Regarding Trump, Mark Hamill (that Mark Hamill, the one who plays Luke Skywalker), tweeted that two aspects of recent politics deserve diligent inquiry: Focus on 2 things: #1) Investigation of Russia’s involvement in 2016 Election #2) His Tax Returns. America has a right to know.#Resistance https://t.co/OFSkY9hmL5 — Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) February 8, 2017 Of all…
Trump
Authoritarianism, Politics, Trump
An Eminent Psychiatrist on Trump
by JOHN ADAMS •
Dr. Allen Frances, professor emeritus of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Duke University Medical College, who served as chairman of the task force that wrote the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (D.S.M.-IV), on 2.14.17 sent a letter to the New York Times in which he addresses questions about Donald Trump’s mental state. (See, An Eminent Psychiatrist…
Authoritarianism, Law, Liberty, Trump
A Grand Coalition Forms
by JOHN ADAMS •
Conservative Jennifer Rubin describes, in E Pluribus Unum vs. Trump, both the building coalition against Trump and the powerful nature of that coalition. She’s right that what seemed unlikely a few weeks ago is real now: Just a couple of weeks ago, critics of post-inaugural protesters argued the anti-President Trump movement lacked coherence. Too many small,…
History, Language, Trump
Full Transcript of Trump’s Black History Month Remarks
by JOHN ADAMS •
Politics, Trump
The ‘Balls & Strikes’ View
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s an interesting exchange between conservative Trump-critic Evan McMullin and conservative Josh Hammer worth considering. The exchange shows the divide among conservatives about Trump. (There’s also a divide among conservatives about whether anti-Trump conservatives are, in fact, conservatives. To this libertarian, they all look sufficiently conservative; that intra-tribe debate is not one in which I’m engaged.) First…
Foreign Affairs, Kakistocracy, Trump
Britian’s Foreign Minister Uses Van Halen Defense to Justify Trump State Visit
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a debate in Parliament about whether to extend a state visit to Donald Trump. Trying to mount a defense of a Trump visit, the British foreign minister had this to say about why Trump should be accorded the honor: Boris Johnson tells the House that he believes “both Nicolae Ceausescu and Robert Mugabe have been entertained by…
Federal Government, Kakistocracy, Law, Trump
David Frum Asks: Should a Patriotic American Work for Donald Trump?
by JOHN ADAMS •
Conservative David Frum (with whom a libertarian would have many differences) yet asks and answers rightly the question, Should a Patriotic American Work for Donald Trump? Frum draws a distinction between personal service to Trump and government positions that are removed from the president: A law-abiding person will want to stay as far as possible…
Putin, Russia, Trump
Secret
by JOHN ADAMS •
America, Authoritarianism, Law, Liberty, Trump
Principled Conservatives Organize Against Trump
by JOHN ADAMS •
One needn’t be a conservative to admire the efforts of thoughtful conservatives to organize against Trump. Evan McMullin and Mindy Flynn have now launched Stand Up Republic to resist the Trump agenda from a conservative vantage. Jennifer Rubin reports on this in Evan McMullin makes a splash by going after Trump and Putin. Above, I’ve…
Authoritarianism, Trump
A Banner Suitable for the New Administration
by JOHN ADAMS •
Mendacity, Trump
Why Trump’s Staff Lies
by JOHN ADAMS •
Tyler Cowen, writing at Bloomberg, offers an explanation of Why Trump’s Staff Is Lying: By requiring subordinates to speak untruths, a leader can undercut their independent standing, including their standing with the public, with the media and with other members of the administration. That makes those individuals grow more dependent on the leader and less…
Newspapers, Trump
Tumulty Finds Sycophancy’s Hard to Shake
by JOHN ADAMS •
Trump Press Sec. Spicer gave a dishonest statement about crowd size on Saturday (“White House press secretary attacks media for accurately reporting inauguration crowds“), and spent a bit over an hour in a dishonest and maudlin press conference on Monday (“This time Sean Spicer smiles, spins, pledges not to lie“). It was a first conventional…
Authoritarianism, Libertarians, Liberty, Trump
Wes Benedict Tries & Fails Again
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve been critical of Wes Benedict, executive director of the national Libertarian Party (1 and 2), but I’ll say this for him: he’s an unfailing failure. In an email he sent today, Benedict wrote to party members, in part, that We are all waiting to see what our new president does. No doubt he’ll do…