by Trump, who told Politico, “We don’t want to give illegal aliens the health care of Americans.

    “[Democrats] want to destroy health care in America by giving it to millions and millions of illegal aliens. And there’s not money for that. Nobody has money for that.”
    In reality, federal law bars unauthorized immigrants from buying Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace plans or receiving ACA subsidies. They’re also ineligible for Medicaid, Medicare, and CHIP.

    None of that changes under Democrats’ funding proposal, which aims to extend ACA subsidies for Americans and roll back Medicaid cuts in the GOP’s July law, reports the outlet.


    They keep repeating the lie because they see the voters as suckers.  They lie and they con.  They did it with "They're eating cats and dogs!"  They're doing it again.  Erica L. Green (NEW YORK TIMES) tries to set the record straight this morning:

    Republicans have tried to drive their message by repeating the false assertion that Democrats were shutting down the government to fund free health care for unauthorized immigrants. Hours before the shutdown on Tuesday, Mr. Trump held two Oval Office events promoting health policy actions — one announcing a deal the administration made with the drugmaker Pfizer for the company to lower prices it charges to state Medicaid programs, and another on accelerating research into children with cancer.

    They depend on the stupid and they depend on the suckers.  That's what they do. 

     Next topic, Chump's gestapo.  The ICE agents continue to assault on the streets of America.  There is no justice because the Supreme Court is The Crooked Court and Chump is a crazed maniac who just gets more demented and senile every day.  



    At least one journalist appeared to be injured after one reporter was grabbed and another was shoved by masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at a New York City immigration court Tuesday morning, video of the encounter showed.

    In the video, a group of people enter an elevator, including a reporter from amNewYork who was carrying his camera. A masked man wearing a bullet proof vest with the word “police” grabs the reporter, as others shout, “Get the f*** off the elevator,” the video, obtained by Getty Images, shows.

    Another woman shooting photos outside the elevator is then shoved to the ground by another masked agent and falls onto another man with a camera who was also knocked to the floor, the video shows.     


     



    Ali Bauman and Jesse Zanger (CBS NEWS) remind, "It comes less than a week after video of a separate shoving incident at the ICE facility went viral. In that incident, a woman was shoved to the floor by an ICE officer who was initially relieved of his duties and then put back on the job." 


    Let's drop back to Monday's snapshot:

    In fact, let's return to Monica Moreta-Galarza who was attacked last week by ICE.  Samira Asma-Sadeque (PEOPLE) notes:

     According to another video of the incident cited by CNN, the woman was seen with her arms interlocked with a man, understood to be her husband, as he was being detained.

    One masked agent is allegedly seen grabbing the woman's hair while someone else is heard saying, “Just grab her, grab her and pull her away.


    Monica's the woman we noted in Friday's snapshot who was assaulted by ICE:


    Want to see something disgusting?  Steam this video at THE NEW YORK TIMES of an ICE agent slamming a woman to the ground.  Andy Newman and Luis Ferré-Sadurní report for the paper:

     A federal agent shoved a woman and pushed her to the floor in front of what appeared to be her two young children on Thursday during a confrontation at an immigration courthouse in Manhattan.

    A video shows a wrenching encounter in a hallway of 26 Federal Plaza in which the woman and a girl are desperately clinging to the woman’s husband, who is being detained. Agents pull the hair of the woman and the girl to get them away from the man.

    After agents pry the family apart and lead the resisting man away, the woman yells, “You guys don’t care about anything!” in Spanish at an agent who is trying to get her to leave and telling her, “Adios, adios.” She puts a hand on his chest, and he shoves her. When she tries to grab onto him, he pushes her down.

    This is not America, let's not pretend that it is.  It's hell and it's brought you to be the tedious contributions of Convicted Felon Donald Chump and the corrupt Supreme Court. 

    These are thugs unleashed by Donald Chump who are not bound by laws -- per the Supreme Court -- and who terrorize people daily.  And there is no real legal recourse presently, none at all.  Federal courts try to do their job and follow the law -- including the Constitution -- and for that Chump attacks them publicly and the Supreme Court nullifies them.  


    That's why the mid-terms are so important.  


    That video was outrageous.  And it got attention.  Other video that has been outrages has not gotten the amplification it deserves and needs.  Luis Ferré-Sadurní (NEW YORK TIMES) reports:


    A federal immigration officer was “relieved of his duties” and is under investigation after he shoved an Ecuadorean woman whose husband had been arrested and pushed her to the floor at an immigration courthouse in Manhattan, the Department of Homeland Security said on Friday.

    The altercation took place on Thursday at 26 Federal Plaza, the epicenter of President Trump’s immigration crackdown in New York City, and was captured in videos that spread rapidly on social media and beyond. The footage set off an outcry from New York City officials who denounced the behavior of the officer, who has not been identified, and demanded that he be disciplined.

    [. . .]

    “The officer’s conduct in this video is unacceptable and beneath the men and women of ICE,” said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, the agency that oversees ICE. “Our ICE law enforcement are held to the highest professional standards and this officer is being relieved of current duties as we conduct a full investigation.”

    Ms. McLaughlin declined to elaborate when asked if the officer had been suspended or fired, saying, “That’s being determined pending investigation.”

    On Friday, Representative Dan Goldman and Brad Lander, the city comptroller, both Democrats, referred the ICE officer to Pam Bondi, the attorney general, and the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan for felony prosecution. The referral is a recommendation for prosecution, but the Department of Justice has the discretion to decide whether to pursue a case.


    And that's probably where it now starts and ends.  Homeland Security says they're investigating and they don't do a damn thing and then try to pretend that there's no reason to provide an update.  Of course, there is.  The simplest one being public trust. 


    No one should ever be treated the way Monica Moreta-Galarza was treated.  


    But ICE and Homeland Security will pretend the matter was addressed when it never was.


    It can't be addressed.  To do so would probably open the US government up to a lawsuit on the part of the ICE agent beating up the woman.  That man would then sue if he was held accountable.  And he'd note what ICE agents have told me: That they're instructed to do whatever they want and told they will face no consequences.  


    So watch Homeland Security bury the whole thing while pretending that they're addressing it.


    And that's just what they've done, isn't it?  

    Let's zoom in on the public statement from Homeland Security that's noted above:

    “The officer’s conduct in this video is unacceptable and beneath the men and women of ICE,” said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, the agency that oversees ICE. “Our ICE law enforcement are held to the highest professional standards and this officer is being relieved of current duties as we conduct a full investigation.”


    A week later, we learn that he's back at work.  No longer relieved of current duties.  That was a quick investigation.  And what a turn around from "The officer's conduct in this video is unacceptable and beneath the men and women of ICE."

    I guess that conduct is acceptable -- which we all knew -- and that it regular behavior on the part of "the men and women of ICE."  


    Reached for comment, a DHS official did not address the officer being placed back on duty but called the woman's husband a "criminal illegal alien."

    "President Trump and Secretary Noem are not going to allow criminal illegal aliens to terrorize American citizens," the official said. "If you come to our country illegally and break our laws, we will arrest you and you will never return."

    CBS News reached out to representatives for ICE and the White House for comment.



    Thugs.  Chump's gestapo.  This morning, Ja'han Jones (MSNBC) notes:





    Judge Young does not take lightly the privilege he enjoys to enter his opinions into the unbroken line of American jurisprudence. To that end, he goes beyond the mere abuse of the Immigration and Nationality Act — which he notes is unprecedented in its unconstitutional gall — to call out the tactics that the administration adopts to add to the sense of terror they can impose in the name of squelching speech:

    And there’s the issue of masks. This Court has listened carefully to the reasons given by Öztürk’s captors for masking-up and has heard the same reasons advanced by the defendant Todd Lyons, Acting Director of ICE. It rejects this testimony as disingenuous, squalid and dishonorable. ICE goes masked for a single reason — to terrorize Americans into quiescence. Small wonder ICE often seems to need our respected military to guard them as they go about implementing our immigration laws. It should be noted that our troops do not ordinarily wear masks. Can you imagine a masked marine? It is a matter of honor — and honor still matters. To us, masks are associated with cowardly desperados and the despised Ku Klux Klan. In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police. Carrying on in this fashion, ICE brings indelible obloquy to this administration and everyone who works in it. “We can not escape history,” Lincoln righty said. “[It] will light us down in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation.” Abraham Lincoln, Second Annual Message to Congress (Dec. 1, 1862).

    For those keeping score, this is a Republican-appointed judge comparing the Republican administration to the Ku Klux Klan. Remember this when the White House inevitably blasts this as a partisan opinion.



    A man from El Salvador was stopped for allegedly driving a landscaping truck through federal parkland. A Honduran man was pulled over when the police said he ran a stop sign as his family left a local park. A Jordanian man was detained while working in a food truck on the National Mall during a crackdown on unlicensed vendors.

    President Trump’s deployment of federal law enforcement officers in August across Washington — intended, officials said, to lower crime — transformed what was one of the largest sanctuary cities in the country into a test case for Immigration and Customs Enforcement as it expands its efforts in major urban centers.

    The agency sharply increased its arrests in the city by working alongside the local police and other federal agencies to identify immigrants during stops for minor traffic violations, according to law enforcement officials, lawyers for detained migrants, internal immigration records and witness accounts.

    ICE had made only 85 arrests in Washington from Jan. 20 through the end of July, according to data obtained by the Deportation Data Project. But from early August until mid-September, ICE made around 1,200 arrests, according to officials with knowledge of the data.

    One key to the strategy: ICE’s close partnership with both the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Park Police, according to a New York Times review of dozens of videos filmed by witnesses in Washington. At other times, the agency operated alone, with masked officers detaining people in sometimes aggressive encounters that drew angry protests from neighbors.

    Last week, an immigrants rights organization sued the Department of Homeland Security, accusing the agency of targeting people for their ethnicity, making arrests without probable cause and sowing “terror in Latino and other communities across the District.”


    The horror stories never end with ICE.  These horror stories are endless and all over the US.  For example, Jennifer Brown (COLORADO SUN) reports:

    n the six months since beloved immigrant rights activist Jeanette Vizguerra-Ramirez was detained outside a Target, her family, friends and fellow reformers have protested weekly outside the ICE detention center in Aurora. 

    “Every single Monday. Since March 17,” said Jennifer Piper, who has fought for human rights alongside Vizguerra for 22 years. 

    “I can’t overstate the harm to her, to her children and to our communities that the administration has targeted her in this way for standing up for human rights over so many years,” said Piper, with the nonprofit American Friends Service Committee. “It’s urgent that she be free so she can be safe, so she can be the mom she wants to be and so she can do her life’s work, which is to advocate for human rights.” 

    Supporters of Vizguerra, who once took refuge in a Denver church to avoid deportation and in 2017 was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world, gathered outside the detention center again this week. Along with praying, chanting and singing, the group learned from Vizguerra’s legal team that, after more than six months of fighting her detention and deportation in court, her attorneys are making a fresh attempt to win her release. 

    Now that Vizguerra has been held for longer than 180 days, her legal team can file a motion for leave that forces the federal government to justify her detention. The legal maneuver is more straightforward than the complex motions filed in the case so far, which have included arguing that Vizguerra’s right to free speech was violated because she was targeted for speaking out against the Trump administration. 



    No criminal convictions.  But targeted for deportation and now held behind bars for over 180 days.


    It is hard to keep track of all of Chump's failures; however, you can't note his failures without noting the outcome of his war on the economy: Chump won, the American people lost.  Jacob Crosse (WSWS) reports:

    For the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, private employers in the United States laid off more workers than they hired in back-to-back months, according to payrolls processor ADP (Automatic Data Processing).

    The unofficial data, which Wall Street investors are relying on since the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) job report is unlikely to come out this Friday due to the government shutdown, revealed that private employment decreased in the US by 32,000 jobs in September, staggering economists who had previously estimated gains of as many as 50,000 jobs.

    ADP also revised its August 2025 report, which initially reported 54,000 private sector job gains to -3,000. This is the third month this year ADP has reported negative monthly job growth; in June 2025 ADP reported -33,000 private sector job losses, the first monthly decline since March 2023.

    President Donald Trump’s claims that the US economy has entered a “golden age” were bluntly rebutted by the report, which noted the “trend was unchanged; job creation continued to lose momentum across most sectors.” Industries seeing declines in hiring included construction, manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, trade, transportation and utilities, as well as professional and business services. The few sectors that saw any growth were mining, education and healthcare services.

    The ADP report is based on surveys and analysis covering more than 26 million US workers. Unlike the ADP report which only tracks private job growth, the BLS report tracks both government and private business.

    ADP’s figures are in line with other private sector analyses. On September 4, global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found US-based employers had announced nearly 86,000 jobs cuts in August, up 39 percent from the 62,075 job cuts announced in July. August job cuts were the highest recorded for the month since August 2020, when over 115,000 jobs were slashed.

    The US economy is teetering on the brink of recession with workers in white- and blue-collar industries finding it increasingly impossible to find work. In their September report, Challenger, Gray & Christmas observed that so far this year, private companies in the US have announced “892,362 job cuts the highest year to date since 2020,” when companies laid off nearly 2 million workers. This year’s figures represent a 66 percent increase compared to the first 8 months of last year and 17 percent more job losses than in all of 2024 (761,358).


    Need another horror story?  AP reports:

    An Alabama construction worker and U.S. citizen who says he was detained twice by immigration agents within just a few weeks has filed a lawsuit in federal court demanding an end to Trump administration workplace raids targeting industries with large immigrant workforces.

    The class-action lawsuit, filed Tuesday by concrete worker Leo Garcia Venegas with the public interest law firm Institute for Justice, demands an end to what the firm calls “unconstitutional and illegal immigration enforcement tactics.”

    Venegas, who was born in the U.S., lives and works in Baldwin County, Alabama, a Gulf Coast area between the cities of Mobile and Pensacola, Florida, that has seen immense population growth in the last 15 years, and which offers plenty of construction work.



    Attorneys for the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) have argued in court that federal agents working for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated the law when they detained a family of four this past weekend in front of the Crown Fountain at Millennium Park.

    The arrest took place on Sunday when U.S. Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Gregory Bovino, along with tens of masked, armed agents dressed in camouflage were seen patrolling the streets of downtown Chicago, in a show of force aimed at advancing President Trump's massive deportation agenda.

    According to a Tuesday court filing by attorneys with the NIJC, agents arrested two parents and their two young children, ages three and eight, "without warrants or any flight risk determinations."

    "The family simply wanted to enjoy the warm Sunday afternoon in Millennium Park at their daughter's insistence," the filing states. "Now, DHS has already transferred [one parent] to detention in Texas, and [the other parent] and children are detained in a room at O'Hare airport."

    A video posted on Instagram by the account Arab Chicago, which was included as an exhibit in the court filing, shows the family of four marched out of Millennium Park, escorted by federal agents.

    "Based on available video, the DHS officers appear to rely on the parents' young daughter to translate for them," the filing states. "With Mr. Bovino in charge of immigration enforcement operations in Chicago, Defendants are taking an equally aggressive, cavalier and unlawful approach to their enforcement here."

    Let's wind down with this from Senator Patty Murray's office:

    Trump, Vought cause shutdown, use it as pretext to enact their extreme agenda & inflict pain on the American people

    President Trump yesterday: “A lot of good can come down from shutdowns. We can get rid of a lot of things that we didn’t want.”

    Washington, D.C. –  Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Ranking Member of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, issued the following statement on announcements made by White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought vowing to cancel billions of dollars in funding provided by Congress to lower people’s energy costs–including in Washington state.

    “President Trump has spent the year hurting families, killing jobs, and raising people’s costs, and now he and Russ Vought are gleefully using the shutdown they have caused as a pretext to inflict even more pain.

    “The American people deserve so much better than a president and an administration that treat their families and their livelihoods like pawns in some sort of sick political game. 

    “This administration has had plans in the works for months to cancel critical energy projects, and now, they are illegally taking action to kill jobs and raise people’s energy bills. This is a blatant attempt to punish the political opposition, but this won’t just hurt Democrats–it’ll hurt regular people just trying to get by, in red districts and blue districts alike. We’ve never had an administration work so hard to hurt the people they represent.

    “The last thing that anyone is asking for right now is to pay more on their electric bill or their health care, but that’s what President Trump is ensuring happens.

    If Donald Trump and Russ Vought think these ugly intimidation tactics will work, they are sorely mistaken. I will be standing firm against this corrupt abuse of power—and every Republican should think carefully about what precedent they want to set by allowing this weaponization of taxpayer dollars.”

    ###



    The following sites updated: