Jefficus
@spiraljazz.bsky.social
Optimist, realist, and always seeking the truth and the beauty both.
Also jazz.
(Struggling of course with the optimism these days)
Also jazz.
(Struggling of course with the optimism these days)
Reposted by Jefficus
In case you have never seen this.
December 13, 2025 at 10:38 PM
In case you have never seen this.
Reposted by Jefficus
In 1993, Trump signed mortgages for 2 homes in Florida, claiming each as his principal residence.
He does not appear to have ever lived in either, let alone used them as a principal residence. They were investment properties & rented out.
Yet he accuses others of fraud?
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
He does not appear to have ever lived in either, let alone used them as a principal residence. They were investment properties & rented out.
Yet he accuses others of fraud?
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
Trump’s Own Mortgages Match His Description of Mortgage Fraud, Records Reveal — ProPublica
The Trump administration has argued that Fed board member Lisa Cook may have committed mortgage fraud by declaring more than one primary residence on her loans. We found Trump once did the very thing ...
apple.news
December 12, 2025 at 6:58 PM
In 1993, Trump signed mortgages for 2 homes in Florida, claiming each as his principal residence.
He does not appear to have ever lived in either, let alone used them as a principal residence. They were investment properties & rented out.
Yet he accuses others of fraud?
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
He does not appear to have ever lived in either, let alone used them as a principal residence. They were investment properties & rented out.
Yet he accuses others of fraud?
#USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
Reposted by Jefficus
I was going to just share an excerpt of this great @donmoyn.bsky.social piece, but there are too many excerpts worth sharing. Just read the whole thing. If you care about governance, democracy, and the rule of law, these issues are crucial. open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni...
At will? Whose will?
Removing independent agency heads is part of a broader assault on a nonpartisan government
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 12:43 PM
I was going to just share an excerpt of this great @donmoyn.bsky.social piece, but there are too many excerpts worth sharing. Just read the whole thing. If you care about governance, democracy, and the rule of law, these issues are crucial. open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni...
Reposted by Jefficus
As with everything he says, this is wildly uninformed. Formula keeps getting better and saves lives. And modern research indicates that outcomes are roughly the same. There are reasons to breastfeed but your child isn’t suffering if you don’t
RFK Jr: "All of the ingenuity of corporate America has not produced an infant formula that is superior in nutrition and all the qualities that we want to the infant formula that God made, which is the infant formula in a mother's breast."
December 8, 2025 at 10:14 PM
As with everything he says, this is wildly uninformed. Formula keeps getting better and saves lives. And modern research indicates that outcomes are roughly the same. There are reasons to breastfeed but your child isn’t suffering if you don’t
Reposted by Jefficus
Egg producers suspect bird flu is traveling through the air.
The USDA didn’t test the theory after a disastrous Midwestern outbreak.
Here’s how we did.
By @natlash.bsky.social
The USDA didn’t test the theory after a disastrous Midwestern outbreak.
Here’s how we did.
By @natlash.bsky.social
How ProPublica Investigated a Bird Flu Outbreak in America’s Heartland
Early this year, bird flu ripped through 80 farms in Ohio and Indiana. Using genetic markers, wind simulations, satellite imagery, property records and more, we found that the virus could’ve been airb...
www.propublica.org
December 8, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Egg producers suspect bird flu is traveling through the air.
The USDA didn’t test the theory after a disastrous Midwestern outbreak.
Here’s how we did.
By @natlash.bsky.social
The USDA didn’t test the theory after a disastrous Midwestern outbreak.
Here’s how we did.
By @natlash.bsky.social
Reposted by Jefficus
Marc Elias is one of the heroes of our time, leaving Big Law to fight this assault on democracy at every level. Heather Cox Richardson is my second inspiration, using her deep history knowledge to show how these disparate attacks fit larger patterns—and to chart a path forward against all adversity.
Some news as I try to bring some order to all the different things I do:
American Conversations: Marc Elias
Hi Folks:
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com
December 8, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Marc Elias is one of the heroes of our time, leaving Big Law to fight this assault on democracy at every level. Heather Cox Richardson is my second inspiration, using her deep history knowledge to show how these disparate attacks fit larger patterns—and to chart a path forward against all adversity.
Reposted by Jefficus
"They wanted this to go differently."
The crackdown isn’t going as planned. Courts are blocking schemes, cities are pushing back, and protesters are making life very uncomfortable for Trump’s enforcers.
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social and @timmiller.bsky.social explain how resistance is working.
The crackdown isn’t going as planned. Courts are blocking schemes, cities are pushing back, and protesters are making life very uncomfortable for Trump’s enforcers.
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social and @timmiller.bsky.social explain how resistance is working.
December 8, 2025 at 11:12 PM
"They wanted this to go differently."
The crackdown isn’t going as planned. Courts are blocking schemes, cities are pushing back, and protesters are making life very uncomfortable for Trump’s enforcers.
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social and @timmiller.bsky.social explain how resistance is working.
The crackdown isn’t going as planned. Courts are blocking schemes, cities are pushing back, and protesters are making life very uncomfortable for Trump’s enforcers.
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social and @timmiller.bsky.social explain how resistance is working.
Reposted by Jefficus
The fact that our country did this once was already unconscionable.
To have revived it is truly depraved.
Those responsible belong in prison - all the way up the chain of command.
To have revived it is truly depraved.
Those responsible belong in prison - all the way up the chain of command.
They're using the confinement box, one of the most horrific methods of CIA torture in the post-9/11 black sites, against migrants now. This is the direct result of the lack of consequences for the architects of the torture program. Either there will be criminal penalties for this or it will expand.
Torture Techniques from CIA Black Sites Were Used at Alligator Alcatraz
Amnesty International, interviewing migrant detainees, identifies use of the confinement box. There can be no denying it is a torture prison
www.forever-wars.com
December 8, 2025 at 11:50 PM
The fact that our country did this once was already unconscionable.
To have revived it is truly depraved.
Those responsible belong in prison - all the way up the chain of command.
To have revived it is truly depraved.
Those responsible belong in prison - all the way up the chain of command.
Reposted by Jefficus
“When a government uses the imagery of death to project strength, it is no longer fighting terrorism; it’s rehearsing dictatorship.”
www.timesofisrael.com/far-right-mk...
www.timesofisrael.com/far-right-mk...
Far-right MKs sport noose-shaped pins at hearing on controversial death penalty bill
Ben Gvir draws condemnation after display at Knesset meeting; MKs pushing bill mandating capital punishment are told its language may not be constitutional
www.timesofisrael.com
December 8, 2025 at 11:52 PM
“When a government uses the imagery of death to project strength, it is no longer fighting terrorism; it’s rehearsing dictatorship.”
www.timesofisrael.com/far-right-mk...
www.timesofisrael.com/far-right-mk...
Reposted by Jefficus
Abbe Lowell, the attorney who is representing Letitia James: “I can't tell you a time in the federal system...where a federal prosecutor thought a case was strong enough to bring to a grand jury, and the grand jury said no.” @kaitlancollins.bsky.social
December 5, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Abbe Lowell, the attorney who is representing Letitia James: “I can't tell you a time in the federal system...where a federal prosecutor thought a case was strong enough to bring to a grand jury, and the grand jury said no.” @kaitlancollins.bsky.social
Reposted by Jefficus
The US government is summarily executing people on a weekly basis without telling the American people any of their names or presenting any proof of their guilt, for alleged crimes that do not carry the death penalty in the US.
December 6, 2025 at 2:17 PM
The US government is summarily executing people on a weekly basis without telling the American people any of their names or presenting any proof of their guilt, for alleged crimes that do not carry the death penalty in the US.
Reposted by Jefficus
The Roberts Six have thoroughly politicized the Court and turned it into a reliable arm of the RNC.
Democrats should have no reservations about calling them out for it, demanding resignations from these bought-off hacks and running on a promise to enact sweeping reforms.
Democrats should have no reservations about calling them out for it, demanding resignations from these bought-off hacks and running on a promise to enact sweeping reforms.
Democrats need to lay the groundwork for reform by attacking the villains on the Supreme Court - loudly, angrily, personally, relentlessly. And they should start now.
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
paulwaldman.substack.com/p/democrats-...
Democrats Need to Treat the Supreme Court Like the Villain It Is
The Court is out of control, and we'll never see reform unless we build the case for it. Starting now.
paulwaldman.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 7:34 PM
The Roberts Six have thoroughly politicized the Court and turned it into a reliable arm of the RNC.
Democrats should have no reservations about calling them out for it, demanding resignations from these bought-off hacks and running on a promise to enact sweeping reforms.
Democrats should have no reservations about calling them out for it, demanding resignations from these bought-off hacks and running on a promise to enact sweeping reforms.
Reposted by Jefficus
I've been sending chapters from my upcoming pop-sci book to expert fact-checkers and it's useful but also WAY more stressful than sharing work with the general public. It's like you go out to do karaoke with your friends and the original musician is in the front row telling you which notes are off.
December 5, 2025 at 4:54 PM
I've been sending chapters from my upcoming pop-sci book to expert fact-checkers and it's useful but also WAY more stressful than sharing work with the general public. It's like you go out to do karaoke with your friends and the original musician is in the front row telling you which notes are off.
Reposted by Jefficus
Congress used to have the power of the purse and the power to declare war.
December 5, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Congress used to have the power of the purse and the power to declare war.
Reposted by Jefficus
Yes, this is worth listening to.
In my very long memory of public affairs, have never heard a public statement by a "president" (a) more alarming in mental health terms, and also (b) more overtly racist and hate-filled.
Watch carefully the sycophants around Trump as he rants. They *all* know...
In my very long memory of public affairs, have never heard a public statement by a "president" (a) more alarming in mental health terms, and also (b) more overtly racist and hate-filled.
Watch carefully the sycophants around Trump as he rants. They *all* know...
I hope people take two minutes to listen to this shocking display of bigotry. It brings clarity to what we are fighting against. We should all be sick to hear such un-American drivel from the President of the United States.
Trump: "It’s a hellhole right now. And those Somalians should be out of here. They've destroyed our country. And all they do is complain, complain, complain. You have her. She’s always talking about the Constitution provides me with – go back to your own country and figure out your constitution."
December 4, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Yes, this is worth listening to.
In my very long memory of public affairs, have never heard a public statement by a "president" (a) more alarming in mental health terms, and also (b) more overtly racist and hate-filled.
Watch carefully the sycophants around Trump as he rants. They *all* know...
In my very long memory of public affairs, have never heard a public statement by a "president" (a) more alarming in mental health terms, and also (b) more overtly racist and hate-filled.
Watch carefully the sycophants around Trump as he rants. They *all* know...
Reposted by Jefficus
ICE turns Trump's gutter racist ramblings into federal policy. Disgusting. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/u...
New ICE Operation Is Said to Target Somali Migrants in Twin Cities
www.nytimes.com
December 3, 2025 at 3:10 AM
ICE turns Trump's gutter racist ramblings into federal policy. Disgusting. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/u...
Reposted by Jefficus
Today marks one year since the Dec. 3, 2024 martial law declaration that rocked South Korea and still reverberates today. What’s on my mind today is the grit of South Koreans who rushed to the National Assembly that night, in freezing weather, to demand a return to democratic government.
December 3, 2025 at 3:09 AM
Today marks one year since the Dec. 3, 2024 martial law declaration that rocked South Korea and still reverberates today. What’s on my mind today is the grit of South Koreans who rushed to the National Assembly that night, in freezing weather, to demand a return to democratic government.
Reposted by Jefficus
Wow.
"It gives me no pleasure to say what I’m about to say because I worked with Pete Hegseth for seven or eight years at Fox News. This is an act of a war crime .... There’s absolutely no legal basis for it.”
- Newsmax's Judge Napolitano
"It gives me no pleasure to say what I’m about to say because I worked with Pete Hegseth for seven or eight years at Fox News. This is an act of a war crime .... There’s absolutely no legal basis for it.”
- Newsmax's Judge Napolitano
Woah. Newsmax’s legal analyst just said Pete Hegseth and everyone involved in the illegal boat strike should be “prosecuted for a war crime.”
They’ve even lost Newsmax on this one.
They’ve even lost Newsmax on this one.
December 3, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Reposted by Jefficus
Many don’t realize that immigration judges are part of the executive branch not the judicial branch under U.S. law. They are being purged to install what Kristi Noem calls “deportation judges.” We need reform—and independent immigration judges.
December 3, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Many don’t realize that immigration judges are part of the executive branch not the judicial branch under U.S. law. They are being purged to install what Kristi Noem calls “deportation judges.” We need reform—and independent immigration judges.
Reposted by Jefficus
Good reminder that Trump was guilty of an egregious crime simply in Georgia, let alone the rest of the country, and should have served a significant stint in prison. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
The Last Big Case Against Trump Has Been Dropped
The U.S. justice and political systems have shown that they can’t hold the president and his allies to account for trying to steal the 2020 election.
www.theatlantic.com
December 3, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Good reminder that Trump was guilty of an egregious crime simply in Georgia, let alone the rest of the country, and should have served a significant stint in prison. www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
Reposted by Jefficus
A new post from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth just a couple hours after President Trump said he wouldn’t have wanted a second strike on alleged narco boats and that Hegseth said he didn’t order second strikes.
December 1, 2025 at 12:41 AM
A new post from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth just a couple hours after President Trump said he wouldn’t have wanted a second strike on alleged narco boats and that Hegseth said he didn’t order second strikes.
Reposted by Jefficus
list
The First 15 Great Modern English-Language Plays That Occur to Me, One to a Playwright, at Random
1. Arcadia
2. Angels in America
3. Our Town
4. The Importance of Being Earnest
5. A Raisin in the Sun
6. The Piano Lesson
7. Landscape of the Body
8. The Glass Menagerie
9. A Delicate Balance
1/
1. Arcadia
2. Angels in America
3. Our Town
4. The Importance of Being Earnest
5. A Raisin in the Sun
6. The Piano Lesson
7. Landscape of the Body
8. The Glass Menagerie
9. A Delicate Balance
1/
December 1, 2025 at 1:05 AM
list
Reposted by Jefficus
All Trump and his cronies know how to do is steal then lie about it.
December 1, 2025 at 1:19 AM
All Trump and his cronies know how to do is steal then lie about it.
Reposted by Jefficus
The past decade has seen grave threats and unmistakable decline. But the past few days and weeks reveal that we have entered in a new and more perilous chapter here in the U.S. It must be a call to a new kind of action. My latest. open.substack.com/pub/davidrot...
We Have Descended into Utter Madness
A new sense of urgency is needed. Our national crisis has grown much more acute.
open.substack.com
November 29, 2025 at 10:18 PM
The past decade has seen grave threats and unmistakable decline. But the past few days and weeks reveal that we have entered in a new and more perilous chapter here in the U.S. It must be a call to a new kind of action. My latest. open.substack.com/pub/davidrot...