Showing posts with label US presidency. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US presidency. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

FOUR C’s — Careless, Corrupt, Chaotic, Callous (and an “I” for Incompetent) — are US

(Are we? —Toys R’ Us might disagree)



Inmates at Helm
Misters M and T (& Co), and A Streak that Crosses Aisles



MUSK Contributions to Donald Trump


Musk Personal contribution

$130 million+

 

 

Musk “America PAC”

$200 million+




US Government Contributions to Musk



$21 billion

Promised or Awarded

Since 2008 (still flowing-Feb 2025)

$76.7 million

Promised

Since 47th’s Inauguration

 

 

 


WHAT FOR


National Aeronautics and Space Administration: “Flying NASA to the moon” US government-exorbitantly funds, via “federal contracts,” Elon Musk’s “private space company… ‘SpaceX.’”


Since the start of recordkeeping in this area, money promised to SpaceX


PROMISED in US government contracts, research grants, and other forms of public assistance

$20.7 billion

 

 

NASA (contracts with) in above promised

$14.6 billion

 

 

PROJECTED (if NASA exercises all options in every contract

$56.4 billion

 

 

US government Paid out to date

 

$8.7 billion

 

 

US Government in Debt to Musk

US Government in Debt to Musk

 

 

US Department of Defense (promised) contracts with Musk’s SpaceX

 

$5.6 billion

Up to max future payout $32.8 billion

 

 

US Department of State subsidiary US Agency for International Development (USAID) PROMISED TO Musk’s SpaceX subsidiary Starlink

 

(circa) $2.3 million

 

 

US Department of Commerce owed to Musk’s SpaceX

$1.4 million

 

 

US Department of Veterans Affairs owed to Musk’s SpaceX

$578,875




Money to Tesla Electric Vehicle Company Run by Musk



US Government boost of Tesla income via tax credits to Tesla-buying customers

$3.4 billion

 

 

US Department of Energy low-interest loan to Tesla for help developing new electric vehicles

$465 million

 

 

US government contract with Tesla for “‘armored electric vehicles’” (under current scrutiny)

 

$400 million

 

 

 

US government purchases solar and vehicles

$4.5 million

 

 

 

 

(Federal data analyzed by The Independent)
Independent UK: “Here’s how many billions Elon Musk’s companies are making from U.S. taxpayers: While their boss takes a sledgehammer to federal agencies, SpaceX and Tesla are earning big money from government contracts,” writes Io Dodds February 23, 2025, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/musk-government-contracts-spacex-tesla-taxes-b2703141.html


US Government Spending in Top 50 Recipients
Source USA Spending FY 2008 through FY 2025 – Five area Recipients
*(Akb = Also Known By)


$30.2 Billion

 

LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP akb* 22 other names

 

Five US Gov Awarding Agencies

Department of Defense

National Aeronautics and Space Administration  Department of Homeland Security

Department of Transportation

Department of Justice

 

 

 

$21.9 Billion

 

ROCKWELL COLLINS AUSTRALIA PTY LIMITED

Akb 52 other names

 

 

Five US Gov Awarding Agencies

Department of Defense

National Aeronautics and Space Administration  Department of Homeland Security

Department of Transportation

General Services Administration

$20.1 Billion

 

THE BOEING COMPANY

Akb 23 other names

 

 

Five US Gov Awarding Agencies

Department of Defense

National Aeronautics and Space Administration  Department of Homeland Security

General Services Administration

Department of Energy

 

$10.2 Billion

 

LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION

Akb 3 other names

 

Three US Gov Awarding Agencies

Department of Defense

National Aeronautics and Space Administration  Department of Homeland Security

 

$9.3 Billion

 

LEIDOS HOLDINGS, INC.

Akb 45 other names

 

Five US Gov Awarding Agencies

Department of Defense  Department of Veterans Affairs

Department of Health and Human Services

Department of Transportation

Department of Energy

 

USA Spending dot Gov “Recipient Profiles.” https://www.usaspending.gov/recipient



“Which Inmate Is Running the Asylum?” 
Electoral Vote https://www.electoral-vote.com/



Trump, “Musk and his Band of Bros”


“With Trump, way back in 2016 (campaign) or 2017 (commencement of his administration), we kept looking for the underlying plan, the logic, the chess moves. And it turns out those things weren't there.

“We are not inclined to make that mistake again with Musk. It is possible he is brilliant in other domains, but in this domain, he's lost.”


An Infamous, Callous 5 Bullet Electronic Missive

People “who work for the federal government, either as regular employees or as contractors, are, by and large, loyal and hardworking public servants who—in many cases—left money on the table by agreeing to work in the public sector. They have families (and) mortgages…. They have lives. They are human beings.

“To make them jump through stupid, insulting hoops—like they are trained seals begging for a treat—is just reprehensible.”

The infamous electronic mail arrives and “quite a few high-ranking Trumpers (tell) their underlings to ignore (it).” Among the Trump-appointed high-rankers casting doubt on or putting a spanner in the bulleted missive are “FBI Director Kash Patel and DNI Tulsi Gabbard.”

The careless, callous creature then appeals to his would-be master (?) who then posts an apparent ‘I’m with you- keep pitching’ message via “his very sad little social media platform.” And the callous bulleted missive returns threatening immediate termination of service of those failing to respond to said missive. The sitting president’s I’m with you- keep pitching, my boy, apparently turned to comme ci, comme ça or you’re on your own, partner.
His second attempt at support reportedly said something to the effect that “employees who did not follow Musk's orders would be ‘fired’ or … ‘semi-fired,’” leaving muddied the meaning of “’semi-fired.’” And post Trump the OPM messaged a declaration that employee responses to the South African’s “demands (were) optional”; and not responding “would not lead to termination.”
The consensus of opinion in some sectors, this writer observes, is that there is not only callousness and carelessness; but there is incompetence (and therefore weakness) all round.
Some “Trumpers have concluded that Musk is incompetent or … a threat, or both.” Moreover, the writer continues, the sitting US president has a habit of attracting and hiring incompetents” — as “he is himself an incompetent manager”— and questionable online content makers. The author cites the current appointment to deputy FBI director, a man whose salient qualifications are apparently “far-right, extremely whack-a-doodle, Trump-cultist podcast[ing]” heard to declare that “his mission is to ‘own the libs’ because they are ‘pure unadulterated evil.’”

The management incompetence and questionable judgment of the sitting president was evidenced in “his first term” which was “marked by all kinds of turf wars … among … underlings, usually ending in someone being (pushed out)”: vast turnover of employees and general destabilization or chaos. In his second term, “the turf wars” are seen to start “much earlier and are developing much quicker.”

Four is a long pull of years for a US President. And what happens from here to there is anybody’s guess. What is known, the writer concludes, is that the sitting president seems to be intimidated by the South African; and a general manifestation of the former’s character and behavior is spinelessness. “… Even as Musk steps on every toe in Washington, Trump doesn't have the courage to rein him in. … Will The Donald (eventually summon the courage to) impose some discipline on Musk? And, if so, will it actually come from the President, or will he send someone like Stephen Miller to do it?”


Stephen Miller, an influencer and hanger-on around media and federal government with seemingly questionable or extremist views has been in recent years a White House Director of Speechwriting (January 20, 2017 – January 20, 2021) and, serving with Jared Kushner, a Senior Advisor to the President (January 20, 2017 – January 20, 2021). His current double roles are United States Homeland Security Advisor and White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy (both since January 20, 2025).


“That's where things stood as of 2:00 a.m. PT on Tuesday. Who knows what the situation will be by, say, 2:00 p.m. PT on Tuesday?” Source: Electoral Vote “Which Inmate Is Running the Asylum?” https://www.electoral-vote.com/



Money Plays?
Quid Pro Quo?
Revolving Door
Inmates Running the Asylum 

Run amok

The Face of US Politics
Corruption, Chaos, Carelessness, Callousness, Calculated Incompetence


There is a critical difference between the Forty-sixth and the Forty-seventh US President. And mind you, I am not one who falls in love with or holds membership in a fan club for politicians of any stripe. So, bear that in mind. 

The Forty-sixth had long overstayed his time in office. And, clearly, he was suffering a serious mental impairment. Yet, foolishly, his political party exploited this in order to manage him. Impairment (any kind of incompetence) weakens a person, leaving them terribly vulnerable. Perhaps, also, he was corrupt, criminally abusive of public office. Criminality and unethical behavior should be checked and reprimand, chastised or otherwise subjected to the rule of law—not matter who is involved. But I believe, also, that the forty-sixth was knowledgeable of public service and knew or should have known the proper role and functioning of government (the US Government). He knew what government was supposed to do. His long years (in two branches of government) would have taught him, firsthand, the difference and necessary distinction between public service and private enterprise.

The Forty-seventh is totally ignorant of that critical distinction and difference. In my view, he is uncaring of that difference and distinction and has no interest learning, let alone or honoring it. In his ignorance (ignorance also impairs, weakens, leaves vulnerable), he is also arrogantly disrespectful of government and of public servants. The forty-seventh is a private enterprise man, a buyer and seller of stuff, a wheeler-dealer. A merchant centered on self: on getting more than giving. He hasn’t a clue and cares less about Government of by and for the People.

Government, US Government, was not created to buy and sell stuff; nor was it (or its employees or leaders) meant to be bought and sold (or to preach a religion)—the essence and meaning of corruption, breakdown, destruction of all that is of (We the People American cultural) value.

Government, US Government, was not intended to serve or pander to special interests (and if it was, the system was also a work in progress toward building a more and more perfect Union). Government should be a vital servant of ALL the people—having the whole society in mind, clearly cognizant of (and emotionally embracing) the principle that the health of the whole society (society as a whole) and government (up and down the spectrum) is dependent on the health and wellbeing of all the country’s people.




###

PROLIFIC SOUTHERN-BORN AMERICAN WRITER DR. CAROLYN LADELLE BENNETT focuses on People, Press, Politics USA; Domestic and Foreign Affairs (no copyright claimed in direct quotes and individual image)
Latest book: Are There No Champions? Yes and No
Links: https://www.facebook.com/carolynladelle.bennett
https://insightbeyondtodaysnews.blogspot.com/
(live limited) https://www.bennettsareherenochampions.com/
https://www.xlibris.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/859250-are-there-no-champions-yes-and-no
https://www.xlibris.com
Email: Nolandanisland@hotmail.com or Authorswork@gmail.com

Wednesday, November 6, 2024

An APPEAL in THIS MOMENT: America is in Crisis, Time to Heal

Voters casting their ballots on one of the dominant party lines have given America a President-elect, returning First Lady Melania and Donald John to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. 


America is in Crisis, Time to Heal 


Whatever the preferences of individual Americans or groups—the time has come, and is long past time, to bind up our wounds and bridge the gulf between us (gulfs among us). 
Time to heal our sick and wounded, no matter the illness (mental, moral or physical)—instead of deepening and profiteering on dependency. 
It is time to house our homeless in permanent dwellings—instead of discarding our people to refugee camps in their homeland. It is time to ensure sound education and training and put our people to substantive work earning living wages.
It is long past time to end the manufacture of enemies, end the fear mongering, end the wars and war profiteering. Long past time to roll up our sleeves and get to work solving our problems, our country’s problems. End the infantile and dangerous game of shirking responsibility and blaming others for our failures, our missteps, and our endemic problems. It is long past time to mend our brokenness at every level of society and government.


Astute Observation from Afar

At this Moment in the United States of America, “people are literally ready to attack each other, beat each other, just because” a person supporting a particular politician is observed wearing “symbols or campaigns for that politician…”

Based on observed experience of past elections, the “main challenge” facing the United States of America (as a nation and as a people) is ensuring that this election’s electoral results “are accepted by society.” And “whatever that outcome,” Americans are “going to have to overcome the internal emotional divide” (excerpt, added emphasis, minor edit).

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation, Member of the Foreign Ministry Collegium and Russian Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Multi-lingual ZAKHAROVA Maria Vladimirovna PhD. Posts: Head of the Press Service of Russia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York City (2005-2008); Foreign Ministry’s Central Office positions (2008-2011); Deputy Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2011-2015); Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian MFA (2015 – present time). Academic work: Graduated from “the International Information Faculty at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations under the Russian Foreign Ministry, specializing in international journalism (1998). https://mid.ru/en/about/structure/deputy_ministers/579909/


We will welcome the United States of America’s Forty-fifth President (Donald John Trump) returned by the electorate as America’s Forty-seventh President. 

We will wish him well. We will wish him wisdom. 

And we hope (I hope) that he will work actively with elected and nonelected Americans to help America (and Americans) heal. 


PROLIFIC SOUTHERN-BORN AMERICAN WRITER DR. CAROLYN LADELLE BENNETT focuses on People, Press, Politics USA; Domestic and Foreign Affairs (no copyright claimed in direct quotes and individual image)
Latest book: Are There No Champions? Yes and No
Links: https://www.facebook.com/carolynladelle.bennett
https://insightbeyondtodaysnews.blogspot.com/
(live limited) https://www.bennettsareherenochampions.com/
https://www.xlibris.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/859250-are-there-no-champions-yes-and-no
https://www.xlibris.com
Email: Nolandanisland@hotmail.com or Authorswork@gmail.com


News Sources

Bloomberg News reporting Updated November 6, 2024, 11:27:24 AM EST United States Presidential Election Results …: “Donald Trump has surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency, according to the Associated Press.” https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-us-election-results/

RT November 6, 2024 

World News “Moscow warns of US ‘internal emotional divide’ Americans must find a way to overcome their divisions, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman has said,” https://www.rt.com/russia/607101-zakharova-biggest-us-challenge/

“Exit polls reveal fear and loathing among US voters; Most Americans are pessimistic about their country, according to surveys” (“National polls have suggested that 70% of Americans are ‘dissatisfied or angry’ about the way things were going in the US, and the same percentage expecting violence to ensue, regardless of the election outcome” https://www.rt.com/news/607114-us-voters-exit-polls/


 

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Ignored Worth Mentioning Platform Planks of Contenders

Published Concerns of Four Libertarian Candidates
2024 US Presidential Platform excerpts

CHASE OLIVER

End Wars, Support Peace

My entire adult life our nation has been at war somewhere in the world. I have friends and loved ones who have served, and come home with the visible and invisible scars of combat.

I’ve seen them mourn their brothers and sisters who didn’t come home. I meet more and more anti-war veterans every day, and they know more than anyone about the cost of war.

It is time we focus our foreign policy on Peace.

We should end our policy of sending drones around the world; and instead, foster international goodwill by defending free trade and free markets. Our nation has long had the moniker ‘leader of the free world.’ It is time we earn that distinction by insisting that Peace is the way forward.

End the wars. End the drones. End the policy of constant intervention. It’s easy to drop a bomb; it is much harder to serve as a beacon of Peace. We must take the more difficult but necessary path.

Close all overseas bases and immediately return active-duty personnel to domestic bases. The cost savings of doing so will be used as a one-time contribution to discharge the interest on currently outstanding Federally guaranteed student loans.

End aid being directed to nation-states currently at war. This includes Israel and Ukraine. While we offer moral support to our friends currently engaged with the enemy, we should not be contributing to extending the fight.

With this said, I recognize that there are aggressors and victims in war. I would allow private parties, including defense contractors, to voluntarily contribute funds and sell weapons to our friends without fear of violating any Federal laws.

If asked to act as a mediator, I would more than happily allow America to act as a mediator in negotiating a peace that ends the conflict without rewarding aggressing parties for bad behavior.

CHASE OLIVER: Tennessee native, Georgia resident. Former Fundraising Director, Outright USA; Chair, Libertarian Party of Atlanta, 2016-2017

Vote Smart
https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/195318/chase-oliver
Candidate’s website
https://www.votechaseoliver.com/about
“WHAT CHASE STANDS FOR”
https://www.votechaseoliver.com/platform

Also listed on this FEC-Registered Candidate’s Platform

  • Create a thriving economy
  • Respect individual choice on tough issues
  • Empower parents and students in education
  • End the student debt crisis to assist in individual financial and retirement security
  • Champion gun rights for all
  • Lower the cost of healthcare through market and innovation
  • Restore prosperity by reducing inflation



CHARLES BALLAY MD

… [M]y stance is one of cautious pragmatism.

It emphasizes diplomacy, multilateral cooperation, and the support of international institutions as the primary means of promoting democratic values and human rights, globally.

I advocate for a foreign policy that is not only informed by past lessons but also guided by a commitment to international peace, stability and respect for the sovereignty of nations.

Our goal should always be to support the conditions in which democracy can flourish, organically, rather than through imposed solutions, military action, and endless financial aid. However, these views… do not abdicate our responsibility to protect our homeland—the priority of our military efforts.

CHARLES BALLAY MD, Otolaryngologist, West Jefferson Medical Center (2007-present): Louisiana native Statement #2 on Military and Foreign Interventions updated: March 2024

https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/213666/charles-ballay
https://www.politics1.com/p2024.htm
https://www.ballay2024.com/
https://www.ballay2024.com/post/charles-ballay-m-d-libertarian-satement-2-on-military-and-foreign-interventions

Further notes on issues listed (excerpt)

DEBT: Implement a determined, multi-year initiative to drastically cut the National debt. For the economic future of coming generations, this action is non-negotiable; Fiscal Responsibility Amendment: Champion a Constitutional Amendment mandating fiscal responsibility, ensuring sustained economic health, and preventing irresponsible financial practices in the future. Expenditure Accountability: Take swift action to terminate inefficiencies and waste in federal spending. Dispense with duplicity, redundancy, and unnecessary outlays. The government’s duty is to serve and protect its citizens, not to engage in social engineering.

EDUCATION: Refocus the Department of Education on essential skills. Our youth should be prepared for the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow. Endorse a variety of educational paths. Encourage international educational experiences to produce citizens familiar with global cultures. Promote understanding through immersion.

HEALTH AND WELLBEING: Eliminate fraud: Encourage whistleblower protections and incentivize private-sector solutions to detect and eliminate fraud; Promote transparency in pricing, allowing consumers to make informed decisions; Shift focus to preventative health and wellness, recognizing the long-term benefits of a healthy population; Streamline FDA processes to ensure safety while promoting rapid innovation and patient access.

IMMIGRATION: Harmonized Immigration advocating … an efficient, streamlined, and merit-based immigration system, while ensuring national security; simplify visa procedures, focusing on economic benefits and cultural exchanges. Offer a clear, streamlined path to citizenship for immigrants who contribute positively to the nation.

DEMOCRACY Reaffirmed: Restoration of Public Faith: Advocate for term limits at all levels of federal governance, reducing career politicians and promoting fresh perspectives. https://www.ballay2024.com/issues



JACOB GEORGE HORNBERGER, JR

NATO is a Cold War dinosaur that should have been dismantled at the end of the Cold War.

Instead, the Pentagon has used NATO to reignite its Cold War against Russia, to ensure ever-increasing budgets for the national-security establishment and its army of voracious ‘defense’ contractors who feed at the public trough.

We need to immediately withdraw from NATO and terminate all foreign aid to Ukraine (and every other regime). Our lives, liberty, and well-being depend on it.

The sixty-year-old economic embargo against the Cuban people is another good example of this evil and immoral Republican-Democratic policy.

JACOB GEORGE HORNBERGER, JR.: Texas native, resident of Virginia; veteran US military; practicing attorney, college professor, author, foundation founding president; authorship: Economic Liberty and the Constitution; My Passion for Liberty; The CIA, Terrorism, and the Cold War: The Evil of the National Security State (https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/50952/jacob-hornberger-jr)

Further notes on issues listed (excerpt)

Restore the Republic: Our limited-government republic entailed a relatively small, basic military force and no Pentagon, military-industrial complex, CIA, or NSA. Our American ancestors were fiercely opposed to standing armies because they knew that standing armies, not foreign regimes, were the greatest threat to their freedom and well-being.…

Republicans and Democrats …, [b]y converting the federal government into a national-security state (and) vesting the federal government with omnipotent, totalitarian-like powers— including powers of assassination, torture, mass secret surveillance, and indefinite detention for both foreign and US nationals— … have destroyed (Americans’) rights and liberties.

Democrats and Republicans did not seek or secure a constitutional amendment that authorized the abandonment of a limited-government republic and the conversion to a national-security state. That means that the national-security state is illegitimate under our form of constitutional government.

Democrats and Republican say that the national-security state keeps us safe (when) it is actually the exact opposite.

Through its foreign policy of interventionism, invasions, wars of aggression, occupations, foreign aid, alliances with dictatorial regimes, crises, and coups, the national-security state makes us less safe, especially through terrorist blowback and retaliation.

As our American ancestors clearly understood, a national-security state is the biggest threat to our freedom and well-being.

The restoration of our rights and liberties necessarily depends on the dismantling of the national-security state form of government and the restoration of our founding governmental system of a limited government republic and a small, basic military force. https://www.jacobforliberty.com/positions/
Further 
  • No nuclear war
  • End all sanctions and embargoes
  • Repeal drug laws
  • Abolish income taxation and the irs
  • Abolish the CIA
  • Abolish the FBI
  • Abolish the NSA
  • End foreign interventionism
  • End the war on terrorism
  • Issue pardons
  • Protect the environment
  • End economic regulations https://www.jacobforlierty.com/positions/



LARS MAPSTEAD


UNRIG

UNRIG OUR ELECTIONS: the two-party dominance means the same old politicians, year after year, and an election system rigged in their favor. The Voters Bill of Rights empowers anyone to run for office, removes barriers to access, and secures our nation’s elections.

“UNRIG THE ECONOMY: Corporations and banks get bailed out while the price of … basic needs goes up.”

UNRIG HEALTHCARE: Insurance companies and politicians take money, while the quality of human care goes down. It’s time to empower everyone to choose their own healthcare, enforce existing transparency laws, and remove regulations hampering the next generation of doctors.

UNRIG CRIMINAL JUSTICE: We have a two-tier justice system that targets victimless crimes while the wealthy get away with (crime). Let’s end the failed federal drug war, eliminate qualified immunity, and bring fairness back to federal courts.

UNRIG GOVERNMENT: (American) politicians have forgotten who they serve. It is time to pass term limits, enforce insider trading bans, and empower (the citizenry) to fight back against corporate money in politics. https://www.lars24.com/unrig
https://www.lars24.com/#news

LARS MAPSTEAD: California native, technology entrepreneur and marketing executive

https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/211300/lars-mapstead
https://www.lars24.com/
https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/211300/lars-mapstead
https://www.lars24.com/meet-lars


MY Nagging Thought


The qualifications for the Presidency of the United States of America (Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the US Constitution) are in effect far fewer than would be required of a house plumber, maid, painter, or construction worker.
  • Natural-born citizen of the United States
  • Age 35 or older
  • US residency of no fewer than 14 years
For such a seriously demanding position open to easy abuse by unprincipled men and women—a position with such enormous reach affecting so many lives, entities and provinces (domestic and global)—more in strict qualifications should be required for fielding, candidacy, election, and seating in the position of US Presidency. The current three invite abuse and as such are themselves almost criminal.


Sources
Politics and Election Databases
Politics1 “P2024: The 2024 Presidential Candidates,” https://www.politics1.com/p2024.htm
Ballotpedia “List of registered 2024 presidential candidates,” https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_candidates,_2024


Composition, Compilation Commentary excluding quoted material and individual images
Copyright © Carolyn LaDelle Bennett
Author’s links: https://www.xlibris.com/en/search?query=Carolyn+LaDelle+Bennett
https://www.xlibris.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/828689-epitaph
https://www.facebook.com/carolynladelle.bennett
https://insightbeyondtodaysnews.blogspot.com/
nolandanisland@hotmail.com

 

Long Way from Madison—Time to Rethink, Revise

Qualifications Standards Enforcement  Prerequisites for Public Office We are a long way—carelessly and arrogantly distanced— from Madison, ...