MONDAY, JANUARY 26, 2026
This is the culture we've chosen: In a colloquy for the New York Times, David French makes an accurate statement about certain kinds of legal liability:
‘Kristi Noem Needs to Go.’ Three Columnists on ICE in Minneapolis.
[...]
David French: We are witnessing the total breakdown of any meaningful system of accountability for federal officials. The combination of President Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons, his ongoing campaign of pardoning friends and allies, his politicized prosecutions and now his administration’s assurances that federal officers have immunity are creating a new legal reality in the United States. The national government is becoming functionally lawless, and the legal system is struggling to contain his corruption.
That assessment may be basically accurate. On the other hand, the sheer lunacy of the administration's reaction to the latest fatal shooting seems to have taken us to a societal breaking point.
Over the weekend, the sheer lunacy of instant statements by Noem and Bovino and Miller and Bessent seems to have been so undeniable that even a highly permissive society is no longer inclined to deny the obvious.
At present, it looks like Noem is the figure who may be shown the door. But the culture of absurd statement was widespread within the administration this weekend, and it was so transparently ugly and inane that denial and avoidance have suddenly disappeared.
The culture of lunatic MAGA misstatement has suddenly been met with widespread disfavor. Let us say this about that:
The culture of lunatic TrumpWorld misstatement got its start with four years of birtherism performed by then-Citizen Trump on the Fox News Channel. That said, what's the most sacred crazy statement of them all?
Everybody knows what it is! The president's defining lunacy goes exactly like this:
The 2020 presidential election was stolen. It was rigged!
He has said it and said it and said it and said it. Even more than five years later, he continues to say it with numbing regularity.
He has never tried to provide a serious attempt at evidence in support of this poisonous claim. Also, you've never seen an American reporter ask him why he keeps saying this—and you've never seen a major news org announce, through its editorial policy or through the conduct of its news division, that this is a form of lunacy which simply cannot be tolerated for one freaking minute more.
No reporter has ever asked him in person. No news org has ever posed that obvious question through a written public transmission.
In that and in a hundred other ways, major members of the MAGA elite may have come to feel that the craziest attack on the opposition, or the craziest defense of the MAGA tribe, is likely to be the most productive type of attack or defense.
The game has been played that way for a very long time. The lunatic statements offered this weekend—assassin in search of a massacre, domestic terrorist—seem to have taken us over some previously unknown line:
The Wall Street Journal has said it doesn't make sense. So has the New York Post!
No one has ever stood up and asked the president why he behaves in the way he does. Also, as we've often noted, no one has dared to ask if some sort of "personality disorder" might start to explain the highly erratic behavior he persistently displays.
(That said, you don't have to seek the cause of persistent misconduct to say that the persistent misconduct must stop.)
The president's ludicrous misstatements have long been his calling card. That behavior is matched by the mainstream press corps' unwavering cowardice / deference / avoidance.
The president's behavior is completely unacceptable! No news org has ever said it. Over the weekend, lunatic conduct by Noem and Bovino and Miller and Bessent seems to have, if only temporarily, taken us past some red line.
BalasPadamWhat misstatement, Bob? The 2020 presidential election was rigged; you know it as well as everyone else.
Your whole post, all it says is that you're a Democrat, infected by TDS. And it's a waste of space, because everyone here already knows it.
Sad.
So while President he rigged the election so he lost, and while Obama and Biden were President they rigged the election so he won? Dumbass troll. Get the fuck out of here.
PadamThat’s nice, dear. Now please hush — the grownups are trying to have a conversation.😎
BalasPadam
BalasPadamDemocrats so enthusiastically defend illegal aliens that there is no doubt that illegal aliens are their constituency, their voters.
And doesn't this constitutes an undeniable evidence that every election where the Democrat party participates is rigged?
No.
PadamEven the dark lord's minions sometimes like to say silly things.
PadamShort answer: What the fuck are you babbling about ?😎
BalasPadamICE is performing lawful, targeted operations to arrest criminal illegal aliens, and democrats and the state of MN are preventing them from doing their constitutional duties. Pretti illegally interfered while carrying a live firearm wirh the intent to foment a massacre.
BalasPadamObjection! Assumes horseshit not in evidence!!😎
PadamRead the report. Jerk.
PadamJerkoff asshole troll.
Padam"Pretti illegally interfered while carrying a live firearm wirh the intent to foment a massacre."
PadamDa, Dmitry.
"The president's ludicrous misstatements have long been his calling card. That behavior is matched by the mainstream press corps' unwavering cowardice / deference / avoidance."
BalasPadamSomerby has been told this many times. We do not have an activist press. They do not consider it their job to protest anything the president says or does, or to express opinions (other than on their editorial pages) about what is happening in the news. It sees itself as an unbiased objective reporter of facts, to the best of their ability. That means that the commentary Somerby wants to see in the press would clash with their mission statement and violate their ethics, as they seem them.
By ignoring the stated goals of the press itself, Somerby has been disparaging the press, pretending they are bad at their job, reviling journalists and presenting the press as a defective organization. This is problematic because a free press is one of the pillars of democracy, creating an informed and educated voting populace. That function in our society means that we cannot have a prejudiced or biased press and have fair elections.
Because Somerby does not acknowledge reading his comments, he may still be operating under the same ignorance about the function of the press, or he may be fully aware of the role of the press and chiding them daily for propaganda purposes. Hard to know which one.
Somerby complains that the press never asks Trump "why you so crazy, sir?" What kind of answer does Somerby think they would get?
BalasPadam"The president's behavior is completely unacceptable! No news org has ever said it. "
BalasPadamThis is not exactly true. First, the press has diligently reported when key figures in politics and other fields have said this. They have attributed the statements to whoever said them. This happens frequently. Second, the press has written editorials, especially before the presidential election, in which they said words to that effect, urging voters to select the Democratic candidate (once, Hillary, next Biden, then Harris). Third, the press has reported stories where the obvious, if unsaid conclusion is that the president's behavior is unacceptable. This latest shooting is one such example. People should be expected to reach their own conclusions and react accordingly. It is not the job of the press (or the president) to tell voters what to do.
So, when Somerby pretends that no one can see the emperor's new clothes except him, he is being ridiculous. I can only speculate about the point of Somerby's ongoing campaign against journalism. It is tiresome and wrong and yet he keeps writing this crap. I wish one of his friends or relatives would sit him down and talk to him about it. I hate to see anyone wasting their time like this.
I can only speculate about the point of your ongoing campaign against Somerby. It is tiresome and wrong and yet you you keep writing this crap. I wish one of your friends or relatives would sit you down and talk to you about it.
PadamWhat is it with you guys who cannot stand any criticism of Somerby? I disagree with everything that comes out of David in Cal's mouth, but I don't abuse him the way you guys keep abusing your targets here. I ignore him and skip his comments. You can do the same.
PadamI have patiently explained to you and others here that Somerby misrepresents himself as liberal when he is doing something else here. I state, as clearly as I know how, what I consider mistaken in Somerby's posts. You just spew bile. So, why don't you either address my points or leave me alone? I believe Ilya made the same point as I did, that Somerby's criticism of the press today is incorrect. If you want to take a shot at proving that the press NEVER calls the president's behavior unacceptable (when Ilya has posted cites to disprove that idea), go to it.
The Trump Administration Is Lying to Our Faces. Congress Must Act.
BalasPadamThe NY Times editorial board.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/25/opinion/alex-pretti-minneapolis-shooting-border-patrol.html?unlocked_article_code=1.HVA.GCqX.YLz2OUdW3caL&smid=url-share
Walz:
Padam"This is not "we need to see both sides." This is not "we need to wait for this." This is basic human decency. And at this point in time, I'm just asking try, for a moment, to set aside the political side of it and go back and ground in the humanity of this. This family has gone through enough, and to have the most powerful man in the world drag their dead son with absolutely no evidence and gaslight the entire country? This is enough."
The Trump administration has lied to us about what is clearly visible to us. What about the economy, job numbers etcetera ? Absolutely nothing that comes out of the mouth of this felonious liar is to be accepted as true. And of course that goes for his ass kissing minions. You don’t believe that Trump has saved 250,000 American lives?
PadamRepublican Chris Madel announced on Monday that he was ending his run for Minnesota governor, pointing to his party's handling of immigration enforcement in his state as his rationale.
Padam"I cannot support the national Republicans' stated retribution on the citizens of our state, nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so," Madel said in a video posted to X.
Noem never should have made that false statement. It's unacceptable. Of course many on the other side are making equally inflammatory false statements, such as calling the death "murder". But, that doesn't excuse Noem
BalasPadamIt was murder, as is clearly seen on video.
PadamFuck you asshole. It was murder as was the shot to the head through a side window to kill Good.
PadamThe whole world knows she lied in an unacceptable way.
PadamNoem must be impeached.
Padamhttps://imgur.com/gallery/well-you-are-Daw0TUc
PadamWhich lie, dickhead, you fucking fascist freak?
PadamThere were about 50 lies in that little 3 minute statement. Asshole. You came here and lie yourself. Who the fuck do you think you’re kidding?
"false statements, such as calling the death murder."
PadamMurder, murder, murder. It was murder.
It was a murder. ICE murdered him. He is the victim of a murder.
ICE committed murder. We saw it. We can see it. They are murderers. He was murdered.
To deny this is to condone murder. You become a part of that murder. The one we can all see.
You enable more murders. As long as you refuse to call it murder, they are getting away with murder.
If the state does not investigate a homicide, then it cannot be a murder. From that it follows that if we don't investigate homicides, we will have no murders. An instant drop in murder rate to zero! That's David's logic. Hard to argue with it.
PadamHector - it's the exact opposite. Although ICE is responsible, the deaths in MN come from a situation and environut conducive to these tragedies -- an environment that doesn't exist in FL, TX, etc. Your side is encouraging the kind of behavior that led to this tragedy -- behavior that will lead to more tragedies if its continued.
PadamIf city officials and leftist leaders were truly concerned about the deaths, they would end all the interference -- the whistles, the mobs, etc. And, as an extra benefit more bad people would be removed from Minneapolis. That would also reduce the murder rate.
But there's this pesky first amendment. I know, we should get rid of the whole thing. Notice how David think that he's being clever by insinuating that it's Frey and Walz who are fomenting protests. Everyone can see right through this bullshit.
PadamFL, TX, etc. -- which etc. are we talking about, by the way? -- are not inundated with ICE to the same extent as MN. They sent a small army into Minneapolis, exceeding their entire police force. Quit posting nonsense.
"behavior that will lead to more tragedies if its continued."
PadamI think you meant to say behavior that will lead to more murders if it's continued.
The entire cabinet along with Trump should be impeached.
BalasPadam"Judge Blocks Feds From Destroying Evidence in Minnesota Shooting"
BalasPadamThink about it.
It's kind of too late. The agents to murdered Pretti ran away from the scene before it could've been secured. They just left his body there.
PadamNothing speaks of a guilty conscience more than running away from the scene of the crime.
They're putting Alex Pretri's AI looksmax imagine on times square billboards lmfao, even in death he's too ugly to be a martyr.
BalasPadam