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S12E01: Trump 2.0

Lantern7

By Lantern7
in Last Week Tonight

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Lantern7

Lantern7

Well, this was depressing.

Sure, we got a fresh song and some sexy deer calling, but John basically confirmed that things under a second Trump administration has been as bad as expected, if not so much worse. As much as I appreciate John continuing to at least try to look for silver linings and solutions, it feels like it’s in vain. The nation is run by frauds and robber barons, government efficiency is now overseen by boys who probably have to pay for sex, and Democrats aren’t running into the fire as quickly as their opposition likes setting fires. I know every bit of hope and effort helps, but it feels like a climb that goes straight up, ninety degrees, with no handholds. Also, I still have the fear that John might get forced off the air and/or deported. Sure, he’s a white guy, but he’s an irritating one, and there’s always a chance his current Business Daddy might not want to protect him. Have I mentioned how pessimistic I am?

One good bit: the annual renaming of dogs from the Westminster Dog Show. That’s always fun.

  • Like 17
Annber03

Annber03

That guy's song is amazing. Especially the bit where he points out that "y'all didn't want a lady in the office". Painfully sad yet true. 

The amount of cursing  and flipping off the TV that I did when Trump was all, "We'll hire based on merit again." Fuck. Off.  

I really, truly do not understand why someone can't just throw Musk's creepy supervillain ass out of here already. If the Democrats want to do something, surely they could get some higher up somewhere who's sympathetic to their side to do that? It's absolutely BONKERS that he's even allowed anywhere near such sensitive material and people are just...letting him do it instead of literally tossing him out on the White House lawn. 

I definitely agree the Democrats need a fighitng game plan going forward - I get the desire to pick one's battles in and of itself simply because of the whole idea that the Trump administration is deliberately trying to confuse everyone and throw out so much chaos all at once to distract from the genuinely horrifying stuff they're trying to sneak through. But even then, yeah, the Democrats need to quit bringing a knife to a gun fight and stop playing nice. We've been doing that and it's not getting us anywhere. With the battles they are going to fight, their fight needs to be hard and dirty and rough and they need to take absolutely no prisoners. Anything they can do to put a stop to the insanity the Trump administration's pushing through, they need to do it. We cannot afford to sit back and roll over and let them take over like this. 

But they alone shouldn't face all the scrutiny. Everyone needs to do their part to hold the GOP accountable for allowing and encouraging and aiding in letting this insanity play out. 

Also, someone needs to smack that jackass who was talking about wanting to make federal employees miserable in the face. Hard. What an asshole. 

On a less terrifying note, that clip of the guy playing that instrument was...truly something XD. As was the Labour Party ad. Just. What :p?  

Welcome back, John. Wish like hell it was under significantly less insane circumstances, but I am so glad to have him back. 

  • Like 15
kittykat

kittykat

(edited)

Well I don't know what else I was expecting.  

Thing is I do think Hakeem Jeffries does make the right point the the Democrats can't swing at every single atrocity and need to unite under one message.  I do think they need to come out stronger and I hope they do sooner the better. 

That song is absolute 🔥. Curious to see the remixes.  Was that Moby in one of the screen caps?

I just can't with the word gymnastics coming out of the mouths of Elon Musk and Kristi Noem.  "Can't trust the government" "you are the government.". Come on.  

At least we got a recap of what else was going on in the world because I sure as hell haven't kept up.  This country takes up enough brain space.

Edited by kittykat
  • Like 10
rwlevin

rwlevin

In a little bit of joy, I know Dr. Jeffrey Birnbaum. I got to rotate in his clinic when I was a medical student. He runs an HIV clinic in Brooklyn and because one of the groups with the highest risk of HiV is the transgender community, his clinic takes care of a lot of transgender youth. He is awesome.

In other news, when Drumpf says “merit” what he really means is “whoever kisses my tushy the most.”

  • Like 15
peeayebee

peeayebee

8 hours ago, kittykat said:

 Was that Moby in one of the screen caps?

I thought it was, too. Loved that song.

I knew this show would be hard to watch. I still try to keep up with the news -- often on Bluesky -- but it sometimes feels like self-flagellation. 

I literally scream FUCK YOU when I drive past a house or site with Trump flags and signs.

I really don't understand how this is happening. Checks and balances? Where are those? 

The whole idea, of those pulling the strings, is to destroy the federal government. Trump's plan is to make himself more money, play the king, and get revenge.

Do Republicans really want to see Russia, China, and other authoritarian countries take over the world? Removing USAID leaves a vacuum that will be filled by these players. 

I knew it was coming, but I've been checking Google Maps to see if the Gulf of Mexico had been renamed. Yup. Apple Maps, too. 

What a shitshow.

  • Like 11
iMonrey

iMonrey

This was hard to watch. I can't even stomach the visage of Trump's face. You can't go to any news site without seeing the name Trump in every other headline. It's really hard to get away from him. 

11 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Democrats need to quit bringing a knife to a gun fight and stop playing nice.

The cold, hard fact is that there is very little Democrats can do. Republicans have the White House, the Supreme Court, the Senate and the House. Democrats have zero power right now. And Republicans have a strong media advantage. You really have to be proactive in seeking out progressive and left leaning news outlets. Whereas if you are just passive about current events you're most likely getting your information from social media and algorithms designed to feed you whatever bullshit you keep clicking on. That's how Trump got elected in the first place. We've reached the Idiocracy.

  • Like 9
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

10 hours ago, kittykat said:

Thing is I do think Hakeem Jeffries does make the right point the the Democrats can't swing at every single atrocity and need to unite under one message. 

They're going to drive themselves nuts if they react to every little thing. 1, they need an actual leader; sorry, but Schumer just isn't it, and just demonstrating and yelling isn't going to work. 2, they need to keep hammering on congressional authority, even being in the minority. If you're serious about cutting waste, do it the right way, and then say how. 3, say something is stupid if it's stupid. 

Bannon was mostly correct about just shoving everything out the door at once, but he was incorrect because the media does catch up. But they have to be on their A game all the time. Not easy. Trolls were going bonkers over social media over the comic book, which, I don't think it's a bad use of funds anyway, but it wasn't even true. I know the problem is that the lies spread faster, but the media has to really get up and show up. 

The other thing Bannon missed is that groups like the ACLU said way back after the election that they were gearing up for the executive orders, and, really, the big ones have been thrown out of court already. I think the wind is going to go out of the administration's sails by springtime. 

I haven't seen why President Musk decided on USAID first. It's an odd choice to me because the overall budget is so small. 

  • Like 9
Affogato

Affogato

(edited)
3 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I haven't seen why President Musk decided on USAID first. It's an odd choice to me because the overall budget is so small. 

I believe they think, or are spreading, the idea that it is a cia (or something)front. I saw an internet ‘freedom’newsletter that was heavy into the conspiracy stuff.  Also a lot of Trump voters really dislike giving things to people, like aid. 

5 hours ago, Shrek said:

Only in the USA though, they will obviously do whatever their new master wants them to do.

Did you notice he made superbowl sunday his ‘gulf of america day’. To draw attention to him. 

Edited by Affogato
  • Like 4
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

That seems a dicey take for me. I was thinking there was some kind of conflict of interest with Musk that he was trying to squash. Regardless, the vigilance with how they're attacking such a small part of the budget is what I meant by the media needs to bring their A game all the time. That's the first question that should have been asked. 

  • Like 6
Affogato

Affogato

11 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

That seems a dicey take for me. I was thinking there was some kind of conflict of interest with Musk that he was trying to squash. Regardless, the vigilance with how they're attacking such a small part of the budget is what I meant by the media needs to bring their A game all the time. That's the first question that should have been asked. 

Musk also has said it is evil. Usaid. I think it is a distraction. Aid to furriners. Can’t start with Medicaid. 

  • Like 3
  • Useful 1
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

I could buy that, but I haven't heard anything. 

I know it's hard as an opposition party to discuss conflict of interest, but I shouldn't have to watch a news comedy show to see it addressed. Also don't respond to every single social media post. Do talk about firing the people in charge of all the nuclear weapons. 

PBSNews is actually doing well. They keep sliding in 'the so-called department of government efficiency'. 

 

  • Like 3
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

2 hours ago, Affogato said:

I still think project 2025 and similar are pulling their strings.

For sure, he's not writing any of the executive orders. I know for a fact one of them was written by my senator because he said so. To be fair, I don't think presidents actually write them, but I'm sure they have a hand in them. They also try to vet it legally first. That's not the case here. 

And if I'm being fair, executive orders are out of hand on both sides. This is a whole other level though.

2 hours ago, Annber03 said:

I would love to see that happen, see them push back and tell Musk exactly where he can take his power hungry self.

I think we're getting there. Right now, everything being so new, no one knows what to do. Now that courts are throwing out the orders, I think people might be like, 'no, let's wait.' Or, is there a federal workers' union. Maybe they will issue guidance. For example, our general counsel advised us that of ICE shows up, they still need a warrant. 

That doesn't help when you lose email access though. 

  • Like 3
Lantern7

Lantern7

  • Author
On 2/17/2025 at 12:35 PM, iMonrey said:

The cold, hard fact is that there is very little Democrats can do. Republicans have the White House, the Supreme Court, the Senate and the House. Democrats have zero power right now. And Republicans have a strong media advantage. You really have to be proactive in seeking out progressive and left leaning news outlets. Whereas if you are just passive about current events you're most likely getting your information from social media and algorithms designed to feed you whatever bullshit you keep clicking on. That's how Trump got elected in the first place. We've reached the Idiocracy.

I think that the Democrats need to show outrage. Anger. Jon Stewart keeps going to Sen. Schumer talking, and as much as that's low-hanging fruit, Jon isn't wrong on that. The leadership keeps going for moderation. I understand that maybe AOC isn't ready for that sort of role, but at least she shit-talks on a regular basis . . . and the hollow threats of deportation don't deter her.

8 hours ago, mojoween said:

Hey.  HEY.  Everyone needs to leave Aaron Judge the fuck alone.

#MrEarlyMay

  • Like 4
  • Angry 1
andromeda331

andromeda331

I'm glad John Oliver's back. It was a depressing episode. But at the same time at least someone is pointing out all the horrible things that President Trump and President Musk are doing. The news says what they are doing and interviewing a couple people. He says what the sane people are thinking. No one is doing anything about it. I expected nothing from Republicans. Their too gutless to do anything. Or they really don't care. I don't know. Eric Adams learned to follow along to get his own criminal case thrown out.

And the Democrats are doing nothing. I agree they can't go after everything they do. But I don't know if they ever will. Nothing they do ever really does anything. What are they going to do? Impeach him again? Sue them? Nothing will happen. Execpt they'll lose again and Trump won't be touched. Again.

He's plowing through agency after agency and no one cares. There's no big uproar or anything. Thousands of people have lost their jobs. He's made the FBI and CIA more vulnerable. It's going to make both hard to investigate criminals. It's going to make it harder to get infomation needed and so much easier for terrorist to attack. Why the FBI? Because he wants to fire everyone worked on his criminials. That he was guilty of.

Not that it matters. Who cares. He's gutted the CDC. That'll be great when we have another outbreak. Not that it matters because RFK Jr is going to look into everything. Welcome back measles, smallpox, polio and everything else. People are going to die. No one cares. Why would they? They don't care when women and babies die for not getting the proper medical care. So who cares that everyone is next.

Musk gleefully destroyed USAID who's whole job is to provide food and medicine around the world to those in need. Women and children are going to die. Babies are going do die because he ripped away their funding. And he laughs.

That's okay because when the next Three Mile Island or Chernobyl happens because Trump and Musk fired so many people from nuclear jobs.  A lot more people are going to get hurt or die. Who cares. That's not important. 

There's no outrage from any of it.

I know John Oliver said not to give up. That's not the problem. The problem is what do, when nothing you do does anything?

  • Like 4
Hanahope

Hanahope

On 2/18/2025 at 9:40 AM, peeayebee said:

If Musk and his minions are not employees of the federal government, how can they fire people?

that is the subject of a current lawsuit filed by various states and unions.  right now the TROs have been denied due to lack of "imminent harm" (apparently losing one's job isn't considered 'imminent harm' because you can get another one and/or be compensated with money later).  the judge did say that the authority was questionable, so merit wise looks bad, that a formal decision on that is months or maybe years down the road.

  • Useful 3
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

What the Democrats can do is take control of the narrative, but they need an actual leader who can talk some trash and get everyone in line. The media has to cover them. They're duly elected officials. 

False narratives or not, you look at the gop on the Sundays shows and the messaging is in lock step down to the punctuation. 

I mean, they fired the people in charge of the nuclear weapons. How is it even remotely difficult to get that message out? 

Yes, don't go bonkers over everything, but you can still say, 'Musk is violating the law.' Clearly, and get everyone on the same page. 

  • Like 3
Hanahope

Hanahope

I could give the dems the benefit of the doubt that they are having difficulties getting on media programs to talk about these problems because the media doesn't want to publicize them for fear of retribution from the administration (See AP News, etc).  However, there are plenty of media programs that don't care that much and would put them on.  So yeah, i do wonder why we don't hear more from the dems.

  • Like 2
iMonrey

iMonrey

2 hours ago, Hanahope said:

So yeah, i do wonder why we don't hear more from the dems.

What exactly are they supposed to say that would make any difference? The people who voted for Trump either won't hear it or won't care, and the people who voted for Harris already know all this. I get that we're frustrated and want someone to do something but the reality is there is nothing Dems can actually do to change anything. Seeing them scream about current affairs on TV might make you feel better but it's not going to change anything or fix anything. They have no power.

  • Like 3
andromeda331

andromeda331

6 hours ago, iMonrey said:

What exactly are they supposed to say that would make any difference? The people who voted for Trump either won't hear it or won't care 

That's the problem. The people who voted for him don't care or don't hear it. It's what makes it really hard to have hope. Nothing makes them care. Nothing disillusions them. Nothing Trump has done has or will changes that. I don't know to overcome that.

  • Sad 2
DoctorAtomic

DoctorAtomic

That's true, but they could finally make an effort to get all the people who didn't vote at all to vote in 2026. Forget 'stupid swing voters'. Figure out why. Galvanize a narrative and hammer it constantly. 

In the clip they showed about Kennedy going on about the eggs, what they didn't show was at the end he said, 'call someone who cares.' They're handing you a figurative loaded gun. 

 

  • Like 3

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