Here There and Everywhere

Expat wanderer

Politicized Weaponized Justice and Unintended Consequences

I laughed when I read about the end of the Trump IRS case. He was going to lose, so he pulled an appearant agreement with the Department of Justice, where attorneys are fleeing the use of the Department to go after Trump’s enemies. Trump doesn’t care that the evidence does not support a winning case. He wants his “enemies” charged, like he was. He was found guilty, by a jury of his peers.

A very smart attorney, someone say like James Comey, will be able to find a way to use this case, and the funds set aside, to charge the current Department of Injustice with discrimination, that these funds should be widely available to those who believe the Justice Department has gone after them for purposes of vengeance, rather that breaking the law. This gang of dunces have opened a loop of opportunity, just one more tragic comedy in a regime of careless, callous, destructive actions.

This is from the news service 1440:

Anti-Weaponization Fund’ 
The Justice Department yesterday announced a $1.776B taxpayer-funded program to compensate individuals who claim the DOJ politically targeted them. The figure appears to be a nod to America’s founding year. Payments would come from the Treasury’s Judgment Fund, an uncapped account used to settle federal cases. The “Anti-Weaponization Fund” is part of a settlement resolving President Donald Trump’s $10B lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns, along with civil claims tied to the Russia probe and the search of his Mar-a-Lago residence. Trump and his family will receive a formal apology but no monetary damages. The tax case stems from disclosures by a former IRS contractor who was sentenced to prison for leaking high-profile figures’ tax data between 2018 and 2020.A five-member commission, appointed by the attorney general and removable by Trump, will oversee claims through December 2028. The fund is modeled after an Obama-era program that compensated Native American farmers for discrimination in federal lending programs (see DOJ explanation).

He who accuses, accuses himself.

May 19, 2026 Posted by | Character, Counter-terrorism, fraud, Law and Order, Leadership, Political Issues, Work Related Issues | Leave a comment

A Lawless, Authoritarian Regime

Today, Robert Reich puts into words the outrage that chokes me. When accusing only blue states of fraud, and withholding government funds, when accusing universities of discrimination, and withholding funds, the leaders overstep. We saw it coming from the first day – when you fire the watchmen, you can say anything. The watchmen are there to document and hold accountable those who violate the law. This regime excels in violating the law, making a joke of the law and demeaning the Department of Justice with vengeful, retaliatory cases instead of upholding the stated will of the people.

Robert Reich:

Friends,

Words matter. When describing a government, they inevitably carry moral weight.

Over the last 16 months, Trump and his appointees have so profoundly undermined the United States government that we should use different words to describe these people than we’ve used to describe all previous administrations.

To begin with, they shouldn’t be called an “administration” at all. They should be referred to as a regime.

The Trump regime has flagrantly defied court orders. In February 2026, a federal judge (appointed by President George W. Bush) identified approximately 200 orders from the District of Minnesota alone that ICE had ignored since the start of the year, concluding that ICE had “likely violated more court orders in January 2026 than some federal agencies have violated in their entire existence.” The regime has also vilified judges who rule against it and demanded their impeachment.

The regime has usurped Congress’s powers to declare war, issue tariffs, and appropriate public funds. It is using tariffs as cudgels for Trump’s political aims. The regime is seeking to stifle speech and silence criticism — in universities, law firms, and the media.

Secondly, this regime is not headed by a “president,” as the Constitution of the United States and our laws and history have designated the head of the executive branch of the U.S. government. To put the term “President” before Trump’s name defiles the Constitution. He is an authoritarian.

Trump has illegally fired more than 300,000 career civil servants. He has fired inspectors general who are charged with holding political appointees accountable. He punishes whistleblowers who protest abuses. He attacks marginalized groups and foments bigotry. He is openly persecuting political opponents. He has given out pardons to convicted felons who are political supporters or financial contributors — including nursing home fraudsters, a Honduran president who smuggled 400 tons of cocaine into the United States, and January 6 seditionists. He has sent federal troops into states and cities headed by Democratic officials.

Thirdly, Trump has no interest in governing. He wants only to impose his will and make money from his office. His regime’s disregard for law is so monumental that it negates what we have come to understand as a “government of laws.” A better word for it is lawless.

During the first 16 months of Trump’s lawless regime, immigration agents have shot or killed 16 people, including three U.S. citizens.More people died last year in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement — a total of 32 — than in the preceding 20 years. People only suspected of being in the U.S. illegally have been detained or deported by masked and armed immigration agents, without a hearing. People only suspected of smuggling drugs have been murdered by the U.S. military in international waters, in violation of international law.

Meanwhile, Trump is accepting gifts from foreign powers. He blatantly promotes his family’s crypto business and implements policies favorable to it. He has sued the Internal Revenue Service for $10 billion and is now in settlement negotiations with his own Justice Department, which reportedly has offered to drop any future IRS audits of Trump, his family, or his businesses.

Finally, the true test of a successful president of the United States and his (eventually her) administration is not how much power he accumulates or how much he gets done. The real test is how much better off are the American people and how much stronger is our democracy. By these measures, Trump and his regime are not just lawless. They are a catastrophe.

May 15, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, Character, Civility, corruption, Crime, Financial Issues, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, News, Political Issues, Social Issues, Transparency, Values, Women's Issues, Work Related Issues | , , , , , | 2 Comments

“And Some, I assume, are Good People”

Today’s Washington Post gives the following information:

Since Trump returned to office: Nine out of every 10 deported immigrants have been men, most without criminal convictions. Many of them had lived in the U.S. for years.

In 2015, when first running for President, this is what Trump said:

“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” 

Nine out of ten of those targeted by ICE for deportation are good people, the same kind of people as my ancestors, and, unless you are born a Native-American, yours. They are people here, willing to work long, hard hours doing jobs none of us original immigrants want to do, even our unemployed. They have families. They have children. All they want is a living wage, a roof over their heads, food on the table, and an opportunity for their children to have a better life – just as our ancestors did. They believe in the American Dream, and many risked their lives to get here. They pay taxes (Yes! They do!) They contribute to our national GNP.

Nine out of ten. Deported for NO reason. Not given the same chance our families were given. Many of these are people who have gone through legal channels, and are on the way to citizenship.

I have lived in countries that have different levels of citizenship. What is it in our meager hearts that wants hierarchies that make one better than another? We believe – or so believers claim – that we are created equal. What worm in our hearts will shove others aside to achieve an ephemeral wealth or glory?

May 12, 2026 Posted by | Community, corruption, Counter-terrorism, Crime, Economic Issues, Heritage, Interconnected, Law and Order, Lies, Quality of Life Issues, Social Issues, Stranger in a Strange Land, Work Related Issues | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Stretching the Point

Anyone who has ever served in the military knows the term 86. We used it all the time, mostly for pieces of valueless paper. 86 meant throw it in the trash can. A translation of the above would be commonly translated as “Dump Trump”.

Dump Trump is an increasingly common sentiment in the United States. It does not have violent connotations. It means, vote out this cheap fraud, lover of gilt and self-adulation, and his entire cheap entourage, pigs at the trough. Use your vote.

If you want to see truly violent inciting rhetoric, check out 45/47. He is the master of crude incitations to violent behavior. He will tell you he will bomb you back into the dark ages, and he has the record to prove it.

I applaud you, James Comey, for your balanced and fearless response. The courts have supported your case before; they will again. Thinking a photo of seashells urging the dumping of a corrupt regime is no where near an incitation to violence.

We have freedom of speech. We are allowed to say Dump Trump.

April 30, 2026 Posted by | Character, Civility, Communication, corruption, Cultural, fraud, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Political Issues | , , , , , | Leave a comment

My Problem With ICE

I have a long history with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. I’ve been in and out of the USA since I was a little girl. We have filled out countless forms for passports, and many times more those forms telling what we are bringing back into the country. The only time I ever had a problem with ICE was on returning from one of our African trips when I was bringing in wildebeest jerky from South Africa. I laugh now, it was me and a lot of African nationals shunted off. They were opening suitcases full of vegetables they were bringing back for family, and I was told my package of jerky was illegal in the United States. AdventureMan was annoyed with me, and I was ashamed I didn’t know. But they let me off with a mild scolding about infecting disease free animal life in the USA. I’ve never forgotten.

I’ve never minded the tiresome lines for immigration, always manned by sturdy, polite young people wanting to know where we’ve been and how did we like our trip; they were doing their job and they had been trained how to deal with people. In all my times going through those lines, I never saw any kind of incident.

They had a mission.

With the new administration, that mission changed, enlarged. They were given different, even SECRET orders, orders that encouraged them to commit the sorts of acts we saw in Minnesota. It always looked to me like those acts, committed on US Citizens, committed on resident citizens, smacked of incitement to violence. Why else would these customs and immigration officers be asked to violate the US Constitution in pursuing their mission?

I applaud those stoic and humor-filled Minnesotans who protested with restraint, who did not invite violent responses. Even if the Department of Justice will not cooperate in the investigations you are conducting into the murders of Minneapolis citizens, you are gathering witness from street cameras and witnesses against the illegal actions, and the lies and accusations, unjust, of the ICE officials and the Department of Justice. I applaud the restraint that forestalled any illusion of reason for a “national emergency” and activation of a military presence. The militaristic costumes of the immigration and customs officials did not fool nor intimadate you. Your patient, evidence based investigations will be embarrassment enough to those who thought to prevail by intimidation and brutality.

So we have to look at why the ICE men and women sent by our leader to Democratic states felt so empowered to misbehave?

Many ICE hirees have law enforcement backgrounds. Many of them have served in the armed forces. They know the basics. They know the law. They must have had second thoughts, many of them, while conducting these unrestrained acts of violence characterized as arrests of “rapists, thieves and the mentally ill,” as they arrested family men, women – and children, with no criminal records.

As well as knowing the law, and the legal use of power, those who are Christian would know Christ’s admonition to love our neighbor as ourself. Those who are Jewish would know the Old Testament verses about welcoming the stranger. Those who were raised without religion might be familiar with Spiderman, who teaches us that with great power comes great responsibility.

These $50K hires are as expendable as Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem. Once they have served their purpose, they can be scapegoated for excessive zeal in pursuit of the mission, or charged with murder while their superiors, who put the secret policies into effect, escape blame and punishment.

Again, I applaud the Minnesotans, who with restraint, humor, and humanity, protected the weakest, the families and children, while EFFECTIVELY resisting the provocation they faced. Well done, Minnesota!

And lets take a minute to grieve the effects of the violence upon those who inflicted it, mere pawns in a greater game of thrones.

April 7, 2026 Posted by | Character, Charity, Civility, Community, corruption, Counter-terrorism, Cultural, Events, Family Issues, Free Speech, Interconnected, Law and Order, Leadership, Political Issues, Privacy, Quality of Life Issues, Relationships, Social Issues, South Africa, Travel | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slight of Hand and Wires and Mirrors; No Accountability

Our leader announced a speech to the nation, which turned out to be nothing but repeats of “Truth” social posts and comments previously made. A boring, disjointed 19 minutes of nothing credible. Credibility is stating a mission and following through. Chaos is changing the mission and its achievements every ten minutes or so. If you don’t believe me, watch the stock market.

Meanwhile, behind the curtain, The Great Oz and his handlers are changing how our democracy operates. The failed military officer, Pete Hegseth is examining and removing African Americans, females, and especially African American Females from promotion lists. He is firing the top general who questions his judgement in toying with a time honored system where the military chooses its leaders based on performance and leadership abilities, not their gender nor their color.

Does Hegseth understand demographics? Does he understand that military recruitment is problematic these days days, that the pool of recruits has shrunk dramatically? Does he understand that brawn no longer wins wars, but fighter planes, drones, new ideas and weapon development are fighting a new kind of war, where every gender and color contributes the the nuances of creative strategies available to a commander in chief who genuinely understands how to function in the fog of war?

Today Heather Cox Richardson alerts us to another slight of hand, the kind of small change the controllers hope will go unnoticed: The challenge of ACCOUNTABILITY and how it impedes a sitting President. She quotes the following, and it quite takes my breath away:

Yesterday Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser, of the Office of Legal Counsel, published an opinion for the White House that claims the Presidential Records Act, which requires that presidents keep records of their official business and turn them over at the end of their term, is unconstitutional. Gaiser clerked for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito.

“The PRA is not a valid exercise of Congress’s Article I authority and unconstitutionally intrudes on the independence and autonomy of the President guaranteed by Article II. The Act establishes a permanent and burdensome regime of congressional regulation of the Presidency untethered from any valid and identifiable legislative purpose,” the memo reads. “For these reasons, the PRA is unconstitutional, and the President need not further comply with its dictates.”

(taking a moment to catch my breath)

We burden our elected president with the requirement that we know what he does and why he is doing it?

How can anyone believe this lunacy? Any person in a position of responsibility has to answer to his polity! Elected politicians all the more. He answers to us, the voters.

Our leader has a lot to answer for. We can’t trust anything he says, from minute to minute. Our treasury has been declared insolvent. He is sending our children off to war with unclear orders and insufficient leadership.

He has hired a confederacy of ignorant, greedy sycophants. He has gutted our diplomatic service. He has gutted Consumer Oversight. He has gutted the Environmental Protection Agency. He has corrupted the Department of Education.

He is terrified he cannot win and is attempting to take over national elections. Meanwhile, he is bankrupting our country with garish monuments and wars we never agreed to fight.

He is subjecting women to outdated standards and taken away their rights to make decisions for their own bodies.

He is corrupting our social system, taking medical care away from those who need it most, and callously neglecting the veterans who have served our country so loyally.

He has made agreements with other countries that we only learn about by accidental comments.

This can’t go on. Give us Accountability. Oversight. Congressional Approval. Fair and Free Elections. Constitutional Restraints!

April 3, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, Character, corruption, Counter-terrorism, Cultural, Free Speech, Interconnected, Iran, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Middle East, Money Management, Political Issues, Scams, Social Issues, Stranger in a Strange Land, Uncategorized, Weather, Women's Issues, Work Related Issues | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sherrifs and Police Chiefs Oppose DeSantis’ Hard Line on Immigration

The Pensacola News Journal reports that a group of Florida Sherrifs and Police Chiefs have gone public in opposition to the hard line Trump and DeSantis have imposed on mass deportation. When more than 90% have no criminal record, other than minor traffic violations or trumped-up charges related to immigration status (often untrue charges) many are being deported who are not only good citizens, but residents who are greatly needed in Florida, people who work hard, support their families and are essential to the Florida economy.

I believe the Law and Order guys know their topic. Who would know better what kind of citizens our immigrants are?

March 19, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, Character, ExPat Life, Family Issues, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Political Issues, Safety, Work Related Issues | Leave a comment

What Country am I Living In?

As an American, I’ve lived in a lot of countries, often countries that controlled news coverage and punished those who reported news the leaders found embarrassing.

Many experienced people found ways around it. They phrased their reports carefully, leaving the reader to read behind the lines.

It’s not what you expect in a Democratic Republic. It’s not what I expect in the United States of America, where the very first amendment to our Constitution verified our right to have our own opinions and our freedom to state them (given that they were not, of course, a threat against someone else, or shouting “Fire” in a crowded theatre.)

And now the elected leader of the United States is trying to control any negative reporting about his War, a war that surprised his own country, his own people. A War which has not been supported by Congress, which has the right to declare War. As billions go up, literally, in smoke, or down in flames, Trump and Hegseth want the FCC to pull the broadcasting license of anyone reporting the events that are really happening. Trump has a long history of calling reality “false news” and claiming his big fat lies are truth. Like his endless whining about the election he lost to Joe Biden by more than 8 million votes. And he claims it was a fraudulent loss, a rigged election.

How on earth could that ever be a secret if it were to have happened? Crazy, delusional, whoppers!

And now he wants people whose reputations are on the line, newsmakers, journalists, photographers, soldiers, sailors – people who can see what is happening with their own eyes, hear the blasts and report the damages, and hold those accountable for their actions – he wants them to toe the party line? He wants the TRUTH to be what he pretends it is?

George Orwell got it right, he just got the year wrong. With this administration, we no longer have guarantees of personal privacy. We no longer have guarantees guaranteed by our Constitution. The Police are no longer our friends.

The president believes the truth is what he says it is and that the rights of the people are those he says they have. How have we allowed this to happen?

He CREATES situations, or makes them up, and then creates an oppressive measure to deal with it – look at what ICE, once respectable, has become. An entity protecting our entry points has become a gang of thugs who operate outside the law. When courts rule against them, they ignore the rulings.

When Trump looks at the polls and sees that he cannot win an election, he creates the “SAVE” act to deter, discourage and delete voter’s rights. Both ICE and “SAVE” address problems which do not exist, other than as avenues to giving this monster greater and greater power to feed his endless greed.

Do not listen to this man. Do not believe a word he says. Look, instead, at his actions. He fires the watchdogs. He fires those who would limit his power. He is what he always has been, a fraud, a con man, a liar, and altogether a very flawed man. He piles up wealth by making agreements that fill his pockets, his family’s pockets, and his cronies’. He bullies those who stand up to him. This is not a man of strong character; this is a human wrecking ball.

March 14, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, Character, Communication, corruption, Crime, Free Speech, Interconnected, Law and Order, Leadership, Lies, Living Conditions, Political Issues, Quality of Life Issues, Scams, Stranger in a Strange Land, Values | , , , , , , | 1 Comment

League of Women Voters: State of Union Bingo Cards

Gotta love those ladies in pearls, although lately the League has been attracting a much younger group of activists. An amazingly non-political group, the League looks at issues and candidates, and encourages INFORMED voters. All people are welcome; in spite of the name, the league also includes men. This is a group that makes a difference.

With their wicked sense of humor, the National League encourages all Americans to watch the dreaded State of the Union speech tonight, and has published a set of Bingo Cards to keep you engaged. You can download them for yourself and your family members at League of Women Voters: State of the Union Bingo or you can print these, which I downloaded from their website.

Yes, I am a member of this group. They keep up with the important issues, and they invite speakers to meetings to explain the substance to the public. They educate people about voting rights without bias.

They help with elections, and, where allowed, they help register new voters – people turning 18, new citizens, people who haven’t voted before. The current stereotype of this group as elderly educated women in pearls is quickly changing as super-charged young people seek to exert their rights in an orderly, lawful fashion.

By uniting women from all parties and all walks of life, they have a big voice and have effectively challenged unjust and unconstitutional laws at the local, state, and national levels. They take their commitment voting rights, issues, and impartiality very seriously.

And, they have a wonderful sense of humor 😄.

February 24, 2026 Posted by | Civility, Community, Counter-terrorism, Environment, Health Issues, Interconnected, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Political Issues, Quality of Life Issues, Social Issues, Women's Issues, Work Related Issues | | Leave a comment

“Where Law Ends, Tyranny Begins”

From AOL News this morning, Saturday, February 21, 2026:

WASHINGTON (AP) — “A lawyer picked by judges to serve as the top federal prosecutor for a Virginia office that pursued cases against foes of President Donald Trump was swiftly fired Friday by the Justice Department in the latest clash over the appointments of powerful U.S. attorneys.


Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the firing of James Hundley on social media shortly after he was unanimously chosen by judges to replace former Trump lawyer Lindsey Halligan as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. While the law says that the district court may choose U.S. attorneys when an initial appointment expires, the Trump administration has insisted that the power lies only in the hands of the executive branch.

“EDVA judges do not pick our US Attorney. POTUS does. James Hundley, you’re fired!” Blanche said in a post on X.


Hundley, who has handled criminal and civil cases for more than 30 years, didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment Friday evening.”

February 21, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, corruption, Law and Order, Political Issues | Leave a comment

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