Category Archives: Government
Counterpoint in Portland
This is my Counterpoint cartoon from last week. It appeared alongside a Rob Rogers cartoon and here’s what I had to say about it:
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler joined the mob Wednesday night and got booed and teargassed for his efforts. And I got a cartoon idea. But my sketch contained a couple of mental maneuvers making it tough on the poor reader. Not only that, my lefty Counterpoint counterpart Rob Rogers didn’t care for the whole point of the thing. He thought Mayor Wheeler had done a splendid job over the past 50 days during which the mob trashed his town’s working class shopkeepers. And, “oh, by the way,” Rob added, “why don’t you tweak that cartoon and just have the woman say, “Where’s the mayor when you need him”? Perfect. Thanks, Rob, you ignorant slut.
Russian Bounty Hunters in Afghanistan
The last big bounty scandal in the news involved the New Orleans Saints. But there are no saints in this story. The NYT reported that Russian President Putin paid the Taliban to kill American soldiers. A WSJ editorial questioned the need for bounties, considering the Taliban already whacks Americans for the religious thrill of it. But considering Putin’s record killing journalists in his own country it sounds plausible.
And inquiring minds want to know what Trump did about it. Nothing. Though he did kill a couple hundred Russians in Syria in 2018, but that was before the story broke.
Or maybe 1980s are calling to get back their Stinger missiles that President Reagan gave to the Taliban to shoot down Russian helicopters.
Anyway, Catherine Herridge at CBS says the CIA and NSA are split on the bounty story, and the president claims he was never briefed.
Election Hopes and Conspiracy Theories
President Trump’s election hopes probably weren’t helped Saturday night. He spoke to a lot of empty seats at the BOK (Bank of Oklahoma) center in Tulsa.
Joe Biden’s having better luck in his basement. A New York Times / Sienna College Poll put’s him ahead of Trump by 14 points.
Peter Nicholas fantasizes in the Atlantic about life if Trump goes all “resistance” and refuses to accept the election results..
And Politico takes a deep dive into Trumpian conspiracy theories. The Steele Dossier pee tape didn’t make the cut.
John Bolton Cashing in and Everybody Hates Him
John Bolton is cashing in on his service as President Trump’s national security advisor. As is his habit, Trump fired Bolton. So he wrote a book called “The Room where it Happened.” And it seems plenty happened.
Bolton wrote, “obstruction of justice was a way of life in the White House.” And he claims Trump asked China President Xi to help him get re-elected.
Democrats are pissed because Bolton refused to testify at the impeachment hearings.
Meanwhile, the cat’s out of the bag, the horse is out of the barn, the train has left the station…
Even the Cops are Taking a Knee
The cops may be taking a knee but some BLM protesters think it’s a PR stunt. In another PR stunt, or act of solidarity, take your pick, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants somebody to hire Colin Kaepernick. But nobody seems to know when or if teams will take the field.
