Trumpistan

Their talk, however, was the talk of sordid buccaneers: it was reckless without hardihood, greedy without audacity, and cruel without courage; there was not an atom of foresight or of serious intention in the whole batch of them, and they did not seem aware these things are wanted for the work of the world. To tear treasure out of the bowels of the land was their desire, with no more moral purpose at the back of it than there is in burglars breaking into a safe.

-- Joseph Conrad. Heart of Darkness. 1899

"Dangerous time when our country is led by those who will lie about anything,
backed by those who will believe anything,
based on information from media sources that will say anything.
Americans must break out of that bubble and seek truth."

-- James Comey

Kremlin papers appear to show Putin’s plot to put Trump in White House
Memo could provide blockbuster proof of how Russia used Trump
to damage America ... if it's real

All the known times the Trump campaign met with Russians
A Timeline: Russia and President Trump

Mother Jones Detailed Timeline
A Timeline Showing the Full Scale of
Russia’s Unprecedented Interference
in the 2016 Election, and Its Aftermath
Trump Tower Moscow was a much larger deal—
and potential crime—than anyone has realized
with detailed timeline
Timeline: Big moments in Mueller investigation
of Russian meddling in 2016 U.S. election

"If candidate Trump and President Putin had made a corrupt bargain which obligated President Trump to destabilize all U.S. security and trade alliances (especially NATO, which has been Russia’s primary strategic goal for 70 years) and advance the strategic interests of Russia, there’s really nothing more remotely realistic he could have done to accomplish that than what he has in fact done."

-- We’ve Got a Problem. A Big Problem. Josh Marshall

Stop asking "Why is Trump doing that?!"
Instead ask "How does this benefit Putin?"
Answering that question makes Trump's behavior look rational.

-- Leigh Brasington

Troubling Connections Flow Chart
from https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D2odsv-X4AAdruC.jpg

Trump's policy of holding children hostage to win Cong'l funding of his Wall is despicable. Giving in to this demand may end today's suffering, but will only lead to worse things in the future. Compromise is the key to legislation, but concession to evil leads only to more evil. -- Ronald Klain

[Yes, of course, this is fake - but it captures exactly what's happening]

What are they hiding in the girls' and small children's gulags?

Trump seals his fate with Fox interview that will go down in history

It's a good thing Hitler did not win WWII. Otherwise we might be ruled today by a temperamental demagogue fueled by hatred and delusions of grandeur, requiring constant praise and adulation lest anyone incur his wrath. Major Kong